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November 03, 2011

With so many things (issues) going on with the state and federal governments that affect our everyday operations and with the 2012 Regular Legislative Session beginning in January, the Association is planning to host three regional meetings to discuss legislative, regulatory and political topics. Each of the three regional programs will commence at 3 p.m. and conclude with a “Friends of Coal” reception.  All WV Coal Association members are encouraged to attend the meeting in their area or all three, if you choose.

The first regional meeting will be held on November 16 at the Waterfront Hotel in Morgantown.  The second meeting will be on November 29 at the Charleston Civic Center and the third on November 30 at the Tamarack Conference Center in Beckley.  Please mark your calendars now.  More information and meeting materials will be forthcoming.

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November 02, 2011

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - State general revenue collections again exceeded expectations last month, pushing the state's current surplus over $69 million just four months into the fiscal year.

The state collected $336.7 million in general revenue during October, about $25.6 million or 8 percent above budget expectations of $311.2 million for the month.

Since the fiscal year began on July 1, the state has taken in just under $1.4 billion in revenue, 5 percent more than the $1.33 billion the state had projected it would collect by this point.

That $1.4 billion represents a 6.5 percent growth rate over last year.

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November 02, 2011

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A strong overseas market for West Virginia coal continues to reap dividends for the state's government finances.

Tomblin administration officials credit coal exports for much of the economic health reflected in October's general revenue tax collections.

Last month's general revenues totaled nearly $337 million. That's $25 million more than expected.

Sales and personal income taxes beat their October estimates by a combined $10 million. These are key sources of general revenue, and are also signs of economic activity.

The state's main business taxes also brought in more than expected last month. So did taxes on coal and other extracted natural resources.

Deputy Revenue Secretary Mark Muchow says coal experts were up 42 percent for the calendar year as of August.

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November 01, 2011

Congratulations to Alpha Natural Resources on the opening of their new corporate headquarters in Bristol, Va.The five-story, state-of-the-art, 130,000-square-foot building sits on 31 acres overlooking Sugar Hollow Park, near Exit 7 on Interstate 81 and will house about 325 employees.

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November 01, 2011

By Rich Trzupek

Lisa Jackson still doesn’t get it. The EPA Administrator is stuck in 1970 and refuses to acknowledge the environmental and economic realities of 2011, as her rambling, misleading Op-Ed that ran in the L.A. Times last week so clearly demonstrates.
Jackson claims, for example, that House Republicans are conducting an "…assault on our environmental and public health protections will mean the difference between sickness and health — in some cases, life and death — for hundreds of thousands of citizens."
She refers here to the proposed "Boiler MACT" and "Utility MACT" (MACT stands for Maximum Achievable Control Technology) rules that the EPA is trying to ram down the nation’s throat at a time we can least afford such pristine luxuries. The fact is that the nation has made enormous progress in cleaning up the air over the last forty years and EPA’s claims that it’s vital to crank down on the thumbscrews in the industrial sector once again are both self-serving and highly dubious. Consider a few facts that Jackson failed to mention:

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