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Local firefighter case will set statewide precedent

The ongoing dispute between the City of Morgantown and local firefighters over holiday pay has made its way to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. Whatever the court decides will impact paid firefighters across the Mountain State. As Erin Cleavenger reported, International Association of Firefighters Local 313 contends Morgantown did not fully compensate firefighters for shifts worked on holidays. In a previous ruling, Monongalia County Circuit Court Judge Phillip D. Gaujot said firefighters were entitled to time off or additional pay only during the legal holiday itself, but ...

Never too early to register to vote

Yesterday was National Voter Registration Day, and even though we’re still several months out from any election, it’s as good a time as any to check your voter status or register to vote. You find just about everything you need at GoVoteWV.com. Nearly two dozen states (now including Pennsylvania) have automatic voter registration (AVR), which has been shown to increase both voter registration numbers and voter participation. Eligible residents are “opted-in” to be registered to vote when they get their driver’s license or other state ID or when they sign up for ...

Leave the 1-to-1 solar credit alone

In addition to the multiple rate hikes it’s requesting, Mon Power (and sister company Potomac Edison) are also asking for the Public Service Commission to approve adjustments to net-metering so that new customers who generate their own power receive less than the 1-to-1 credit that current customers are getting. (Since solar accounts for 99.6% of generating capacity, vs. 0.04% for wind, we will focus on solar.) In one of two filings to the PSC addressing the change, Mon Power said it wanted “to adjust the amount the customer will be credited for kWh [kilowatt hours] produced in a ...

‘AI-generated’ disclosure should be mandatory

Most of the press regarding generative AI (artificial intelligence that can create new — a word we use loosely — art and writing) has centered around the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes or how schools will handle AI-written papers. Missing from the conversation is how generative AI can be used to create images, sound clips and videos that appear very real but are, in fact, manufactured. “Deepfakes” go beyond the Photoshop alterations and air-brushing we’re familiar with from magazines and commercials. As Merriam Webster defines it, a deepfake is “an image or ...

City council should rethink litter amendment

Sharps boxes cheaper than jail time Morgantown City Council is strongly considering an amendment to the city’s littering laws that would create a $500 fine or a 30-days-in-jail penalty for sharps (such as needles) and other hazardous or infectious materials (such as something contaminated with blood), as well as specifying that such materials cannot be disposed of in a public trash can. We understand that council is trying to clean up downtown. The trash and litter have gotten out of hand in general, and that’s not to mention any used needles that might be left lying around. ...

Joe Manchin for president?

Rumor has it that Sen. Joe Manchin — West Virginia’s lone congressional Democrat — might run for president instead of seeking reelection to his Senate seat next fall. But the question is: President of what? President of the United States, running on the third-party No Labels ticket? Or president of West Virginia University, giving up political office for an administrative position in academia? Who knows? Maybe not even Manchin. All he’ll say is that no matter what he pursues, he will — in his words — win. It seems the senator is having fun playing ...