In The News

WASHINGTON (WV News) — Now is the time for any student who has not yet filled out their 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to do so, according to officials with the U.S. Department of Education. Following months of confusion and delays caused by technical issues with the newly redesigned FAFSA process, federal education officials on Tuesday said they are “determined to close the completion gap” on this year’s FAFSA filings. “We know that community organizations have spent... Read More

With the Mountain Valley Pipeline inching ever closer to its expected completion date at the end of the month, stakeholders and proponents of the project are breathing a sigh of relief. Since the 303-mile pipeline project was initially announced in 2014, West Virginia officials and business leaders have been celebrating its potential to create jobs, increase tax collections and serve as a conduit for moving the state’s abundant stores of natural gas to market. After years of stops and starts... Read More

The U.S. Department of Education has launched a multimillion-dollar program aimed at encouraging more students to complete their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) forms. The FAFSA Student Support Strategy will provide up to $50 million in funding to support organizations with demonstrated experience expanding college access and enrollment in the hopes of seeing more high school students complete a 2024-25 FAFSA, according to a press release. The funds will be prioritized for... Read More

West Virginia’s U.S. senators on Tuesday laid out their education-related concerns to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Dr. Miguel Cardona, including reports of antisemitism on college campuses and recent efforts to forgive student loans. Sens. Joe Manchin, a Democrat, and Shelley Moore Capito, a Republican, each serve on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies, which held a hearing Tuesday regarding the department’s... Read More

We applaud Gov. Jim Justice for taking what steps were possible on the state level to help West Virginia students overcome the federally caused chaos with college financial aid. The federal government’s new application process has been a disaster, with technical issues slowing down what was already an often confusing and laborious process. Not only are the technical issues creating major delays, the process appears to be wrongfully sidelining some students’ applications, causing more... Read More

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WV News) — Students throughout the country working to prepare for the fall semester are still feeling the impact of issues with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. A newly redesigned application process has for months been plagued by technical issues, leaving many still unclear about how much financial assistance they will be able to get to help pay for college. While the fixes to these issues are beginning to roll out, West Virginia officials continue to raise... Read More

Mountain Valley Pipeline, after years of conflict and cost increases, could go into service later this month. Equitrans Midstream, developer of the pipeline, expects to begin operations for MVP on May 31 as long as approval is granted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. A setback occurred last week as a section of the pipeline ruptured during pressure testing in Roanoke County, Virginia. “Inspectors investigating the complaint observed turbid water in the stream channels conveying the... Read More

Senate Republicans have introduced legislation to end the federal electric vehicle and charging stations tax credit. The Eliminating Lavish Incentives to Electric (ELITE) Vehicles Act — led by U.S. Senator John Barrasso, R-Wyoming — stops taxpayer money from subsidizing the purchase of luxury electric vehicles for high-income individuals and corporations, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., announced Friday. “There is no reason that U.S. taxpayers should be bankrolling luxury electric... Read More

U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said Thursday that continued issues for families and students trying to submit the new form for federal aid to help with the costs of colleges and universities are catastrophic. Speaking Thursday afternoon on a virtual briefing with press from her offices at the U.S. Capitol Building, Capito said problems with the new Federal Application for Federal Student Aid are creating uncertainty for families in West Virginia and nationwide, blame she lays at the feet of... Read More

Reacting to protests on campuses across the country, President Joe Biden today said people have the right to free speech but not if it turns violent. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, during a briefing today, said the president’s remarks have come too late. “My question to him would be, where have you been?'” said Capito, R-W.Va. “We’ve seen violence break out on campuses all across the country — here in Washington at George Washington University’s campus, obviously Columbia, UCLA. “I think that... Read More

Gov. Jim Justice declared a state of emergency for higher education because of ongoing problems with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly called FAFSA. His declaration seemed to be a symbolic gesture about ongoing problems with the federal financial aid program as well as an approach to streamlining West Virginia’s part of the process. FAFSA has been rocked by frustrating delays and technical problems stemming from the rollout of a redesigned form intended to ask fewer... Read More

U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., is hoping to send a strong message to the Biden administration by introducing a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s recently released power plant rules. Although Capito said she has “no illusions” that President Joe Biden would sign the resolution into law, she said there is enough support among lawmakers for the measure to pass the Senate and House of Representatives. “The big stumbling... Read More

On April 30, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS), questioned U.S. Department of Education (Education) Secretary Miguel Cardona during a hearing to review the department’s budget requests for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025. In her opening statement, Ranking Member Capito focused on issues with rising antisemitism on college campuses across America, the Free... Read More

Today, on National College Decision Day, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) criticized the Biden administration's handling of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) program, which has led to a significant decrease in completion rates across various categories. Senator Capito highlighted the impact of this issue on students in her state of West Virginia and nationwide. Senator Capito expressed her concern over the decline in FAFSA completion rates, stating, “Freshman FAFSA... Read More

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona condemned the protests at Columbia University and other colleges where demonstrators have been accused of intimidating Jewish students and chanting antisemitic phrases as “unacceptable.” “What’s happening on our campuses is abhorrent,” Cardona told lawmakers at a Senate budget hearing Tuesday. “Hate has no place on our campuses and I’m very concerned with the reports of antisemitism.” Republican senators on the appropriations subcommittee grilled Cardona and... Read More

DAVY — U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-WV, Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced funding Monday from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for water and wastewater infrastructure projects across West Virginia. These awards, which were secured through Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) requests made by Capito and authorized through the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2022,... Read More

In a roughly three-minute-long opening statement in front of Senate appropriators, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona mentioned nearly every major issue in higher education today — except campus unrest. Only after Republican nudging did Cardona address the protests, encampments and antisemitism at campuses across the country and what his department is doing to support students. “You have more immediate means at your disposal. For instance, removing federal funds from institutions that get... Read More

Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Tuesday condemned pro-Palestinian protests and antisemitism on college campuses across the country as “abhorrent.”  “I think what’s happening on our campuses is abhorrent,” Cardona testified to a Senate Appropriations Committee panel. “Hate has no place on our campuses, and I’m very concerned with the reports of antisemitism.” The Biden Cabinet official revealed that the Education Department has 137 open investigations into Title VI enforcement... Read More

Senator Shelley Moore Capito drilled the U.S, Education secretary on the oversight of how colleges are handling protests on their campuses. “I want to ask you to take action to protect Jewish students and restore order on college campuses across America. Discrimination based on national origin violates Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and your department is required to enforce the law,” Capito, R-W.Va., said to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona today. Capito also questioned Cardona about... Read More

U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced funding from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for water and wastewater infrastructure projects across West Virginia. These awards, which were secured through Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) requests made by Senator Capito and authorized through the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2022, will... Read More