WHEELING - A state trooper provided security for West Virginia's next governor in Wheeling on Tuesday, signifying the transition about to happen in the state's government in less than a week.
Current state Senate President Earl Ray Tomblin, D-Logan, this week said he will largely continue the policies set forth by Gov. Joe Manchin when it comes to education, energy and fiscal responsibility.
Tomblin anticipates taking office as West Virginia's acting governor on Monday - the same day Manchin is expected to be sworn in as U.S. senator. Tomblin said he will attend Manchin's swearing-in ceremony in Washington, then assume the governor's office upon his return.
"For as long as I can remember, as soon as victory is declared in the general election the incoming governor is immediately assigned security," Tomblin said, noting this has been tradition since the Caperton administration.
Since Manchin's election to the U.S. Senate in the Nov. 2 special election, Tomblin has been considered an incoming governor and assigned security detail.
And as Manchin clears out his gubernatorial office, Tomblin is preparing for the transition from the Senate President's office.
"Probably by the weekend, (Manchin's) office and his work there will pretty much wrap up," Tomblin said. "I think Sunday night - or Monday morning for sure - he'll have to be in Washington to take his oath. He will be transitioning out of his office this week, and I will be moving into that office on Monday."
When he does assume the governor's office, Tomblin said his legislative agenda will focus on three primary areas:
- Education: Manchin tried this summer to get the Legislature to go along with proposed changes to the state's education system, Tomblin noted, but his efforts were overshadowed by the death of U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., and the special election to his seat.
"The members of the House, Senate, the state Board of Education, the labor people ... they really did work super hard," he said. "But they simply could not come up with something that everyone could agree on.
"But I think there was a lot of groundwork laid there. Everybody around the table realized that we do have a problem with our education system. ... One thing I would like to do is build upon what we already have done, so that we can have quality education in the state.
- Energy: "We're blessed to have the natural resources," he noted. "Of course we're under attack from the EPA and federal government. We may not all like coal, but in West Virginia we're still producing it. It's producing jobs, producing revenue for the state.
"Quite honestly, I don't think there is a real alternative today if we shut down the coal mines and go to wind power. We need to look at a transition."
- Fiscal responsibility: Despite being one of only a handful of states to have surpluses in recent years, West Virginia faces expected major shortfalls by 2012. Increased costs resulting from Medicaid and federal health care reform legislation passed last year alone are expected to cost the state more than $200 million annually, according to Tomblin.
Still, he believes he has the experience to lead the state through the economic storm.
Tomblin, 58, is a native of Chapmanville in Logan County. He was first elected to the state House of Delegates in 1974, five days before graduating from West Virginia University with a bachelor's in business administration.
He served six years in the House before running for the West Virginia Senate in 1980. During those years, Tomblin also obtained his master's in business administration degree from Marshall University and opened the Outside Inn restaurant in Chapmanville. He operated the restaurant for 12 years, "meeting payroll" and "dealing with taxes and payroll."
He served as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee before first being elected Senate president in 1995. At that time he closed his restaurant to focus squarely on his new role.
"The Senate is now my business," Tomblin said.
He acknowledged having real estate interests and operating rental properties.
Tomblin has served longer as Senate president than any other in the state's history, and he has overseen much of the state's budgeting process during the past 16 years.
"When you are elected by your peers, you know that part of your responsibility is that something could happen and you could be sitting in that (the governor's) office and making those decisions," he said. "Hopefully, when the time comes, we will be able to balance the budget. We at least have some planning time now.
"You hate to toot your own horn, but I don't know of anyone else in this state who has as much experience dealing with our budget that I have," he added.
As Manchin has been know to ride his motorcycle while governor, Tomblin is an avid all-terrain vehicle rider. He said he also likes to garden and do "any kind of outside work."
His wife, Joanne, serves as president of Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College. They have one son, Brent, age 20, who is a student at the college.
