RAZE faces cuts, will not be returning after the cut
Raze is West Virginia's youth tobacco prevention and education program.
After 24 years, the program is bidding farewell after budget cuts.
Funding cuts eliminate Raze tobacco education program in West Virginia
Back in 2023, the Mountain State was awarded 7.9 Million dollars in a lawsuit against the company JULE.
House Bill 3521 would have awarded $1.19 million of that to tobacco education efforts, but it died in the State Senate on the last day of the 2025 legislative session. RAZE released a letter thanking advisors for the last 24 years of effort.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Oregon bill would make landlords give back rent deposit or pay fee if home found defective
Sen. Deb Patterson, D-Salem, at the Oregon Legislature on Feb. 12, 2024. (Jordan Gale/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Oregon rental applicants who haven't yet signed a lease could soon get their security deposits back if they find the home they've applied to is defective. House Bill 3521, now headed to Gov. Tina Kotek's desk, would let Oregon renters get their security deposits back if the home they've applied to has mold, unsafe electrical wiring or other defects making it uninhabitable. The bill already passed the Oregon House in a 33-18 vote in April, and on Thursday it passed the Oregon Senate in a 20-8 vote. Under the bill, landlords would have five days to return deposits or face a fee equivalent to the deposit they charged. Landlords would not face penalties if natural disasters or emergencies keep them from complying, and they could still choose to return deposits at their place of business rather than through mail. Rep. Annessa Hartman, D-Gladstone, spearheaded the bill after hearing from renters across Oregon who lost hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars to hold deposits for homes they couldn't move into because of mold, broken plumbing or pest infestations. Renters in Oregon represent 51% of all low-income households, according to Oregon Housing and Community Services. And nearly 37% of Oregonians rent their homes, according to the U.S. Census. That's higher than the national average, and renters are in the majority in cities including Eugene, Corvallis, Monmouth, Beaverton and Seaside. 'Landlords can still enter into whole deposit agreements, collect deposits and keep them when applicants back out without a good reason,' Senate sponsor Deb Patterson, D-Salem, said on the floor. 'That doesn't change. What does change is that applicants will have the right to walk away if the unit is substantially uninhabitable.' No senator debated against the bill on Thursday. If enacted, the bill would apply to deposits received on or after Jan. 1, 2026. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
2nd Saturdays to launch this weekend in Downtown Beckley
BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) – A local effort to revitalize Downtown Beckley has made way for the inaugural 2nd Saturdays event, set to take place this through the Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce's Downtown Pulse initiative, the monthly event will highlight local brick and mortar business locations and will feature vendors and live music. Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce President & CEO, Michelle Rotellini told 59News the chamber hopes to show off the potential of the Downtown Beckley area through the event.'It's like a secret little hidden treasure right now. There's a lot of vacant spaces with a lot of character and a lot of potential,' she said. 'The [Beckley-Raleigh County] Chamber [of Commerce] has really come in to say, 'hey, let's start to create some synergy so that there's a reason to be downtown; so that there's foot traffic.'' 2nd Saturdays will take place on Main Street in Downtown Beckley on the second Saturday of every month, as the name suggests. Each event will feature a new lineup of entertainment and vendors. This weekend's event will also feature the soft opening of the Tiffany's boutique in the downtown area. Entrepreneurs and vendors interested in getting involved with 2nd Saturdays have been encouraged to reach out to the Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Yahoo
Director of bipartisan energy group says Big Beautiful Bill could kill clean energy jobs in West Virginia
BECKLEY, WV (WVNS) — The executive director of a bipartisan group which represents business leaders and investors in the U.S. green energy sector said a budget proposed by President Donald Trump could kill energy jobs in West Virginia. Bob Keefe, executive director of E2 and author of the book 'Clean Economy Now,' said on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, that businesses across the country had cancelled or delayed more than $14 billion in investments and 10,000 clean energy jobs since January. Keefe said West Virginia jobs in construction, manufacturing and other sectors in Huntington, Wayne County and other places in the state will be affected if the U.S. Senate were to vote in favor of a portion of the budget which calls for cutting clean energy tax credits. Attorney for pregnancy rights group says West Virginia law protects women who miscarry Keefe made the announcement a few days after officials at Core Natural Resources, citing the market, warned more than 200 miners at Itmann Mine #5 in Wyoming County that they would face a lay-off in early August, if mine operations did not improve. 'Look, every job is important. Every coal job is important,' Keefe said on Wednesday. 'What's killing coal is not clean energy. What's killing coal is that coal companies continue to automate and also, frankly, the economics have caught up with the energy industry.' Keefe said utility companies pay more to burn coal and that West Virginians pay rising utility costs as a result. CEO of WV Coal Association says trade war with China will impact coal operations 'The good news is we have the opportunity to transition those coal jobs, and who better to drive the energy industry than coal workers, and that means coal workers in West Virginia,' Keefe said. 'These jobs are just now coming. Hopefully, Congress, in the next few weeks, doesn't kill it off.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.