WEEKS

R U S S

for GOVERNOR

HUSBANDFATHER

VETERANSENATOR

Paid for by the Committee to Elect Russ Weeks Governor

Holding government accountable for your tax dollars, your health, your safety

ACCOUNTABILITY

Nothing is more important than holding government accountable to the people it's supposed to serve. Too many government agencies are not held accountable for the dollars they receive and the expenditures they make. Independant audits must be ordered for the many state accounts where tax dollars have been abused and/or misused. For any of these accounts that contain federal monies, federal auditors will be requested to conduct audits. Medicaid has not been audited in 10 years, and, on average, two billion dollars a year has been spent somewhere -- we're just not sure where. This money should, and will, be accounted for.

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TAX REFORM

So many of our current problems will be alleviated by reforming our tax structure, thereby providing companies with reasons to locate in West Virginia, and rewarding those businesses who have suffered under the current tax system. Elimination of the Business Franchise Tax, Inventory Tax, Capital Equipment Tax and reduction of the Corporate Net Income Tax must be done now, not 2012, or 2015. The solution to our problems is clear, and bold steps must be taken to correct inequities suffered in the past.

HEALTHCARE

Our healthcare facilities are often ignored or neglected by the very state agencies that are in place to protect patients. Our nursing homes in particular are not properly monitored for cases of abuse and neglect. No West Virginian deserves to have a loved one suffer the consequences of poor or improper care because government is failing to enforce rules and regulations. Sometimes, even the caregivers themselves are placed at risk. We need to protect our patients and caregivers. The Department of Health and Human Resources should be restructured to make it more efficient and responsive to the people and eliminate redundancy.

INFRASTRUCTURE

West Virginia's roads and bridges are too often in disrepair because of mismanagement of revenue and resources. And lately, the state has begun farming out roadwork to private companies while state employees are given tasks like cutting weeds or picking up garbage. The state regularly sells off expensive equipment that sits idle because private companies are assigned road work for which the state equipment was originally purchased. In many cases, there are no records of when equpment was purchased or how much it cost the state. The Department of Highways should be put back in the business of highway construction and maintenance, and we should eliminate the awarding "good ol' boys" contracts.

JOBS AND THE ECONOMY

First, all state employees should be paid, at the very least, a decent living wage. It is wrong to pay a state employee a wage that qualifies them for every social welfare program in the state.  Our state continues to rank at or near the bottom in every important national economic category. Only when we address the root problems at the core of economy will this embarrassing situation be reversed. For our state to truly be open for business, we need much more than welcome signs placed along our borders. We must reform our tort system so new businesses can locate to West Virginia without fear of frivolous lawsuits draining their capital. We must offer incentives and infrastructure to provide employers with the assurance they need for longterm investments in our state. And we must aggressively pursue good, high paying jobs that too often are lost to our neighbors just across state lines.

EDUCATION

We must offer teachers a package that will keep them in West Virginia and working past the age of 55, which is when most teachers now retire. If teachers have an incentive to keep teaching until age 65-70, a tremendous burden will be removed from the Teachers Retirement System (TRS). Control of the classroom must be returned to teachers. Controlling disruption is taking up too much instructional time. A teacher needs to devote all available time to teaching, and not to unnecessary paperwork and dealing with disruptive students. Further, control of each county school system must be returned to the County Superintendent. A good example is Pocahontas County, which is on the same schedule as Kanawha County. Pocahontas County, but in reality has several more snowy days than Kanawha County. The Superintendent should have the authority when to start and end the school year in order to maintain the required 180 instructional days.

LAW AND ORDER

The people of our state deserve to be know their government is in their corner protecting them from the criminal elements of our society. Our police forces deserve the utmost respect and the greatest technological and financial support we can provide. And nothing is more reprehensible than those who would prey on our children. That's why Russ Weeks fought for tougher sentencing and punishment under Logan's Law. As governor, he will make sure the safety and security of all West Virginians is always a top priority.

Russ Weeks watches as Gov. Manchin signs Logan's Law, a bill that was made tougher thanks to Russ' insistence on mandatory sentencing guidelines.

WEST VIRGINIA VALUES

For West Virginians, nothing is more precious than faith and family. We need to do more to protect the unborn, strengthen the family unit, and defend the values taught by our faith in God and our traditional, time tested values. Claiming to be pro-family and pro-life is one thing. Fighting to make sure government does everything in its power to enact legislation reflecting those values is another. Russ Weeks will fight for those West Virginia values, like protecting our liberties, preserving life, defending the Second Amendment, promoting strong families, and fighting for the rights of property owners.

ENERGY

Resources from our institutes of higher learning, government economic development and the mining industry should be brought together  to develop a viable plan to gasify and liquefy coal. West Virginia could and should be the leader in providing the world with new sources of clean energy. With its abundant natural resources, West Virginia should be the energy capital of the world for decades to come.