CHARLESTON - Concerns with how the succession of governor would be handled and its aftermath ended up having an impact on the whole regular session of the West Virginia Legislature.
The Legislature concluded its regular session at midnight Saturday, although state lawmakers will return to the Capitol today to begin working for the next week or so on the state's budget.
With a ruling made in the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, it was determined an election would have to be held to fill out the remainder of the unexpired term of former Gov. Joe Manchin who was elected in November to the U.S. Senate. A special primary election will be held May 14 with the special general election set for Oct. 4.
Eight Republicans and six Democrats will be vying for the position and many of them were state legislators.
"It was a unique session," said Del. Bill Anderson, R-Wood. "Many of those with presiding positions (in the Legislature) were also candidates for governor.
"It made for a very unique dynamic throughout the entire session."
Some legislators felt the situation slowed down the whole process with certain officials trying to gain favor while others were trying to prevent others from gaining favor.
"This session was disappointing," said Del. John Ellem, R-Wood. "I was not happy with how a number of things were handled.
"I never really appreciated having a (duly elected) governor in charge. This session ended up being a free-for-all. There were a lot of politics in how the process occurred on a number of bills."
According to Ellem, the most positive thing the Legislature was able to accomplish was to approve a one-percent reduction in the state food tax, going from 3 percent down to 2 percent.
"We were able to accomplish a modest amount of tax reduction," he said.
The Legislature also was able to strengthen the state's ethics acts in regards to legislators, including requiring more disclosures and creating a one-year waiting period for people going from the state government into lobbying positions.
However, bills dealing with the unfunded OPEB liabilities and other concerns did not get passed.
Anderson said strides were made in bills that would clear the way to build a plant in the Northern Panhandle that would process the gas tapped from the Marcellus Shale deposit. The project can help create many jobs. The bill deals with the development of the manufacturing industry after natural gas comes out of the ground in what are called "cracker" facilities. The Marcellus Gas and Manufacturing Development Act of 2011 provides incentives for companies to develop and process the gas here in West Virginia rather than pipe the gas out of state.
Anderson said something would have to be done during the budget session to provide needed money to hire additional EPA inspectors in dealing with increased drilling with the Marcellus Shale deposit to protect local water supplies and more.
Del. Tom Azinger, R-Wood, said they were able to pass a bill to provide insurance coverage for children with autism relating to their condition as well as passing a bill to provide a number of state employees with a needed pay raise.
"We were able to do some good things," he said.
Azinger was upset a bill that would have required a prescription for Sudafed did not pass.
"That was my biggest disappointment this session," he said. "Meth will have a devastating effect on our youth."
Sudafed is used in the production of meth. By requiring a prescription, lawmakers hoped to cut down on access which would then reduce the numbers of illegal drug labs in the state. Opponents of the bill said it took away a consumer's choice and ended up costing people more to have to go to the doctor to get the prescription.
Azinger was also unhappy that a bill dealing with how natural gas from the Marcellus Shale deposit would be tapped was not agreed upon and ended up stalled in committee. He hopes they will be able to go back during a special session and put together something everyone could agree on.
"This is the slowest session I have ever experienced," he said.
