| Opening Note
The Well is where conversations happen at the Capitol — where legislators, lobbyists, and staff compare notes, test the mood, and figure out what matters. This briefing is built the same way: a fast, disciplined read on what is moving in West Virginia government before the day begins.
TOP DEVELOPMENTS
State Election Commission sets hearing on Pritt ballot status
The State Election Commission will meet at noon Aug. 7 to consider two requests to disqualify former Del. Elliott Pritt, R-Fayette, from the November ballot in House District 50. Pritt resigned from the House on Monday amid federal allegations involving a minor but has not voluntarily withdrawn as a candidate.
Secretary of State Kris Warner said the commission is handling an administrative eligibility matter and that the people seeking Pritt’s removal bear the burden of proof. A criminal charge without a conviction does not automatically establish one of the statutory grounds for disqualification. Pritt’s voluntary-withdrawal deadline is Aug. 11, but state law would not permit Republicans to replace him on the ballot if he withdraws on his own. A commission-ordered disqualification could allow a replacement.
The Fayette County Republican Executive Committee plans to meet Aug. 3 to recommend three candidates to Gov. Patrick Morrisey for appointment to Pritt’s unexpired House term. The committee also intends to identify a potential general-election nominee in case the commission removes Pritt from the ballot.
ENERGY AND REGULATION
Coal association questions ratepayer exposure in Fort Martin gas proposal
West Virginia Coal Association President Chris Hamilton said the organization is not categorically opposed to natural gas-fired generation but wants stronger assurances that residential and industrial customers will not bear the financial risk of FirstEnergy’s proposed 1,200-megawatt plant beside the Fort Martin Power Station.
Hamilton also said recently enacted state policies intended to support the modernization and continued operation of coal-fired plants should be given time to work. He argued that projections of future electricity demand may not fully account for data centers and other large industrial users. The Public Service Commission must approve the project, which FirstEnergy says could begin construction in 2027.
FirstEnergy explains proposed ratepayer surcharge for Fort Martin gas plant
FirstEnergy said existing Mon Power and Potomac Edison customers could initially pay a surcharge supporting the proposed 1,200-megawatt natural gas plant beside the Fort Martin Power Station, with those payments reimbursed after a large-load customer signs a service contract. The company said negotiations with a prospective customer are underway and described an agreement as imminent, although no customer is currently under contract.
FirstEnergy maintains that the plant would be an addition to, rather than a replacement for, the Fort Martin and Harrison coal-fired stations. The company selected gas after comparing generation technologies and said it produced the lowest projected levelized cost over the proposed plant’s 30-year life. The Public Service Commission must approve the project; construction could begin in 2027, with commercial operation targeted for 2031.
West Virginia Coal Association President Chris Hamilton said the organization is not categorically opposed to gas generation but remains concerned about potential financial exposure for residential and industrial customers and the absence of firm customer commitments. The commission’s treatment of the temporary surcharge and customer-risk protections will be central to the case.
Central West Virginia flood response enters reconstruction phase
The flood response in Lewis and Upshur counties is beginning to shift from debris removal toward repair and reconstruction. Morrisey called for construction companies and skilled volunteers to coordinate with local officials, while Adjutant General Jim Seward said the West Virginia National Guard’s mission could continue for months.
Guard personnel have removed about 6,000 tons of debris, with the final total expected to exceed 20,000 tons. A Weston grocery store reopened this week, restoring a significant source of food and supplies for the affected area. The state’s request for an expedited federal major-disaster declaration remains a critical next step for longer-term public and individual assistance.
School clothing allowance closes after funds are exhausted
West Virginia’s School Clothing Allowance stopped accepting applications at 11:59 p.m. July 27, one week after the application period opened, because available funding had been depleted. The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families-supported program provides qualifying children with $200 for school clothing.
Senate Health and Human Resources Committee Chairman Brian Helton, R-Fayette, said lawmakers appropriated $11.4 million — the same amount as last year — and that approximately 52,000 children had applied. He said roughly the same number of children are expected to receive assistance as in previous years, despite the compressed application period. The closure creates an immediate affordability issue for otherwise eligible families that did not apply before the money was committed.
STATE AGENCIES AND PUBLIC SERVICES
Education Department details statewide artificial-intelligence rollout
The West Virginia Department of Education provided new implementation details for its statewide framework governing artificial intelligence in schools. The initiative will address classroom use, student-data security, educator training and preparation for technology-related careers.
Virtual training for teachers and administrators is expected to run throughout the 2026-27 school year. Each county is also expected to designate an “AI Mountaineer” who will receive state training and serve as an in-person resource for local educators. More extensive tracking and in-person training are planned for the following school year.
Student programming will include responsible-use instruction and a K-12 career continuum, beginning with elementary exposure to digital sciences, continuing through middle-school technology courses and culminating with workforce-focused AI instruction in high school.
Lottery reports more than $1.33 billion in FY2026 revenue
The West Virginia Lottery generated more than $1.33 billion in revenue during fiscal 2026, according to year-end figures reported by WV News. That exceeds the nearly $1.3 billion in gross sales recorded during fiscal 2025, when the Lottery transferred approximately $611 million to the state.
Lottery proceeds support education, senior services, tourism, infrastructure and other state programs. Detailed transfer totals and results from traditional lottery games, video lottery, casinos, sports wagering and interactive gaming will show how the higher overall revenue affected state accounts.
About 52,000 children apply before clothing-assistance funds run out
Approximately 52,000 West Virginia children applied for the School Clothing Allowance before the state exhausted the program’s available funding and stopped accepting applications.
The federally supported program provides $200 for school clothing to each eligible child. Applications opened July 20, and the Department of Human Services initially said they would be accepted through Aug. 15 or until all available funding had been allocated. The early closure highlights the level of demand and could prompt scrutiny of whether future appropriations are sufficient to keep the program open for the full scheduled application period.
Medicaid comment period closes on nursing-facility payment revision
The Bureau for Medical Services closed public comments Wednesday on State Plan Amendment 26-0003, which would replace the current appraisal-based system for nursing-facility capital reimbursement with a fair-rental-value model.
The department proposes an effective date of July 1, subject to approval by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. State officials say the methodology was developed with stakeholder input and is designed to be cost-neutral in federal fiscal years 2026 and 2027. CMS approval is the next procedural milestone.
Ohio examines additional help for counties facing rising foster-care costs
The Ohio Department of Children and Youth is examining ways to help counties manage increasing foster-care placement expenses, even as the statewide number of children in care has declined. State data showed that the number of children in custody and paid placements fell by approximately 9% from 2020 through late 2025, while placement costs increased by about 68%.
The financial pressure was highlighted this month when Ohio approved $1 million in emergency assistance for Vinton County after 16 children entered custody in a single case. The placements more than doubled the county’s temporary-custody population, with estimated costs of $150 to $250 per child per day and a projected annual expense exceeding $850,000.
The case is prompting broader scrutiny of Ohio’s county-administered child-welfare financing system and the exposure of smaller counties to sudden, high-cost cases.
DNR opens statewide wildlife-disease reporting system
The Division of Natural Resources launched an online reporting tool through which residents can submit photographs, locations and other information about wildlife that appears sick, diseased or dead. Wildlife biologists will use the reports to identify possible population-health events and determine whether additional investigation is needed.
The system supplements, rather than replaces, reports made directly to DNR district offices. The tool could improve the speed and geographic reach of surveillance for wildlife diseases.
FEDERAL, COURTS AND REGULATORY
Greenbrier resident warns resort will deteriorate under Justice ownership
A Greenbrier County resident told U.S. District Judge Frank Volk that The Greenbrier will continue to deteriorate under Justice family ownership, adding a local voice to the pending dispute over the resort’s control and financial condition.
White Sulphur Springs Holdings, an affiliate of Omni Hotels & Resorts, is seeking control of the property through a federal receivership proceeding. The Justice family is contesting that effort while pursuing a financing agreement of up to $500 million with Kennedy Lewis Investment Management to address creditors and fund improvements.
The Justice family disputes allegations that the resort has been broadly mismanaged and says the proposed financing would stabilize the property. The resident’s submission does not determine the receivership request but adds to concerns raised by creditors, former employees and community members about the landmark resort’s condition.
Greenbrier casino-license transfer remains unresolved
The West Virginia Lottery Commission did not take up a proposed transfer of the Greenbrier Casino Club license during its Wednesday meeting, leaving an outstanding regulatory component of the Justice family’s proposed financing agreement with Kennedy Lewis Investment Management.
In the related federal case, U.S. District Judge Frank Volk has ordered a status report by Friday and scheduled a Sept. 3 pretrial conference and Sept. 16 evidentiary hearing if the financing transaction does not close. The proposed deal would provide up to $500 million to address creditors and fund resort improvements. Court documents place the amount owed to White Sulphur Springs Holdings above $387 million.
Lottery officials previously renewed the casino license subject to quarterly financial reviews and have raised concerns about the resort’s debt, tax liens and capitalization. Approval of any license transfer would remain separate from the Justice family’s stated Aug. 7 financing target.
Justice proposes expanding battlefield district into West Virginia
U.S. Sen. Jim Justice introduced bipartisan legislation that would expand the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields National Historic District into three West Virginia counties and one additional Virginia county.
Congress established the district in 1996 to support the preservation and interpretation of Civil War battlefields across eight Virginia counties. The proposed expansion would formally incorporate additional West Virginia sites into the district’s preservation and heritage-tourism work.
Manchin launches effort to elect independent congressional candidates
Former U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin and his daughter, Heather Manchin, have launched the Independent Leadership Council, an organization intended to raise money and provide campaign infrastructure for independent congressional candidates.
Organizers say the initiative is not an attempt to form a third political party. Instead, it plans to concentrate resources on a small number of potentially competitive House and Senate races. A gathering at The Greenbrier brought together approximately 40 donors, political-reform advocates and independent candidates, and advisers said the organization has secured more than eight figures in financial commitments.
Candidates receiving support will be asked to pledge that they will remain independent rather than formally joining the Democratic or Republican Party. Significant questions remain about ballot access, fundraising, congressional committee assignments and whether successful candidates would caucus with either major party.
USDA lists August deadlines for farm assistance programs
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reminded West Virginia producers of several approaching Farm Service Agency deadlines:
- Aug. 3: Nominations for local FSA county committees.
- Aug. 7: Applications for the Assistance for Specialty Crop Farmers program, based on eligible 2025 planted acreage.
- Aug. 12: Applications for the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program covering qualifying crop, tree, bush and vine losses from 2023 and 2024.
- Aug. 31: Review and possible increase of base acres used for Agriculture Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage programs.
The ARC and PLC review is the first broad opportunity for eligible landowners to update base-acre allocations since 2002.
TAX AND CONSUMER CALENDAR
Four-day sales tax holiday starts Friday
West Virginia’s back-to-school sales tax holiday begins at 12:00 a.m. Friday, July 31, and ends at 11:59 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3. Both state and applicable local sales taxes are waived on qualifying purchases.
The per-item limits are:
- Clothing priced at $125 or less.
- Laptop and tablet computers priced at $500 or less.
- School supplies priced at $50 or less.
- Instructional materials priced at $20 or less.
- Certain sports equipment priced at $150 or less.
Eligibility is determined item by item, rather than by the total transaction. Qualifying online purchases are exempt when ordered, paid for and accepted by the retailer during the holiday for immediate shipment.
DATES TO WATCH
Aug. 3: Fayette County Republican Executive Committee meets on the House District 50 vacancy; FSA county-committee nomination deadline.
Aug. 7: State Election Commission hearing on Pritt’s ballot eligibility; specialty-crop assistance deadline; Justice family’s current target for closing the Greenbrier financing transaction.
Aug. 11: Pritt’s statutory voluntary-withdrawal deadline.
Aug. 12: USDA supplemental disaster-relief application deadline.
Aug. 31: ARC and PLC base-acre review deadline.
Sept. 3 and Sept. 16: Federal pretrial conference and evidentiary hearing dates in the Greenbrier litigation, if the financing dispute remains unresolved. |
