The year has started very quickly for the Marion County Chamber.  Moving the Annual Legislative Breakfast prior to the start of the Legislative Session in Charleston has proved to be a good move.  Over 130 members and guests attended the event on January 8^th and we were able to share our Legislative Agenda with our Delegates and Senators and ask their support on some key projects for Marion County.

Topping our list was the construction of a new WV State Office Complex.  The Chamber is anxious help facilitate plans to demolish the current structure closed in 2009 and begin work on the new facility.  Workers that have been displaced throughout the county deserve to return to one location where they can serve the needs of our residents in a much more efficient manner.

Also included on our list is both the support for Fairmont State University to receive equitable funding from the state and the construction of the new Advanced Technical Training Center in Marion County.  Both of these projects are crucial to the economic growth of our county and we need to stay on top of these issues with our legislators.

Although it is not a state issue, Fairmont General Hospital is working with our Federal Delegation to ensure that they continue to receive the designation of Sole Community Provider.  With this designation comes millions of dollars and the Chamber has enlisted the help of our State Delegation and Governor Manchin to assist with this issue.

The students in both the Youth Leadership Programs and the Senior Forum are hard at work on creating legislation to support Charter Schools.  This concept, allowed in 47 out of 50 U.S states, will be a much debated issue during this Session and we are proud of our students for tackling it.  Through this blog and press releases, the MCCC will keep our members abreast of the success of this legislation.

In other news, we are not sure if many of our members realize that Senator Byrd has inserted an amendment into the U.S. Senate’s final health care reform bill that could have devastating effects on our state.  The amendment deals with black lung benefits and would change the current system to one that would give benefits without the step of obtaining a medical diagnosis and it would be retroactive to 2005.  It is estimated that this change, if enacted by Congress, could add hundreds of millions of dollars to Workers’ Compensation costs in West Virginia and would set us back years.  Worker’s Compensation Reform was a huge win for the business community and we must find ways to make our state more attractive to businesses.  The MCCC feels that coal mines and especially our miners are crucial to the state’s economy and they should be provided with every benefit that is due to them.  A medical diagnosis would ensure that the hard working miners in our state, who are entitled to these benefits, receive them.  There is much more on this issue and I urge all of our members to read everything they can about this amendment because, if passed, will change things in our state.  

 Tina Shaw, President