Looking forward to another 60 Days
Here's what you can expect from us
Good morning and welcome back to 60 Days — where your humble host’s home in Martinsburg was buried by that winter storm that socked eastern West Virginia with heavy, wet snow over the weekend
Today is Monday, January 8, 2024.
Thought we’d get into your inbox at least one more time before the regular session starts on Wednesday, if only to give you a taste of what you can expect from us this time around.
Dave and I have decided to learn from last year and streamline things a little bit. That means rethinking our priorities. Rather than focusing on what’s already happened, we’re planning to put a premium on what’s coming up. In other words, think of the email you’ll receive from us each morning as advance warning as you start your day. For example, we’ll tell you which bills are coming up in committee, update you on any issues likely to be debated during the floor sessions, and let you know of press conferences and any other events linked to the regular session that we know of. We’ll even tell you when the good folks of Preston County host the annual “Buckwheat Breakfast” at the capitol, a legislative fan favorite.
Of course, we’re still planning on having a good time and making 60 Days an easy pill to swallow, but we’re also planning to showcase the work of the hardworking journalists who are under the dome in Charleston day in and day out. Dave and I have been there. We’ve done what they do. It’s a long slog. And they deserve the attention. Helping to promote their work and drive readers to them is the least we can do.
If you were with us last year, you’re probably used to us asking for tips in the form of internet coffee. We’ve been taking coffee donations since we started this newsletter. We decided to go that route because it just didn’t seem right to ask you to pay for an annual subscription for something that we only planned for well … 60 Days.
As this year’s regular session approached, Dave and I talked it over and we decided that it’s time to move into the next phase, to take 60 Days into uncharted territory and commit to a newsletter that will hit inboxes at least once a week, if not twice, after the session ends. If you’re subscription shy, that’s fine. This newsletter will always be free to anyone willing to read it. All we really ask is that you help us get the word out
For those who find value in what we’re doing to promote journalism and journalists in West Virginia, simply sharing 60 Days and occasional coffee donations to see us through to the end will always be an option. But sometime soon, we’ll also be turning on subscriptions. When we do that depends on the amount of support we receive. We’ve already had 22 pledges from among our more than 700 readers —and we hadn’t really even asked. They just magically turned up. If we can pump that up to 70 pledges, roughly ten percent of our current base, then the game is on. Just hit that subscribe button to make a pledge and let us know that you want to hear from us regularly throughout the year.
What to watch for today:
West Virginia lawmakers are in already in Charleston. They’re holding their January interim committee meetings. You can find the schedule for today and tomorrow here.
We’ll see you back here on Wednesday morning. Dave will have a preview of Big Jim’s State of the State address from the floor of the House of Delegates. And be sure to pop open your Substack app in the evening. We’ll be hosting a live chat while Gov. Justice delivers his remarks.
60 Days links:
Senate President Craig Blair, House Speaker Roger Hanshaw and House Democratic leader Sean Hornbuckle participated in the West Virginia Press Association’s annual “Legislative Lookahead.” The event was held on Friday and the AP’s John Raby was there.
If you want to know what many of your fellow West Virginians think should be priorities for this legislative session, look no further than Mountain State Spotlight. Reporters Tyler Dedrick and Duncan Slade have the results of a survey of some 200 West Virginians here. The survey is still open so if you want to tell Spotlight what you think, hit the link and have at it.
And what’s a legislative session without Phil Kabler around to tell you about it. The longtime Charleston Gazette-Mail statehouse reporter has been writing his “Statehouse Beat” column for more than 20 years. He’s got his own take on the upcoming session here. There’s a paywall, but Kabler is worth the price of admission.
Resources:
Thank you for the informative links...and as usual Phil K does an excellent job being "a thorn in the side of politicians". Phil recent writings offers insight into the population decline and growth. I do believe that states having a young, trained, healthy, workforce, where quality of life, diversity is welcomed and s promoted will be able to attract more business and growth than tax deductions.