2010 Public Policy Priorities

Introduction

For 130 years churches in West Virginia have come together in response to the need to improve the lives of the people of the state. Guided by our biblical and prophetic values, we have sought to honor the dignity of every person and the intrinsic value of every creature. In these times we join together as disciples united under the One who came, “that all may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). Since the 2005 Legislative session, we have presented our annual public policy priorities, with the hope and prayer that they offer an ethically sound resource for government decision making.

Recognizing the pressures placed upon our legislators by many forces and community needs, we are committed to supporting public servants in the difficult task of governing. We hope our public policy issue priorities are beneficial in the process.

Citizen participation in government decision making is vital to our democracy and to good public policy. The Public Policy Issue Priorities of the West Virginia Council of Churches are developed with input from faith-based and citizens groups within West Virginia and distributed to legislative and government officials involved in the legislative process.

We call upon our decision makers to recognize that all public policy, including the state (and federal) budget, have a moral overtone. Especially as they affect the lives of children and the destitute who do not have a vote or voice.

Statements contained in this publication were developed by the Council's Government Concerns and Peace and Justice Program Units and accepted by the Council's Board of Directors in December, 2009.

Contact Information

The Reverend Dennis D. Sparks, Executive Director
West Virginia Council of Churches
2207 Washington Street East
Charleston WV 25311-2218
phone 304.344.3141, e-mail dsparks@wvcc.org.

Hope for Children

The West Virginia Council of Churches believes children are a priority for government. We are concerned that, during this era of budget cutbacks, the many needed and positive governmental programs to protect the children's safety net are subject to the budget ax. We support the goal of reducing poverty in West Virginia by 50% by 2020. Alarmingly, a report by the WV Center for Budget and Policy reported that 63% of the African American children living in Kanawha County live in poverty.

Our support for children calls us to oppose federal and state cuts to TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) because those cuts would directly deny our children who often have the greatest need. We especially focus our concerns in the following areas:

Childhood Care and Education

The first years of life are the most important in the intellectual, emotional and social development of children. Child care workers should be compensated in accordance with this responsibility and calling. We endorse four-year-old-kindergarten, In-Home Family Education, and the expansion of community-based programs that prevent child abuse and improve the quality of childcare and parenting. Currently one child in fifty in West Virginia suffers abuse. We support a state plan for, and increased investment in, programs for the prevention of child abuse.

The West Virginia Council of Churches supports legislation to define reasonable travel time for bus transportation to school for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. We recognize the importance of small, community-based schools that treat children and families fairly, provide accountability, and meet community needs.

We support truancy diversion programs that have an immediate impact on children’s school performance.

Children's Health Coverage

We congratulate the Legislature and state officials for the excellent progress West Virginia has made in providing health coverage through Medicaid and CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) to about 171,856 children living in families earning at or below 220 percent of the federal poverty level. We note that expanding the program to 300% of the federal poverty level would provide the opportunity for health care for an additional 400 children.

We urge our Legislature to:

• Expand CHIP to cover families at 300% of poverty level

• Reduce or eliminate waiting periods for CHIP

• Expand oral health benefits under CHIP

• Eliminate five-year waiting period for legal immigrant children and pregnant women to qualify for CHIP and Medicaid

• Review and act on other provisions in CHIPRA that enhance eligibility and enrollment in CHIP and Medicaid

• Modernize our school health system by coordinating and integrating school health with available community services. We support additional funding for school-based health clinics.

• Support efforts to make healthier food choices available in our schools.

• Address the increased incidence of poor perinatal outcomes among minority groups in our state.

Child Welfare

The West Virginia Council of Churches continues to call upon the State to send children/youth out of state only in special circumstances, for which the state should provide justification. An investment in foster care helps facilitate more adoptions, more normalcy, less out of state care and an overall reduction of the cost of care on a per child basis; therefore we also call for an increased investment in building family based foster care.

The foremost interest regarding child custody decisions should be what is in the best interests of the child.  We support child-centered custody laws that consider each of family's unique circumstances when determining child custody arrangements.

All victims of family violence should have a safe environment, counsel, and support befitting our covenant with the human community. We support strengthening the protective order process by lengthening the time period for such orders, and by increasing penalties for violations.

Health Care

Affordable Health Care

The West Virginia Council of Churches encourages the Legislature to develop legislation that would ensure adequate health care coverage for all West Virginians including an expansion in the area of behavioral health. We endorse the six principles for insuring the people of our state proposed by West Virginians for Affordable Health are:

1. Affordable health insurance is of major importance for the future well-being of West Virginia, and everyone - individuals, government, and employers- share responsibility in arriving at the goal of affordable health insurance for all.

2. Continuing double-digit health care inflation is unsustainable for West Virginia's government, employers, and tax-payers. These groups must work together for meaningful cost containment.

3. The current inequality among payers where some pay below cost while others pay substantially more for the same service is unfair, and a fair system where all payers pay at least the actual cost of service should be created.

4. The private insurance market which permits some insurers to avoid risk is fundamentally flawed and requires reform.

5. Individuals have a responsibility to take care of their health and become informed about the proper and judicious use of the health care system.

6. West Virginia should create a Governor's Office on Health Care to oversee the health care system and ensure affordable health care coverage.

We support recommendations that move the health care delivery system toward a patient-centered, medical home, and expand health insurance to the uninsured.

We also support adequate funding for the implementation of an electronic medical records system. EMRs are a critical component of a patient-centered medical home delivery system.

We support menu-labeling as a way of encouraging healthy meal choices.

Prescription Drugs

We believe that drug companies should be required to report their expenses spent on advertising and promoting particular prescription drugs to physicians and other prescribers. Any prescriber who receives more than $100 in detailing expenses should be identified.

Workers' Health Care

We support legislative safeguards to ensure that funds designated for workers' health care and provided to contractors on state-funded projects are actually used for that purpose.

Medicaid

As the primary medical payer for children in poverty in West Virginia, Medicaid provides an essential service and investment for the future of the state. Additionally, Medicaid is the primary health insurance for indigent elderly who often entrust their health care to the state in exchange for releasing their rights to their property. As the State makes changes in the Medicaid program, many citizens have become vulnerable to having less coverage when much more is needed. In the case that State requires consumers to choose between a "basic" and "enhanced" program, we call upon the State to fully inform participants about the program and make all "consumers" eligible for the enhanced benefit. We encourage the Legislature to expand Medicaid to cover more West Virginians and to take advantage of the maximum federal match. We support increased funding to make Medicaid staffing adequate to meet the citizens’ needs.

Dental Practice

Tooth decay is the most prevalent chronic childhood disease and untreated oral infection can result in a lifetime of poor health. We support legislation that improves access to dental care, particularly in underserved areas. We support improved outreach and reimbursement of oral health for children on Medicaid. Extending oral health benefits to pregnant women enrolled in PEIA and Medicaid leads to better birth outcomes and helps reduce the rate of premature labor and low-birth weight babies.

Tobacco Use

The West Virginia Council of Churches supports efforts to reduce tobacco use in West Virginia by raising the excise tax on cigarettes, as well as on smokeless tobacco, and adopting and enforcing laws restricting secondary smoke in public places. The increased revenues should be used to support and improve health care programs.

Long-Term Care of Seniors

The West Virginia Council of Churches supports efforts to change law and policy to protect vulnerable and destitute elderly citizens in need of long-term nursing care. We also support adequate funding for important in-home care for seniors.

Adequate Living for All

Eliminate poverty

• The West Virginia Council of Churches believes poverty is inexcusable in our nation of plenty. We support and endorse legislation that stimulates the economy by including opportunity for all West Virginians and by reducing the growing chasm between the working poor and the wealthiest of Americans.

• We support the establishment and full state funding of a separate program for higher education for WV Works recipients.

• We support economic, social, and public policies that reduce poverty. The Council encourages the creation of a Governor’s and/or legislative commission to review policies, establish principles, make recommendations, evaluate efforts, and propose legislation to reduce poverty in our state by 50% by 2020.

State Budget

We ask that lawmakers and state Agency personnel investigate ways to raise revenues before cutting any essential services, especially to vulnerable children and seniors. We encourage the full use of stimulus funds available to support these programs.

Support for Working People

We support workers' rights to organize a union and to engage in collective bargaining. We oppose intimidation, retaliation, forced meetings, and other coercive actions by employers or unions aimed at threatening or limiting the right to organize.

We call upon the Legislature to support working people in our state through the following:

• We support legislation to provide a living wage for all workers.

• We support the Unemployment Modernization Act, extending unemployment benefits to part-time workers, victims of domestic violence, and those who lose their jobs for compelling family reasons.

• Increase asset limits for participation in food stamp and other assistance programs for low-income persons.

• Allow tax incentives only for companies that provide wages and benefits in line with the West Virginia Self-Sufficiency Standard.

• We support legislation that ensures paid sick leave for employees.

• We support the creation of a state system of universal voluntary accounts to enable working people to achieve retirement security.

• We support prevailing wage laws that provide wage protection for communities where public construction dollars are spent.

• We support adequate pay for those who work with the most vulnerable: children, the poor, the elderly, and the disabled.

• We support a tax system that provides adequate funding for education, social services, infrastructure and recreation.

• We support a refundable state Earned Income Tax Credit.

Funds for Winter Heating

We call upon the Governor's Office, Public Service Commission and Department of Health and Human Resources to closely monitor any increases in costs of electricity, natural gas and coal, which our citizens use to provide heat in winter.

We call for an oversight committee to ensure that laws are followed regarding any shut-offs of service. We are encouraged by government and community efforts to provide energy assistance and recommend that funds continue to be appropriated in the state budget to help low-income and fixed-income persons with heating expenses.

Economic Development Accountability

West Virginia taxpayers provide millions of dollars each year for state and local economic development incentives. We support greater accountability for and disclosure of these incentives to ensure the creation of quality jobs and an adequate return on taxpayer investment.

Minority Issues

In 2002 the West Virginia Legislature created the Select Committee On Minority Issues, calling upon state officials to address racial disparities in the areas of civil rights, health, education, housing, social issues, employment, economic development and criminal and juvenile justice systems. The report made 36 recommendations. We urge that these issues be immediately addressed and that a Cabinet level Office of Minority Affairs be created.

Stimulus Funds

We encourage the state to take all necessary steps to maximize use of available monies under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and any further stimulus programs.

Civil Liberties

People of whatever sexual orientation must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.

Public Life

Substance Abuse

We support preventive policies and treatment programs that address the problem of substance abuse in our state, including outpatient counseling, inpatient treatment, and residential programs. We support increased investment in accountable addiction treatment, such as that offered by the Healing Place.

Reform of Elections

Faced with many monumental decisions, it is imperative that our government decision makers be free from powerful and wealthy special interest contributors that increasingly dominate elections and legislative decisions.

Reform focuses upon public financing of elections, freeing our Legislature and Judiciary to be informed, to listen to their voter constituency, and to search their own conscience. Public financing helps restore citizen confidence in government decision making. We further support stricter accountability and transparency for campaign finances, including independent expenditures and electioneering communications.

We support greater access to the ballot through the enactment of same-day registration and voting.

Gambling

The West Virginia Council of Churches stands against any expansion of state-supported or private gambling enterprises in West Virginia. The state's dependence upon gambling revenue promotes an industry that takes money away from the mainstream economy within the state and channels it to investors elsewhere. We call upon the legislature and the governor to restrict the number of highly addictive video lottery machines and to ensure laws regarding the placement of these machines are strictly enforced.

Any attempt to place gambling issues before the voters should go to the entire state.

We support adequate and permanent financing for the Problem Gamblers Help Network and the placement of this program under the auspices of the Bureau of Behavioral Health instead of the Lottery Commission.

We condemn the practices of cockfighting and animal fighting and support the enforcement of penalties for those engaged in such activities.

Reducing the Prison Population

The West Virginia Council of Churches endorses efforts by the Division of Corrections to develop community correction (alternative sentencing) programs to address the overpopulation in our prisons. We believe it is time for our government and society to be smart on crime and crime prevention as our toughness on crime has failed our people and our society.

• We encourage legislators to fund preventive measures as the primary means for reducing prison overcrowding.

• We call upon the state Legislature to reduce the prison population by continuing the expansion of community corrections and by reducing sentences for the majority of the low-risk prison population. We seek to break the pipeline between juvenile and adult prison systems by providing alternative, community-based programs for juveniles. We encourage that juveniles be tried only under the juvenile system.

• We believe that preventing crime through education, substance abuse and jobs programs is being smarter as well as tough on crime.

• We encourage the Legislature to make positive improvements to the parole system so that more low-risk prisoners are granted parole, including increasing the amount of parole officers.

• We call for the elimination of excessive sentences by the standardization of sentencing.

• We call upon the Legislature and the West Virginia criminal justice system to continue to expand the use of Day Report Centers as part of the process for paroling prisoners.

• We believe that Corrections is a proper function of the government and oppose any privatization of West Virginia prisons either state or federally operated. We oppose the construction of a privately-operated detention center for immigrants in our state.

• We encourage the state to fully utilize both alternative sentencing and parole revision before planning and developing a new state prison in West Virginia.

 

For additional information and concerns refer to the 2009 Report: Concerns and Recommendations for the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Regional Jail Authority: Really Getting Tough on Crime Prevention

by Dealing With Criminals in a Smarter Way at www.wvcc.org.

Opposition to Death Penalty

The West Virginia Council of Churches continues to urge the Governor and the Legislature to oppose the reinstatement of the death penalty. The death penalty demeans human life and does not deter crime.

Family Heritage and Sacred Spaces

We support legislation protecting the sacredness and integrity of West Virginia family cemeteries and other sacred places from encroachment by mineral extraction, logging, and business or residential development. We support the enforcement of free and regular access to such cemeteries. We encourage the establishment of a 300 foot buffer zone for cemeteries to protect them from any industrial or development activities. We recommend the establishment of a state-maintained database for the registration and location of all cemeteries.

Consumer Issues

Recognizing the profound social justice, economic, and educational implication of the current digital divide, we support the enhancement of rural life by the extension of high speed information delivery and other digital technologies to all West Virginians.

We support full public input on any major changes to public utilities that affect the citizens of West Virginia.

We support legislation that addresses the abuses of the credit industry. We support the creation of an independent insurance consumer advocate for the Insurance Commission, and a ban on the use of credit scoring to determine rates. We support full disclosure when insurance companies file for rate increases.

Support for Military Families

We extend our thanks and appreciation to our military members and their families for their service in behalf of our nation. We encourage the Legislature to provide adequate funding for the support of returning soldiers and their families, especially our rural veterans, including treatment for combat post traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and addictive behavior.

Environmental Quality

Renewable Energy

We encourage our leaders to embrace the economic opportunity and job creation offered by developing and implementing clean and renewable energy sources and construction principles. We urge the Legislature to revise the renewable energy portfolio standard for West Virginia, with emphasis on clean, truly renewable energy rather than unsustainable “alternatives.” We encourage the establishment of programs for conservation and energy efficiency.

Public Health Impact Assessment

We urge the Legislature to require that a public health impact assessment be performed by the Department of Health prior to enacting any environmental rule change.

Water Issues

West Virginia has some of the finest streams and groundwater resources in the world.

• We support policies that would ensure water quality and quantity issues are thoroughly addressed, and that public input is sought at all stages.

• With increased oil and gas exploration come additional challenges in protecting our state’s water resources. We encourage the Legislature and the Department of environmental Protection to strengthen rules that safeguard our water.

 

Potable water is becoming an increasingly critical resource.

• We encourage the state and its agencies to adopt the federal Clean Water Act standards. We support the highest level of protection possible for our finest streams.

• We urge the Legislature to support more water projects to provide clean water to families in West Virginia.

 

We applaud the state's search for renewable energy alternatives.

We encourage recognition that the coal-to-liquids process and Marcellus shale drilling use excessive amounts of our precious water.

We call upon the state to encourage the maintenance of municipal and county ownership of public utilities and to resist privatization of this essential resource.

Standards for mercury, selenium, and other toxic metals should not be compromised, as these elements pose many dangers to human health, and especially the health of our children.

Coal Slurry Injection and Impoundments

The West Virginia Council of Churches encourages the protection of communities adjacent to coal slurry impoundments. We support the speedy completion of the DHHR study of the underground injection of slurry and other hazardous materials mandated by the Legislature in 2007. We join others in calling for a ban on slurry injection and on expansion of existing impoundments and construction of new ones.

Mountaintop Removal

As people of faith, called upon by our covenant with God and each other to safeguard and care deeply for what God has created, we cannot stand by while our mountains are being devastated. The destruction caused by mountain top removal mining, as presently practiced, is unprecedented and permanent. We believe the 1977 Surface Mining Reclamation and Control Act was intended to put an end to the abuses of surface mining, not to further them. Therefore, we deplore recent changes to the rules governing this law that may actually serve to promote mountain top removal. We have, in the past, called for the strictest possible enforcement of SMCRA (Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977) and the Clean Water Act. We strongly renew that call for enforcement, believing that if the law is fully enforced, the terrible damage of large-scale mountaintop removal will end. (The full text of the Council's statement on this topic is available at www.wvcc.org)

We call for citizen representation on the Surface Mine Board.

Recycling

The West Virginia Council of Churches supports a "bottle bill" requiring deposits on aluminum, glass and plastic containers to help eliminate roadside waste and to create jobs.

Air Quality

The West Virginia Council of Churches supports improved air quality for all West Virginians. We encourage the Legislature to adopt improved standards for electrical power plants, diesel vehicles, cars and trucks (including school buses), and fuel pumping stations.

We encourage the state government to downsize to smaller vehicles or hybrids whenever feasible. We encourage the Legislature to enact tax incentives for the purchase of hybrid vehicles and the installation of household renewable energy systems.

We encourage the Legislature to follow up on implementing a baseline carbon emissions study for West Virginia.

Fair Treatment of Surface Landowners

Due to increased exploration for oil and natural gas and the fact that much of the ownership of the underground mineral wealth has been severed from the surface titles, West Virginians owning only the surface of their property are experiencing greater impacts on their environment, health, and way of life with little say about how the exploration for oil, gas, and other minerals affects their land. We encourage the Legislature to strengthen protection for landowners whose property is under development for oil and gas by enacting a Surface Owner's Rights Act.

Federal Legislation

While the West Virginia Council of Churches primarily provides education and Christian witness on statewide public policy concerns, we also are concerned about several actions needed by the U.S. Congress.

Wilderness

We endorse the West Virginia Christian religious leaders' statement for care for creation and the protection of additional wilderness in our beautiful state. As Jesus often drew apart to wild places to pray, we recognize their importance to the human spirit. (Supporting documents available at http://www.christiansforthemountains.org.)

Disaster Response/FEMA

The West Virginia Council of Churches calls upon Congress to:

Address the accessibility and cost of flood insurance, including the accuracy of policy rating; thus making the purchase of flood insurance more affordable to those in high risk areas. To address accessibility we encourage Congress to require insurance agents to offer flood insurance coverage whenever a home owner's policy is offered or renewed. After every disaster, we encounter flood victims who have been informed by their insurance agents that flood insurance was not available. To address affordability, we encourage Congress to investigate the administrative costs of the Write Your Own program. Modern technology should allow flood insurance policies to be administered more economically thus reducing the cost of flood insurance. To address accuracy we encourage Congress to: (1) investigate the feasibility of subjecting a percentage of each agents policies to review, with penalties for agents who consistently miss-rate policies;

(2) closely monitor the impact the changes in the FEMA Emergency Support Functions, especially ESF # 6 (Mass Care, Emergency Assistance, Housing & Human Services) has on disaster victims.

The Need for New Corporate Bankruptcy Laws

The West Virginia Council of Churches calls upon Congress to adopt new corporate bankruptcy laws that provide protections to workers when corporate bankruptcies are filed. In West Virginia, steelworkers and miners have unjustly lost earned benefits in recent bankruptcies.

Corporate bankruptcies not only place an undue hardship on workers and local communities but also place an unfair burden on the federal and state governments to utilize tax dollars to provide benefits that previously were the responsibility of corporations and their pension funds. This process breaks faith with employees who have served a company for many years and are counting on the promised pensions and benefits.

Social Security

We support strengthening and protecting the Social Security system and its funding. This has for decades been our most successful national safety net program, and should not be privatized. Funds could be increased both by raising the minimum wage and by lifting the cap on taxable income.

Clean Water Protection Act

We oppose the redefinition of "waste" and changes to the Buffer Zone Rule that are permitting hazardous materials to be dumped into our waterways. We support policies that protect clean drinking water for all citizens.

Energy Policy

We call on the federal government to develop a national energy policy that protects our environment, disentangle the US from unstable regions of the world, and create an economy that enables sustainable and equitable economic prosperity.

Health Care for America

We support reforms that: 

• Guarantee care and coverage for everyone

• Provide standard comprehensive benefits with a choice of doctors and public or private plans

• Provide affordable coverage and costs based on family income

• Provide rules for insurance companies requiring them to put health first

Restore Anti-Poverty TANF Dollars

The West Virginia Council of Churches calls upon Congress to restore needed funds for Temporary Assistance to Needy Families.

TANF serves as a federal/state partnership vehicle to help children by helping parents, especially single mothers, with job training, education (which should be included as a qualifying work activity for TANF participants), transportation, clothing and childcare.

Keep Medicaid as an Entitlement

The West Virginia Council of Churches calls upon the U.S. Congress to maintain Medicaid as an entitlement program. Entitlement assures funding for those at risk.

Protect Rural Way of Life

We advocate for the right of people to possess property and to earn a living by tilling the soil. We call upon our government to revise support programs that disproportionately benefit wealthier agricultural producers, so that more support can be given to programs that benefit medium and smaller sized farming operations. These include programs that build rural processing, storage, distribution, and other agricultural infrastructure; which link local farmers to local schools; and which promote food security in local communities.

We support green business acceleration including enhancing local food systems such as schools and hospitals; investing in green jobs, moving away from industrial recruitment, and encouraging local enterprise. 

Homelessness

We support a broad strategy to prevent and address homelessness in our nation. We support legislation that helps communities define and respond to homelessness in rural, urban, and suburban areas. We support agency flexibility in allowing communities to respond appropriately to the needs of children, youth, families, and veterans.

Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan   

The West Virginia Council of Churches has great concern for the men and women our country has sent to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other conflicts. These are not only soldiers but our sons and daughters, co-workers, neighbors, and fellow participants in our houses of worship. Their families remain with us as the military members depart in service to our country. Over 14,000 West Virginians have been deployed during this conflict.

As vulnerability of our military members has escalated, resulting in over 5000 American deaths in both conflicts  -  over thirty of whom were from West Virginia - and countless thousands of Iraqis and Afghans dead:

• We call upon the U.S. Congress and president to establish a withdrawal plan for our troops, particularly the National Guard and Reserves.

• We are also obliged to recognize that the massive costs of both wars are continually siphoning off our nations funds and resources which are greatly needed for the kinds of programs we support in this country.

• We oppose further escalation of the war in Afghanistan.

• We encourage the wise use of funds to support positive recovery programs in these countries rather than battling counterinsurgencies.

• We oppose pre-emptive strikes against other nations. Such aggression is not in keeping with Christian teachings.

We believe that the gospel teaching, "Blessed are the peacemakers," calls us to take this action.

Campaign Against Torture

We support policies that prohibit torture and other abusive and degrading treatment that violate human dignity. Torture degrades everyone involved - perpetrators, policymakers, and victims. Policies that permit torture and inhumane treatment are morally intolerable.

Immigration Reform

The West Virginia Council of Churches advocates for comprehensive reform of the U.S. immigration system.  We believe any legislation to reform the immigration system must affirm the worth, dignity and inherent value and rights of migrants and must include:

• An opportunity for legal status for all undocumented migrants. Any such pathways to legal status should have minimal obstacles and those requirements should not be designed to preclude migrants from eligibility for legal status.

• Provisions for clearing the backlog and reuniting families separated by migration or detainment.

• An increase in the number of visas for short term workers to come and work in the United States in a safe, legal and orderly way. Opportunities for legalization should be available for those who wish to remain permanently.

• Protections for short-term workers, as well as those who come to stay permanently. The right to bargain for higher wages, protest against unsafe working conditions and to preserve human rights should be maintained by all workers documented or undocumented alike.

• Elimination of privately-operated detention centers which are not regulated by federal or state governments.

• Elimination of indefinite detention, incarceration of children, and expanding the prison population, which also benefits privately owned detention facilities and prisons.

• Preservation of due process and access to the courts and to adequate legal representation for all migrants regardless of legal status.

 

Published by the West Virginia Council of Churches Inc. 2207 Washington Street East, Charleston WV 25311-2218 www.wvcc.org