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Child poverty issues outlined: SNAP funds for soft drinks targetedEditor’s Note: The following ispart of the West Virginia PressAssociation’s series on the“Our Children, Our Future”Coalition. The association isfollowing the coalition’s effortsto develop and push legislationto combat child poverty duringthe 2014 session of the WestVirginia Legislature.

By Nanya FriendWVPA REPORT

CHARLESTON — Fiveyears ago, Dick Wittberg andhis staff at the Parkersburg-based Mid-Ohio ValleyHealth Department organ-ized a massive dental opera-tion.

Wittberg, director of a de-partment that serves six WestVirginia counties, had becomeaware of what he calls the“unbelievable need for dentalservices in West Virginia.”

So his staff planned a two-day blitz and recruited area

dentists to provide care to allcomers.

It didn’t work out that way.About 1,300 people were

served, but many more had tobe turned away. Wittbergsaid he was forced to go out-doors and tell people whowere ready to wait all night inthe rain that the effort wasmaxed out and they couldn’tbe served.

Since then, Wittberg’s de-partment has refined its den-tal efforts. His staff screenspeople in need of care andsends them to a couple dozenlocal dentists who treat themvoluntarily in their own of-fices.

But he and his crew noware mounting another battleagainst the scourge that af-fects not only the mouths, butalso the general health andemployment prospects of somany West Virginians.

Like David swinging at Go-liath, Wittberg wants to per-

suade the U.S. government tolet West Virginia pilot a ma-jor change in the longstand-ing federal Food Stamp pro-gram, now known as the Sup-plemental Nutritional Assis-tance Program, or SNAP.

He and his crew want theprogram to stop allowing re-cipients to use their benefitsto buy soft drinks, which theyview as a major contributor totooth decay. The top offendingingredient is not sugar butcitric acid, which breaks downtooth enamel, especially whenthe beverages are sipped con-stantly.

“There is nothing we could

do to improve the oral healthof West Virginians more thanto say you can’t buy pop withSNAP.”

Wittberg was among 39 co-chairs for 18 initiatives aimedat fighting child poverty thatwere the focus of a sympo-sium last week at the state-house.

The two-day “Our Children,Our Future” symposium wasthe focal point of a series ofcommunity meetings andworkshops that have pulleddozens of activists into agrass-roots movement to fightchild poverty. The West Vir-ginia Coalition for HealthyKids and Families, the WestVirginia Center on Budgetand Policy and more than 30other organizations have beenbuilding support for themovement and the sympo-sium in recent months.

On Sept. 23, about 250 peo-ple converged on the CulturalCenter for a long day of work-

shops intended to developstrategies for advancing theinitiatives.

With state lawmakers intown for monthly committeemeetings, the second day ofthe Our Children, Our Futuresymposium moved into theCapitol building.

Members of the House andSenate Joint Committee onChildren and Families werebriefed on the initiatives,which have been in develop-ment over the past severalmonths.

The committee also heardthe personal stories of severalpeople who have either over-come poverty or are strivingto do so.

An integral part of the high-ly organized movement is toinclude such people in the ef-fort. Co-chairs for all 18 ini-tiatives were urged to recruittheir participation.

Hintonto opencity-runday care

By Jessica FarrishREGISTER-HERALD REPORTER

One small town is using citygovernment to benefit the nextgeneration.

Officials of Hinton, whichhad a popula-tion of 2,676 in2012, plan toopen a city-op-erated day carecenter thisyear.

“People needday care,” saidHinton MayorJoe Blanken-ship. “We don’tpresently have a day care herein Hinton.”

Plans are currently in theprocess of being approved bythe State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Blankenship said the daycare will benefit the communi-ty, contribute to economicgrowth and also allow the cityto utilize empty space in theHinton Technology Center.

“We’ve got to enhance rev-enue,” said the mayor. “You’vealways got to find ways of mak-ing money.”

When U.S. Sen. Robert C.Byrd died, military spendingincreased and federal fundsthat had been directed into atechnology center that the cityowns dwindled.

Mayor says facilitywill benefit familiesand city’s economy

Blankenship

See HINTON, 15A

F. BRIAN FERGUSON/THE REGISTER-HERALD (2)

The Coalfields Expressway ends at the exit to Slab Fork for now, shown here at the left of the expressway. To complete the highwayto the Mullens area will cost about $100 million. Once complete to that point, motorists can expect the time it takes to travel from Mul-lens to Beckley to be cut in half, from a 30-minute trip to just 15 minutes. However, funding is still needed to complete that section.

Completion of Coalfields Expresswaydepends simply on securing fundingBy Cody NeffREGISTER-HERALD REPORTER

Take a minute and think about howimportant 15 minutes can be. It canmean the difference between life anddeath for someone in an ambulance. Be-ing 15 minutes late to work will get youfired if you do it enough.

The Coalfields Expressway Authorityknows how important time is and theyare working on a project that will give atleast 15 minutes back to the people ofSophia and Mullens.

Members of the Coalfields Express-way Authority gave a tour to the pressand their new board members to showoff what they’ve been working on for thelast several years.

“The Coalfields Expressway, which isalso known as U.S. Route 121, was cho-sen as the first ‘road for the 21st centu-ry,’” Project Manager Ali Sadeghiansaid. “McDowell and Wyoming countiesare two counties that are at the bottom

of the list to have any kind of four-lanehighways. We hope this four-lane high-way will open up and create economicdevelopment and create a better life forsouthern West Virginia.”

Long before cars will be using the newroad to drive from Sophia to Virginia,the authority wants to finish a 5-milesection of road that will link Sophia toMullens.

“This section, when it is complete,from Sophia to Mullens is paved, youcut your travel time in half,” Sadeghiansaid. “Your travel time right now isabout a 30-minute drive. This will re-duce it to almost 15 minutes. That 15minutes that it’s saving can save a lot alives in case somebody needs to get anambulance from point A to point B.Think about how great and beneficial itis to cut travel time down to 15 minutes.It’s also a high-quality road instead ofthe typical two-lane highways.”

A gate on the expressway separates por-tions under construction between SlabFork and an area just west of Helen whichis completed to “at-grade” standards.See EXPRESSWAY, 15A

See POVERTY, 15A

THE FAB FIVEOur weekly look at the area’s top teams

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FromPageOne 15ATHE REGISTER-HERALD

Monday, September 30, 2013www.register-herald.com

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One technology compa-ny left the building, andWorkForce West Virginialeased space at the build-ing before changing loca-tions.

“We have here in Hin-ton a long-term debt onthe tech center, and short-term leases,” saidBlankenship. “That does-n’t mix too well.”

City council leased emp-ty office space to a Beckleydoctor and placed a state-of-the-art fitness center inthe building, but Blanken-ship and city managerCris Hall were still look-ing for ways to pay citydebt last year when theybegan looking for a com-munity service the towncould provide.

That’s when they real-ized their town had a

child care void.Rural areas in the state

are facing a child care cri-sis, according to a 2010 re-port by National Associa-tion of Childcare Resourceand Referral Agencies.

Because parents arepoorer in rural regions,they’re less likely to beable to afford child care.This leads to child care notbeing a profitable busi-ness for rural providers.

One result is that work-ing parents in rural coun-ties have fewer licensedchild care choices thanthose in urban areas.

There are also fewerquality programs operat-ing in rural regions, ac-cording to the report, be-cause parents must settlefor the lower quality pro-grams.

Blankenship said strictgovernment regulationson child care operationshad led a private day careprovider in the town to

close — leaving workingparents with the choice ofquitting work or relyingon family members or pri-vate sitters who may notbe licensed.

Quality child care op-tions for workers are adrawing point for compa-ny officials who are look-ing for a place to openbusinesses and are neces-sary for town economicgrowth, Blankenship said.

“We felt we could possi-bly better handle (a daycare center) than a privateenterprise,” he said. “Wewish it was a private en-terprise putting in a daycare center, but that is notthe case.”

City council membersapproved the plan, whichwas developed largely byHall, in 2012, saidBlankenship.

An architect has de-signed the day care,which will feature a playroom, kitchen, bathroom

and office space.A playground will also

be available, andBlankenship added thatthe city may look intoadding private and secureweb-browsing options forparents, so they can checkon their children remote-ly.

The fire marshal is cur-rently examining the plan,and bidding is expected tobegin on construction oncethe fire marshal approvesit, he said.

The original plan was toopen the child care centerin October or November,but the center may openin around 90 days, onceconstruction is complete.

Blankenship addedthat, despite the burdenstrict regulations put onchild care providers, par-ents may appreciate thehigh governmental stan-dards.

“I guess when you’ve gotpeople that are keeping

your kids and handlingyour kids and your fami-lies, you need regula-tions,” he said. “I knowgovernment bogs youdown with regulations,and this type of industryisn’t any different.

“I’m certainly not com-plaining about this, be-cause I’m sure this (daycare) would probably bekeeping my grandkids aswell,” added Blankenship.“You want to make sureit’s run right, and they’rewell-fed and looked after.

“When you drop yourkids off ... you want tomake sure they’re safeand getting proper foodsand proper exercise.”

Although Blankenshipdid not have official statis-tics, he said he wasn’taware of any other smallmunicipalities in the stateoperating a day care cen-ter.

“We’ve got to look forways to enhance revenue

and make sure our futureis as bright as our pres-ent,” he added. “That’swhat we’re trying to do.”

Stephen Smith, execu-tive director of West Vir-ginia Healthy Kids andFamilies Coalition — anonprofit group that aimsto promote the health andwell-being of state chil-dren — called Blanken-ship’s plan a “fantasticidea.”

“Day cares are not bigbusiness,” added Smith.“It may well work as away to provide a commu-nity service in a buildingthat needs it.”

The median wage forday care workers in thestate is $8.63 per hour, hesaid.

“Day cares operate atlow-profit margins for peo-ple who do this becausethey’re passionate aboutit,” he explained.

— E-mail: jfarrish@register-herald.com

HINTONContinued from 1A

Sadeghian says cuttingtravel time will not onlysave lives, but will alsosave money on gas andwear and tear on vehicles.He says that, althoughconstruction is going well,they’ve hit a hardship.

“As always, funding is ahardship to accumulatefor our construction costs,”Sadeghian said. “Rightnow we do have the fund-ing secured for the sectionthat we’re going to adver-tise for Oct. 8. Futuremoney for the other 2miles and the mile-and-a-quarter connector (fromthe four-lane to Mullens)is something that the au-thority is working on forthe future.”

The executive director of

the Coalfields ExpresswayAuthority says fundinghas to come from some-where and they’re runningout of options.

“Any kind of fundingnow coming out of Wash-ington is an issue,” RobertBrowning said. “Latelywe’re having to rely onstate dollars to do thesekinds of projects. Being aformer legislator, I knowthe money’s not there.That’s why coal is impor-tant to this discussion be-cause the coal that’saround here can be used tohelp finance the cost of theproject.

“Up until this point, wehaven’t used actual statediscretionary dollars.We’ve used earmarkeddollars from Congressman(Nick) Rahall and Sen.(Robert C.) Byrd to getthis far. The state movedus into their six-year plan

so that we can access theirmoney and hopefully keepit going until the end ofthe line.

“We are working daily toget the money to finish theproject. The Federal High-way Administrationwants to build this road.The state Division ofHighways wants to buildthis road. People of south-ern West Virginia wantthis road.”

Browning says ear-marked dollars are stateor federal dollars that leg-islators can dig into tofund projects in their dis-tricts. He says after Wash-ington stopped allowinglegislators to get as muchmoney, they started pro-grams that let groups ap-ply for grants to fund theirprojects.

“This is a federal high-way,” Browning said. “Itshould be a federally fund-

ed highway. It should be80 percent federal and thestate puts in 20 percent tomatch it. We’ve never notcome up with our part ofthe matching. Now they’reratcheting back their per-centage. Instead of giving80 percent, now they wantto give you 50 percent,which means you’re goingto have to get on yourboard to tax your people tocome up with that extramoney.

“We’re looking at aboutanother $100 million thatwe need to finish the proj-ect to Mullens and W.Va.54. Of that $100 millionwe have about $30 millionright now. Basically whatI do every day is work ongetting more money.”

Browning and Sadeghi-an say building roads inWest Virginia costsaround $20 million permile because of the moun-

tains and hills that have tobe cut through to make apath. They say flatterplaces like South Carolinaand Kansas only spendaround $4 million permile.

Browning says he does-n’t want the project tohave to be paid for with atax increase, but if itcomes down to it, WestVirginians would supportthe increase.

“Based on what the BlueRibbon Highway Commis-sion came up with the oth-er day, West Virginians dowant better roads,” hesaid. “Most people appreci-ate driving on a good road.You pay the tax anyway. Ifthe road’s not good, you’regoing to pay the tax in re-pairs on your cars andtires and so forth. It’s ‘payme now or pay me later.’ Ithink if West Virginianscould see that the im-

provements are going to-ward a road in their area,they would support it.”

Sadeghian says there isno guess about when theproject will be finished.

“This job has beenaround for around 25years, but constructionstarted in 2000,” he said.“The project was conceivedback in the mid-’80s to cre-ate some kind of economicdevelopment and to helpkeep our kids home (in thestate). We want to create abetter life and bettertransportation for commu-nities, especially in south-ern West Virginia.

“We don’t have an esti-mated date of completionbecause we don’t knowwhen the money will be-come available. As moneybecomes available, we’llfinish more of the project.”

— E-mail: cneff@register-herald.com

EXPRESSWAYContinued from 1A

The 18 initiatives arewide ranging and ambi-tious. One group hopes toimprove the state fostercare system. Another ispushing for an increase inthe state minimum wage.Still another will fight formore substance abusetreatment.

Many of the proposalswould come at significantcost.

Ted Boettner of the WestVirginia Center on Budgetand Policy is co-chair foran initiative to enact astate Earned Income TaxCredit. Such a federal ben-

efit for low-income familieshas been in place for manyyears, and 24 states offerpiggyback payments viaincome tax returns.

Boettner’s group propos-es that West Virginia offerfamilies with annual in-come of up to $50,270 acredit equal to 20 percentof the federal benefit. Morethan 144,000 familieswould receive an averagepayment of $413.

Senate Minority LeaderMike Hall, R-Putnam, amember of the Joint Com-mittee on Children andFamilies, noted during themeeting that the cost ofsuch a state Earned In-come Tax Credit has beenestimated at $37 million ayear.

Boettner’s organizationis among about 15 withseats on the steering com-mittee for the Our Chil-dren Our Future move-ment, but dozens morehave signed on to help.

The lead organizer isStephen Smith, director ofthe West Virginia HealthyKids and Families Coali-tion. Smith, a graduate ofHarvard University andthe London School of Eco-nomics, is the author of“Stoking the Fire ofDemocracy: Our Genera-tion’s Introduction toGrassroots Organizing.”

Next on the movement’stimeline is a series of com-munity meetings to beheld around the state be-ginning this week and con-

tinuing through mid-No-vember.

The movement loggedseveral successes duringthe last legislative session,including reversal of a pro-posed rollback in statechild care benefits and en-actment of a pilot programto provide free meals topublic school students re-gardless of income. Orga-nizers hope to build onthat momentum.

On Dec. 13, all of thepartners will vote on a2014 platform. About fiveof the 18 initiatives will bechosen for specific pushesduring the next regularsession.

Wittberg and his crew atthe Mid-Ohio ValleyHealth Department hope

to make the cut. Theywant the Legislature topass a resolution instruct-ing the state Departmentof Health and Human Re-sources to seek federal per-mission to strike softdrinks from the food stampprogram in this state.

Other states havesought such permissionwith no success, Wittbergsaid in the workshop heled during the symposium.

However, those statesbased their requests onobesity rates, and the U.S.Department of Agricul-ture, which oversees thefood stamp program, mayhave found it difficult topin the blame for obesitysolely on soft drinks.

Wittberg hopes the

agency will be more recep-tive to the dental argu-ment.

Two much bigger states,New York and California,want similar permission,and he thinks a small statelike West Virginia mayhold appeal as a pilot ef-fort.

“For West Virginia totake the lead on somethinglike this would be reallycool,” he said.

“There is nothing wecould do to improve theoral health of West Vir-ginians more than to sayyou can’t buy pop withSNAP.”

For more information onOur Children, Our Future,

contact Stephen Smith atssmith@wvhealthykids.org.

POVERTYContinued from 1A