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Secretary of State Natalie E. Tennant joined
with Governor Joe Manchin in honoring West Virginia coal miners
today, creating a holiday to recognize their contributions to
the Mountain State’s economy, heritage, and future.
Tennant and Manchin signed the proclamation creating “Coal Miner
Appreciation Day” on the Sunday before Labor Day. They were
joined by miners, union representatives, and officials from the
West Virginia Coal Association in the shadow of the Coal Miner
Statue at the Capitol Complex.
Tennant and Manchin both thanked the West Virginia Young
Democrats, especially the members from Mingo County, who were
the driving force behind the legislation that became Coal Miner
Appreciation Day.
“There are very few of us in West Virginia whose family has not
been touched by coal mining,” Tennant said. “Whether we are from
the south coalfields, or where I’m from in the northern part of
the state where we have seen so many tragedies, coal mining is a
part of what it means to be a West Virginian.”
Tennant’s grandfather worked in the coal mines as a young boy.
She recounted the story of how, at the age of ten, her
grandfather worked in the coal mines with his father and other
Italian immigrants.
Governor Manchin praised the bipartisan effort that lead to the
creation of Coal Miner Appreciation Day.
“On both sides of the aisle, one thing we can all agree on is
that without the hard working men and women in the coal mines we
don’t have what we have today,” Governor Manchin said.
In addition to honoring the work of coal miners the proclamation
also stressed the continuous monitoring of safety practices and
that “environmental challenges that face the coal industry
should be continually addressed and monitored through
appropriate regulations to ensure that our mining communities
remain healthy both environmentally and economically.”
Both signatures were required for the proclamation to be
official.
Tennant Named To Aspen Institute’s “Rising
Stars” In Governance Fellowship
Secretary of State Natalie E. Tennant is one of only 24 American
political leaders chosen by the Aspen Institute for its Rodel
Fellowship in Public Leadership Program.
Tennant is the first West Virginian to be asked to accept the
position in the fellowship.
The new members in the “rising stars in governance” class come
from 22 states and include statewide office holders as well as
state legislators and local government officials.
The class was announced in Washington, D.C. by the program
director, former Congressman Mickey Edwards (R-Okla.).
The program, now in its fifth year, is a two year fellowship
that according to the Aspen Institute “is designed to break down
partisan barriers and to enable office holders to step back from
their daily responsibilities to consider broader questions of
good governance.”
Other regional members of the fellowship are David Tandy, the
President of the Louisville, KY City Council and Ohio State
Senator Mark Wagoner.
“It is such an honor to be asked to take part in this fellowship
and represent West Virginia at such a well respected institute.
I look forward to growing as a leader, sharing my ideas and
gaining insight from what others are doing,” Tennant said.
For nearly 60 years the Aspen Institute has been the nation’s
premier place for leaders from around the globe to explore
timeless ideas and the toughest challenges of their day.
The mission of the Aspen Institute is to promote values-based
leadership and open debate on critical issues. The Aspen
Institute sponsors seminars, youth leadership fellowships,
police programs, and other conferences and events.
Past members of the Fellowship include Republican National
Committee Chair Michael Steele, who was selected when he was
lieutenant governor of Maryland; Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.);
and Secretary of State Robin Carnahan (D-Mo.), who is currently
running for U.S. Senate.
Tennant was also recently appointed co-chair of the National
Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) standing committee on
voter participation.
Secretary of State Natalie E. Tennant has
filed the rules for Early Voting in Person Satellite Precincts
and Vote by Mail Pilot Project Phase One and Phase Two.
In the Satellite Precinct Rules, the changes
to the proposed rule include clarification of how poll workers
are chosen for a satellite precinct and how long a satellite
plan is in place for an election cycle, adding public notice
requirements, and removing a restriction to keep the satellite
precinct open for the entire early voting period.
“The office took to heart the six public comments that were
submitted and researched, debated and sought additional input
from lawmakers and election officials to provide a plan that
better serves the counties and in turn the voters.”
“The decision to allow the satellite precincts
to be at a location for a shorter amount of time came after
further discussions with key lawmakers about the intent of the
law,” Tennant said.
The change in the rule allows greater
flexibility to counties while still giving legislators the
opportunity to receive additional input from constituents.
The Secretary of State’s Office submitted more permissive
language in the rule to allow a practical approach for counties
to serve the needs of their voters.
While there were more comments made about the Vote by Mail Pilot
Project, with eleven, there were few changes to the proposed
rules. Most of the comments were positive and the changes were
technical in nature.
These rules were filed with the Administrative Law Division of
the Secretary of State’s Office along with nearly 115 other
State Agency approved rules. They will then be sent to the
Legislative Rule Making Review Committee to be introduced for
review and approval in the 2010 Legislative Session.
These election rules are part of Secretary Tennant’s vision for
making elections easier and more accessible to voters while
allowing counties and cities more flexibility, cost saving
measures and responsiveness to citizens in conducting elections.
TENNANT APPOINTED CO-CHAIR
OF NATIONAL COMMITTEE ON VOTER PARTICIPATION
Secretary of State Natalie E. Tennant was
appointed co-chair of the Standing Committee on Voter
Participation at the summer conference of the National
Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) this weekend in
Minneapolis, MN.
The new NASS president, Secretary of State
Trey Grayson (R-Kentucky), appointed Tennant to the co-chair
position along with Secretary of State Ken Bennett (R-Arizona).
There are nine other standing committees as
part of NASS leadership. Grayson appointed a secretary from each
political party to serve as co-chair for each committee.
Some of the responsibilities of the Voter
Participation Committee are reviewing NASS partnerships with
voter outreach groups and improving communication between states
regarding voting practices.
“It is a great honor to be appointed to this
position,” Tennant said. “It’s going to be an exciting year
working with Secretary Grayson and Secretary Bennett, especially
because it’s improving voter participation, which is a major
focus of my office. With some of the legislation being passed
this year in West Virginia, like satellite precincts and early
voting by mail, voter participation is going to be very high on
my list of priorities.”
Tennant is not the first West Virginia Secretary of State to
serve in a leadership role in NASS. Stuart Reed, who served as
West Virginia Secretary of State from 1909-1917, was the first
president of NASS from 1915-1917.
Tennant and several members of her staff returned Monday from
the NASS summer conference, where the focus was on more than
discussing issues facing secretaries of state. It was also a
learning experience and fact-finding mission, as West Virginia
will host the 2011 NASS summer conference at Glade Spring Resort
in Raleigh County.
View effective Code of State Rules in two formats; proposed
rules open for comment; proposed emergency rules; current
State Register and meeting notices
A new program
which allows candidates and committees to keep online
campaign finance files which may be submitted electronically
through the Secretary of State’s website.
