West Virginia Delegate Gary Howell chairs the Economic Development Committee in the West Virginia legislature. He is using recent tax and fee hikes in Maryland to attract business to Mineral County and other areas of his state. A targeted letter sent to data companies inviting them to his state is having success – even with companies who didn’t receive a letter…     “One company immediately got a hold of us that we had not sent a letter and they said one of the companies we deal with sent us the letter and let us know and we’ve talked with…

West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey has submitted a waiver request to the US Department of Agriculture to remove the eligibility of soda from SNAP benefits. Morrisey says, with this request, the “N” in SNAP will stand for nutrition more so than it has in the past…      “We’re promoting healthy bundles. That’s fresh produce, lean meat, and good opportunities for some hot foods for West Virginians for some products that you’ve never been able to have before. This is the way we have to do it. We have to get West Virginia healthy again. We can make big progress…

Allegany County’s priority list for project funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission is ready for review by the Tri-County Council. Allegany County Community Development Specialist David Nedved says the three westernmost counties in the state are part of the ARC and submit funding requests annually for a variety of projects…     “Every county comes up with their priority list of the projects and then they take the three priority lists and Tri-County Council combine them and then they become one overall priority list for all three counties. So, we had to have our projects ranked, approved, and submitted to…

Affecting positive change begins at a young age. With that in mind, the Leadership Allegany Rising program, presented by the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce, is looking for applications from high school juniors for its tenth cohort beginning in September. Chamber President and CEO Juli McCoy says the seven-month program takes students through diverse topics to educate them to become future leaders…    “Allow the high school juniors to explore health care, social services, local government, economic development, and entrepreneurship as well as higher education to have a better perspective of the community.” Students have until September 5th to apply…

Frankfort High School graduate Abby Beeman has signed another contract to play professional basketball in Iceland.  Beeman averaged 26 points per game last season in Iceland.  She was named the Sunbelt Player of the Year while playing at Marshall University. 

The state of Maryland has a teacher shortage and is looking to convert laid-off federal workers into classroom instructors.  The initiative is known as “Feds to Eds” and looks to solve two problems at once.

On Memorial Day, rescue personnel from Garrett County were dispatched to a remote location on the Youghiogheny River for an injured kayaker. Due to terrain and prolonged extraction time by ground, Maryland State Police Helicopter Trooper 5 was requested to hoist the victim to safety. Once on scene, Trooper 5 located the injured kayaker on the river bank and determined hoisting the victim was necessary due to the remote area and extended arrival time by first responders. The victim was hoisted and flown to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown for treatment.

Maryland’s Drug Affordability Board will now have expanded controls, thanks to a bill recently signed by Governor Wes Moore. Vincent DeMarco of Maryland health Care for All says the new law allows the board to negotiate the cost of expensive drugs for everyone in the state…     “Right now, the Board has the authority to make high-cost drugs more affordable for state and local governments and it’s poised to do that this year which will save Maryland taxpayers millions of dollars. Now with this new authority, the Board will next year be able to help all Marylanders afford their…

The US Senate voted last week to block California’s landmark ban on gas-powered vehicles that would have caused states including Maryland to sell only electric vehicles within the next 8 to 10 years. Chair of the Senate Republican Committee, West Virginia’s Shelly Moore-Capito, said the mandate lacked common sense…      “Electric vehicles don’t work everywhere. I mean they don’t perform. That people don’t want them in certain areas of the country because they don’t match what the needs are. I believe in consumer choice. I don’t think we should be driving consumers to products through rules that are made…

Baseball commissioner Adam Sterne has postponed tonight's opening games for the Dapper Dan Little League.