Dear West Virginian,

Following the wrongful killing of George Floyd, our country is bearing a lot of pain and frustration right now. Racial discrimination has absolutely no place in this country. We need to do our part to change these attitudes that exist today, but at the same time, we need to do this in a peaceful way.

I’ve been working with a group of my colleagues—led by my good friend Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.)—to put together a commonsense police reform package. Right now, discussions are still underway, but we are making progress and hope to introduce legislation soon.

I talked more about this on CNBC’s Squawk Box this week:

Keeping West Virginia Wild and Wonderful

This week, the Senate began consideration of the bipartisan Great American Outdoors Act, legislation I co-sponsored.

This bill is good for West Virginia and the entire country as a while. Specifically, it works to restore America’s National Parks and public lands so generations to come can enjoy the beauty of our country. The bill addresses a backlog of maintenance needs (like repairs to trails, bridges, roads, and more) and also fully funds the Land Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). The Great American Outdoors Act is a win across the board—especially for West Virginia’s economy and environment.

In 2018, West Virginia’s deferred maintenance costs totaled $61.8 million. This deficiency in funding means that the maintenance of historic sites like Harper’s Ferry, the New River Gorge National River, and Gauley River National Recreation Area go without necessary repairs for safe access and continued operation. This bill will address that.

West Virginia has received approximately $246.2 million in LWCF funding over the past five decades. LWCF protects places such as:

Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge
Monongahela National Forest
New River Gorge National River
White Sulphur Springs National Fish Hatchery and more!

I’ll keep you updated next week as we get this across the finish line!

Helping Our Hospitals

The COVID-19 relief packages Congress has passed to aid our hospitals as they battle the coronavirus have made a difference. However, we’ve made some improvements along the way to make sure we are effectively and efficiently helping our communities and meeting their needs. An example of this is a recent change made this way following a request I made to U.S. Department of Health and Human Service (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar and Centers of Medicaid and Medicare (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma asking them to prioritize funding for hospitals that serve a disproportionate number of Medicaid & low-income patients in the next round of funding from the Provider Relief Fund.

GOOD NEWS: After receiving my letter, HHS announced 13 West Virginia hospitals will receive more than $196 million. These hospitals serve a disproportionate number of Medicaid patients or provide large amounts of uncompensated care. All hospitals are struggling financially right now, but especially our safety net hospitals. I’m glad we could get this much-needed funding to them!

West Virginians Stepping Up

Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve seen so many people from all across this country stepping up in major ways. Especially right here in West Virginia. I’ve always described West Virginia as one big small town. We help one another in times of need whether we know the person or not. I like to call this the “West Virginia spirit,” and there’s no question that this spirit has helped us through some difficult times. We saw this spirit in full swing during the aftermath of the 2016 flooding, and we are seeing that same spirit today during this pandemic.

This week, I penned an op-ed for the Charleston Gazette-Mail highlighting some of the ways West Virginians have gone above and beyond to help their community during this time. Check it out here.

REMINDER: Make Sure You Get Your Individual Check!

If you haven’t visited it already, the IRS has opened an online portal for lower-income individuals who are not required to file a tax return, have not filed tax returns for 2018 or 2019, and are not on Social Security retirement, Social Security disability (SSDI), or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). The purpose of the portal is to provide information in order to receive a stimulus check. Enter your information to track the status of your payment here.

Those who have filed a return for 2018 or 2019 or are on Social Security retirement, SSI, or SSDI do not need to do anything to receive their check.

However, if you’re on SSI and have dependents, you’ll need to fill out additional information to get the extra $500 per child.

Here’s a great Q&A page on the IRS site. If you have questions, check it out!

And here’s another good Q&A page that provides more details about your Economic Impact Payments (EIP).

Be Vigilant for Scammers!

Unfortunately, there are bad actors that are using this health crisis to take advantage of unsuspecting residents, especially our senior citizens. Please note the IRS WILL NOT call you and ask for your bank account information to deposit your individual relief check.

Check out my coronavirus webpage for more information about scams and what I’m doing to try and mitigate them.

Additional Resources

I created a page on my website with information and resources to keep you up-to-date on the coronavirus situation as it continues to evolve. Check out that page here, and please share with friends so they can keep up with the latest.

In addition to my webpage, I also want to make sure you know where to get the latest updates from the medical experts at CDC.gov and West Virginia DHHR.
I will continue doing my best to keep you up to speed on what we are doing here at the federal level to help and other resources that can be useful back at home. I will be posting regular updates on my Facebook and Twitter accounts, so be sure to follow me there.

Important Information If You’re Visiting DC

Because of coronavirus concerns, all Capitol and White House tours have been suspended indefinitely. Please contact our Washington office to reschedule. Additionally, requests for flags flown over the Capitol may be delayed, and access to the Capitol and House and Senate office buildings is being restricted. Feel free to contact our office at (202) 224-6472 with any questions. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Counting on West Virginia

Have you taken your 2020 census yet? PLEASE DO!

Taking the census takes 10 minutes and could mean thousands of more federal dollars for West Virginia!

Do you part and take it here: https://my2020census.gov/

Over the past couple of months, I’ve been discussing the importance of taking the census, and I encourage you to do the same so you can spread the word to fellow West Virginians. Click here to read a column I wrote about this.

How Can We Help?

Whether you need help with a casework issue or have a question about scheduling a meeting at one of my offices, my staff and I are ready to assist you. Learn more about the services we offer at www.capito.senate.gov.

You can also submit your feedback and share your stories with me by visiting my “Share Your Stories” webpage here: www.capito.senate.gov/ShareYourStories.

Social Media Recap

Join me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for regular updates and photos.

Sincerely,

Shelley Moore Capito

United States Senator