Adopted by House 2-13-2006
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 17

(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Staton and Browning)


[Introduced January 13,2006; referred to the
Committee on Rules.]

Requesting the Governor of the State of West Virginia and the West Virginia Development Office to put the highest priority on putting forward locations in the southern coalfield counties for the proposed coal conversion facilities.

Whereas, The United States faces foreign and domestic threats to the petroleum and natural gas resources so vital to our economy; and
Whereas, West Virginia has an estimated 50 billion tons of coal reserves; and
Whereas, Coal liquefaction and other conversion processes can turn each ton of coal into as much as three barrels of liquid fuel; and
Whereas, Governor Joe Manchin, III, has established the West Virginia Coal Conversion Initiative to bring the public and private sectors together to build coal conversion facilities and related infrastructures in the Mountain State; and
Whereas, Such facilities would bring much needed jobs, economic development and take the state away from a dependence on outside fuels; and

Whereas, Southern West Virginia is located within 500 miles of half of the nation's population and much of West Virginia's coal reserves lie in the southern coalfields; and
Whereas, The West Virginia Turnpike, U. S. Route 19 and the soon to be built Coalfields Expressway make southern West Virginia more accessible than ever to the markets of the East Coast, Midwest and South; therefore, be it
Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Legislature hereby requests the Governor of the State of West Virginia and the West Virginia Development Office to put the highest priority on putting forward locations in the southern coalfield counties for the proposed coal conversion facilities; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the Governor of the State of West Virginia, the West Virginia Development Office and the Wyoming County Commission.