(Editorial - Graphic Illustration - MetroCreativeConnection)

West Virginia’s Republican supermajority in the House of Delegate and House Speaker Roger Hanshaw gave residents a peek at their intentions for the upcoming legislative session in January, with what — on the surface — is an impressive plan to focus on job creation and economic development.

Jobs First — Opportunity Everywhere, sounds promising, with priorities including workforce-ready education, a job-creating business climate and responsible economic growth.

“We have the perspective of every West Virginian represented here in the front of the room today. And that means that opinions are different,” Hanshaw, R-Clay, said. “But what unifies those opinions, what unifies all those communities, is the reality that putting jobs first works everywhere, whatever the issue, it’s most effectively solved in an environment that has a robust jobs economy, that has a robust jobs program that puts people to work in good paying jobs and gives them the capacity to make decisions for themselves and their families.”

Among the most important things Hanshaw said about the plan was that it takes “economic development into a direction that removes all political considerations from it and makes economic development decisions based on what’s best for West Virginians. Because we want to double down on the belief that creating a job, putting men and women in good paying jobs, is priority number one for the government.”

What a refreshing take after years of a few extremists waging personal campaigns for their own political and socio-cultural agendas, at the expense of getting any real work done for the rest of us. In fact, there is no doubt some of the attempts made by those folks HURT West Virginia’s economic prospects.

The majority’s plan has intrigued members of the House Democratic caucus, with House Minority Leader Pro Tempore Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, saying “We’re excited to put jobs first.”

Good. Perhaps there will be better work across the aisle and more progress made.

Good-paying jobs, economic growth, better education, better access to affordable healthcare … a better quality of life — that’s what West Virginians want for themselves and their families.

If lawmakers can stay focused on those priorities, there is plenty of hope, indeed, for this session.