WVFA Mountain State Forestry Spring 2021

F E A T U R E D N E W S 10 West Virginia Forestry Association Mountain State Forestry | Spring 2021 www.wvfa.org 2021 West Virginia Legislative Session We will be there every day the 2021 session, beginning February 13, advocating for the needs of our members. While it is still uncertain the extent of the session during the pandemic, rest assured we will be working directly with your elected officials to keep your issues at the forefront of their actions. Here is a brief synopsis of some key issues we expect this year. State Funding – Division of Forestry We are supporting additional funding for the Division of Forestry. During the pandemic, state funding from timber sales on state forests were delayed and sales were suspended. This supplemental funding is critical to have the Division of Forestry continue to operate and support ongoing logger training, issue timber license and harvesting permits, assist in critical insect and disease monitoring along with the many programs the Division operates, including forest fire protection. Liability We have spent months working with West Virginia officials to assess the potential for changes in workers’ compensation for the logging sector. West Virginia is at the top of the highest rates in the US, making it very difficult for loggers to compete with surrounding states. We will also continue to pursue attention to the broad form liability issue, often referred to as Mandolitis, to find ways to reform this law that puts every logger and landowner at great risk of liability. Managed Timberland Great news of one success this year. Initial notices indicated a 20% increase in 2021 tax rates were sent to participants in this important program that taxes forests based on use as a managed forest. We worked with all agencies and authorities to find a way to modify this increase and look at improved ways to reduce to the wide swings Advocacy Update