Gov.
Earl Ray Tomblin in his State of the State address in 2015 highlighted the elimination
of the state’s
business franchise tax, to encourage employers to invest in West Virginia. The governor
also referenced job growth in the state that would reach 30,000 new jobs each
year through 2018, while also speaking on the drug abuse problem and heroin
rise in the state of West Virginia.
On that basis in his final State of the State address
expect Gov. Tomblin to talk more about the job growth in the state. Expressing
how many jobs had been created in the past year and what the creation of new
jobs number total will be for this year. In the CPS employment survey West
Virginia added 4,889 new jobs in 2015 falling 25,111 short which is
significantly under the projected number of 30,000. It is important for the
Marshall community because it means there has been a drop in jobs being created
meaning less opportunities for students to stay in West Virginia. What is also
expected tonight with the address besides jobs creation is the energy sector. According
to West Virginia Metro News coal severance, oil and natural gas collections are
down 30 to 50 percent from last year.
Gov. Tomblin big topic in the past year
address about managing the budget will most likely be the same big topic spoken
again tonight. There is a shortfall in the budget the same as 2015. WV Metro
News reported in October that the governor announced a 4 percent budget cut for
most agencies. It was projected that in 2016 the state would have a $250
million deficit in the fiscal year.
Balancing the budget
is going to be a topic point in the State of the State address because of the projected
deficit. The governor should include a clear-cut plan in the address. The
shortfalls in the budget are presumed severe the governor needs to send a
strong message of a confident plan as one of the points in the speech tonight. It
is an important to the Marshall student body, faculty and administration because
high education has seen significant cuts due to budgetary shortfalls by the
state.
Another key topic Gov.
Tomblin won’t skirt around the drug overdose and addiction problems facing the
state. The governor’s assurance of how the state will continue to combat the
issue should be expected in the annual address. This is a big issue in the
state as President Obama visited Charleston, West Virginia to talk about the
epidemic facing the state in October. In a report by Robert Wood Johnson and
Trust for America’s Health it has been stated that West Virginia is the state
with the highest rate of overdose deaths in the United States. Drugs have been affecting
the Huntington area putting residents and the Marshall community in danger.
Having a plan to combat this is important for curving the epidemic out of the
Huntington area.
The drug overdose and
addiction epidemic should have a big part in the governor’s State of the State
address. Dr. Rahul Gupta told the Washington Times that there’s a limited
offering of substance abuse programs provided in the state making it hard for
those in poor regions of the state to get help. 34 deaths out of 100,000 West
Virginias in a two-year span from 2011-13.
Gov. Tomblin has said in the upcoming year he wanted to
identify more ways to enhance the states efforts.
Even though drugs and
the budget deficit has the most likely chances of dominating the address. In
the past year’s address, the governor also made note of the states
infrastructure and how $48 million had been spent by the Divisions of Highways for
resurfacing and bridge work. Gov. Tomblin said, “Our state’s highways and bridges
are critical to our continued economic growth.” This idea of infrastructure can
be expressed once again in the governor’s annual speech in the new year.
A final note of what
to expect from the State of the State address is look back in the Gov. Tomblin administration
and the accomplishments made while he has been governor. It is his final State
of the State address its expected to be a strong stand tonight by the governor.
What he has done to better West Virginia and what his plan is to continue forward
to finish out his term. The Marshall community
needs a plan and pointed strategy to combat the many problems facing the state
in this new year.
