West Virginia First

Charleston Gazette: Rahall for Congress
“We endorse him to regain the Democratic nomination — and we hope he goes on to retain his House seat in the fall. Can far-right billionaires drive Democrat Rahall from Congress? We pray not...The big money players trying to defeat Rahall don’t care about the lives and health of West Virginians. Congressman Rahall does." (Charleston Gazette, 4/23/2014)

Herald-Dispatch: Rahall a “Strong Advocate” for West Virginia
“Rahall has been a strong advocate for southern West Virginia for 36 years, and TV spots cannot change that. The veteran Congressman knows the importance of West Virginia’s coal industry. He has opposed the overreach of the Environmental Protection Agency, and broken ranks with his party to block efforts to ban mountaintop removal mining and get mining permits approved. But Rahall also understands the fine line of protecting lives as well as jobs, and he has worked hard for mine safety, as well.” (Herald-Dispatch, 10/15/12)

Charleston Gazette: Rahall Works for the Good of West Virginia
“Rahall knows how to work with members from other states and other parties for the good of West Virginia and the nation […] He has the knowledge, experience and disposition that make him a worthy representative of West Virginia.” [Charleston Gazette, 10/15/12]

Congressman Rahall’s “Stop the War on Coal Act” Would Rein in EPA, Protect Coal Jobs
“It’s not the final battle, just another skirmish, but Rep. Nick Rahall claimed victory Friday in House approval of the so-called ‘Stop the War on Coal Act’ that seeks to rein in the Environmental Protection Agency […] A key element in the Democratic congressman’s legislation would bar the EPA from exceeding the act’s provision to indefinitely delay, or retroactively veto permits for surface mines …The House package also would bar the Department of the Interior from imposing new rules that would eliminate coal jobs.” [Register-Herald, 9/22/13]

Register Herald: “Rahall Tries Again to Rein in EPA” with Bill.
“A second effort is afoot by Rep. Nick Rahall to rein in the Environmental Protection Agency in its zeal to regulate coal mine production, a move hailed by an industry leader in West Virginia as a ‘great piece of legislation’ […] Rahall’s proposal, known as the Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act, is meant to put limits on the federal agency’s ability to veto dredge and fill permits that are issued by the Army Corps of Engineers… ‘It’s a great piece of legislation,’ Christ Hamilton, vice president of the West Virginia Coal Association, said in Beckley after addressing the Rotary Club.” [Register-Herald, 5/15/13]

Congressman Rahall Consistently Supported Preventing Federal Carbon Taxes
In April 2011, Rahall supported the Energy Tax Protection Act, a bill that would prevent the EPA from regulating greenhouse gas emissions. In January 2013, Rahall cosponsored H Con Res 8, a resolution expressing the opposition of Congress to a federal carbon tax. In April 2013, Rahall sponsored the “No Carbon Tax Act of 2013,” a bill that would prohibit the secretary of the treasury and the administrator of the EPA from devising or implementing a carbon tax. The next month, Rahall co-sponsored HR 2127, a bill that would prohibit the EPA from finalizing carbon dioxide emissions rules until carbon capture and storage technology was technologically and economically feasible. [The Hill, 4/07/11; CQBillTrack, H Con Res 8, accessed 8/28/13; CQ BillTrack, HR 1486, accessed 8/28/13; CQ BillTrack, HR 2127, accessed 8/28/13]