In The News

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos sat before the Senate Subcommittee Tuesday to answer question's about President Trump's budget proposal.The administration put forward a $59 billion education budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which is a $9 billion reduction from the 2017 continuing resolution.Both Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito pressed DeVos about how budget cuts would affect West Virginia's students."I'm very concerned because West Virginia State's Upward Bound... Read More

To increase accountability and protect employees committed to serving veterans, the U.S. Senate has passed bipartisan legislation called the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act.The Act aims to give the VA the tools needed to “hold bad actors accountable” by codifying the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection at the VA, and mandating the head of the office be selected by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate,... Read More

WASHINGTON — During more than two hours of testimony Tuesday, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos answered questions from Senate subcommittee members regarding the Trump administration’s budget proposal.The administration put forward a $59 billion education budget for the upcoming fiscal year, a $9 billion reduction from the 2017 continuing resolution.Two senators who asked DeVos about the suggested plan were U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.... Read More

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., announced Monday more than $390,000 in funding for airports in Bluefield and Logan.The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the grants to the Mercer County and Logan County airport authorities, which will be used to restore and repair airport and runway areas.“As a pilot myself, I understand how important it is that we maintain the infrastructure at our rural airports,” Manchin said in a joint... Read More

West Virginia has been awarded more than $5.4 million in AmeriCorps funding from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the federal agency for volunteering and service programs.“West Virginians are known for joining together and supporting our neighbors,” said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. “These AmeriCorps awards will continue important efforts that have helped many communities, students and families throughout the state. Perhaps no effort stood... Read More

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., welcomed 25 Veterans from West Virginia to the nation’s capital for the eighth “Always Free Honor Flight.” Manchin provided each veteran with a Congressional Record Statement to recognize the veterans’ trip to Washington, D.C., which included visiting Arlington Cemetery, the Iwo Jima Memorial, the World War II Memorial, the Korean War Memorial and the Vietnam War Memorial.“It is... Read More

BUCKHANNON — Buckhannon-Upshur High School celebrated graduates of the class of 2017 on Friday evening with a special guest who offered students words of encouragement.U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito told students that in West Virginia, people are all part of “one big, small town.”“In West Virginia, we’re just one big, small town,” Capito said. “We care for one another, we’re interested in each other’s families, we know each... Read More

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Security has now been improved at the 130th Airlift Wing of the West Virginia Air National Guard.“It makes it much easier for our men and women and security forces to be able to maintain this base and do their job,” said state Adjutant General James Hoyer.A ribbon cutting ceremony was held Friday for the new entrance at the McLaughlin Air National Guard Base in Charleston.U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) was on hand to celebrate the completion of... Read More

Give U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W. Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W. Va., credit: They are looking toward the future.The two are championing a joint venture between Ohio and the Mountain State in developing a new ethane storage hub in the Ohio Valley Region.The plan makes great sense, as West Virginia and Ohio are both home to a wealth of natural gas in the Marcellus, Utica and Russellville shales.Ethane is a derivative of natural gas and is used in the plastics and chemical industries. The hub... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Several members of the U.S. Senate took to the Senate floor Thursday to address the nation’s opioid crisis.U.S. Senator Joe Manchin called for the colloquy. Manchin and fellow West Virginia U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito were the first speakers.Manchin called for instruction of children to be part of the fight.“The United States of America should start educating in every class. You’re not too young to know what this can do to you,”... Read More

Although the Trump administration initially suggested the Office of National Drug Control Policy’s budget would be slashed by 95 percent, the 2018 budget proposal released Tuesday proposes a 3 percent cut to the ONDCP. Specifically, the Drug-Free Communities Program would be cut by $3 million (from $95 million to $92 million), and the High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program would be cut by $6 million (from $250 million to $244 million). Nine cities throughout... Read More

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., welcomed 25 West Virginia veterans to the nation’s capital Wednesday.The group was visiting Washington for its eighth “Always Free Honor Flight,” which also included stops at Arlington Cemetery and numerous war memorials. The veterans served in wars from World War II to the Vietnam War, as well as stateside.Five JROTC cadets from southern West Virginia high schools accompanied the group as... Read More

RONCEVERTE, W.Va. (AP) — A U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic has opened in West Virginia after air-quality issues led to the previous one being closed in 2015.The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports (http://bit.ly/2qiDrrk ) state officials opened the Greenbrier VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic on Monday. The clinic's services include mental health and primary care.Sen. Shelley Moore Capito says the former clinic was unacceptable and that the new one is the result of... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., announced Monday that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will award $8,535,702 to health centers in Huntington and Baker, West Virginia. The funding will be used to support the medical, dental, behavioral health and pharmaceutical services the centers provide."Both Valley Health Systems and E.A. Hawse Health Center provide critically important care to the communities they serve," Manchin... Read More

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., presided over a hearing Tuesday regarding legislation that would affect air quality standards, specifically regarding ozone.The bills, Senate Bills 263 and 452, would delay the implementation and enforcement of standards to allow governments and businesses additional time to comply with the guidelines.Capito serves as chairwoman of the Clean Air and Nuclear Safety Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. The... Read More

The White House has buckled to major congressional pressure and restored more than $300 million in funding to fight drug abuse.President Trump's budget proposal released Tuesday does not cut the funding of the Office of the National Drug Control Policy. An earlier leaked budget proposal eliminated funding for the office, claiming it was duplicative.But the proposed cut caused an uproar in Congress, which just passed major legislation to combat the opioid abuse epidemic last year.Lawmakers... Read More

The White House has backed down from its controversial proposal to virtually eliminate funding for the federal drug control office amid a nationwide opioid epidemic.The administration was originally eyeing a 95 percent cut to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, POLITICO first reported earlier this month. The cut would have essentially halved the staff at the office overseeing the nation's response to the opioid epidemic while slashing two major grant programs.But after facing pressure... Read More

Ever since 1917, any American service member killed or wounded in action has been awarded with the Purple Heart, a medal intended to show the nation’s gratitude for the sacrifice he or she made in service to the country.U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., has personal reasons for signing onto a bill working its way through the United States Senate that would make it a crime to sell a deceased or wounded soldier’s Purple Heart.“My father is a Purple Heart recipient, and... Read More

RONCEVERTE — Wrapping up a battle waged since 2014, state officials and West Virginia’s congressional delegation opened the Greenbrier VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic here on Monday.After air-quality issues led to the closure of the old Greenbrier clinic temporarily in 2014 and permanently in 2015, area veterans had to either visit temporary mobile clinics or trek up to Beckley to one of the state’s main VA hospitals.As Stacy Vasquez, director of the Beckley VA... Read More

WHEELING — West Virginia’s congressional delegation is showing a unified front in pushing for an ethane storage hub for central Appalachia, and they hope state leaders in Ohio and Pennsylvania join them.U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., were joined Thursday by Rep. David McKinley, R-W.Va., and American Chemistry Council President Cal Dooley for a news conference to tout the economic benefits of placing the hub near oil and gas reserves in Appalachia... Read More