Media Minute— a weekly dispatch of local, national and world news impacting West Virginia’s manufacturing industry.

West Virginia

Martinsburg attorney aiming to reform West Virginia's tax structure
WHAG
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - The budget deficit for the state of West Virginia is nearing $700 million - but a Martinsburg attorney and former state tax ...

West Virginia could see a 'voluntary tax' scenario
The Montgomery Herald
The latest example in West Virginia is the “voluntary tax scenario.” How appealing. ... West Virginia needs real tax reform, not a misleading slogan.

West Virginia and drones, what are your concerns?
WDTV
... that could cause an explosion at a plant, injure an employee," said Rebecca McPhail, President of the West Virginia Manufacturers Association.

RCBI forms partnership with WV Army National Guard
The Exponent Telegram (press release) (registration)
The Robert C. Byrd Institute for Advanced Flexible Manufacturing and the ... 20 it has created a new partnership with the West Virginia Army National ...

Lawmakers wrestle with drone abilities and limits
West Virginia MetroNews
In their Monday afternoon discussion of Senate Bill 9, West Virginia ... and then manufacturing facilities from a safety perspective,” McPhail said.

Senator says tax reform could put W.Va. in an enviable position
West Virginia MetroNews
Senator says tax reform could put W.Va. in an enviable position ... lead the change to make West Virginia the 8th state in the nation with no income tax.

Proposed W.Va. sales-tax hike paired with state income-tax repeal
Herald-Mail Media
A legislative proposal to increase West Virginia's sales tax by as much as 2 ... Besides the tax-reform measure's many moving parts, Blair said the ...

Democrat Governor Jim Justice Proposes Largest Tax Hike inWest Virginia History
Americans for Tax Reform (blog)
Instead of taking a step back towards unworkable tax policies of the Great Depression, the legislature to embrace 21st century tax reform that has ...

NEWS9 Special Assignment: Small Business, Big Impact – Eagle Manufacturing
WTOV Steubenville
The Eagle Manufacturing Company is another small business that is ... really well," Eagle Manufacturing Company President & CEO Joe Eddy said.

Bill to change WV right-to-work law advances over objections
Charleston Gazette-Mail (subscription)
A bill to make retroactive changes to West Virginia's right-to-work law — currently being challenged in Kanawha Circuit Court — advanced from the ...

Harrison Commission gets economic development update
The Exponent Telegram (press release) (registration)
“We expect new jobs to continue in 2017 and encourage new companies to locate here with the help of the West Virginia Commerce Department,” ...

United States

US specialty chemicals start Q1 2017 on good note, ACC says
ChemEngOnline
The American Chemistry Council (ACC; Washington, D.C.; www.americanchemistry.com) reported that U.S. specialty chemicals market volumes rose ...

Employment Expertise: Manufacturing hot job: Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers and weighers
HollandSentinel.com
Today's manufacturing facilities are brighter and cleaner, full of high tech equipment and jobs that can provide advancement opportunities for a ...

Why 2017 is shaping up to be a banner year for labor reform
Washington Examiner
... majorities, kicking off a wave that saw right-to-work legislation passed and signed in Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, and West Virginia by early 2016.

Senate confirms Pruitt to lead US EPA
Chemical Watch (subscription)
"Efficient and effective implementation of [the Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act] will restore public confidence in EPA's regulation of chemical safety, ...

US needs to prepare manufacturing workers of tomorrow
Houston Chronicle
The best way to boost the number of manufacturing jobs in the U.S. is to ... president of the National Association of Manufacturers, which represents ...

US manufacturing increase again in January
NOLA.com
An employee stands next to a transmission moving on the assembly line at the Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. in Lafayette, Indiana, on May 25, ...