Inside West Virginia Politics

In Segment 1, Brad McElhinney of WV Metro News joins us, with a surprise appearance from his dog, to talk about the “weird” differences in covering this year’s legislative session, which was closed to the public during the pandemic. This year, the news media covered the session from above in the galleries for social distancing, a major change from years past when reporters were stationed on the ground floor closer to the legislators.McElhinney says the overriding headline of the session was the governor’s proposed removal of the state income tax, which caused a stir with the suggested sales tax increase to offset the loss of revenue. If the bill had passed, the state would have had the highest sales tax in the country. The bill was shut down in the House of Delegates with a 0-100 vote within hours of the governor saying the House wouldn’t vote on the bill.In Segment 2, Brad McElhinney of WV Metro News returns to our reporters’ roundtable to discuss more highlights of the legislative session, including Educati