Published: November 13, 2008 02:02 am      

West Virginia weathering economic storm in fine fashion

Not since the glory days of King Coal in the 1950s and ’60s have things looked so good for West Virginia.

While West Virginia may experience some of the effects of the financial turmoil that the nation and the world are going through, the state will weather the storm better than other places, top West Virginia officials have said.

It’s nice to be an exception to the rule — especially when it is such a positive exception.

National organizations have reinforced the idea of West Virginia’s prosperity.

The Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government cited the state as having the best economy in the country during mid-2008 and found that the state’s employment growth rate surpassed the national average. West Virginia also achieved the third-highest rate of personal income revenue growth in the nation.

The U.S. Department of Labor reports that West Virginia reached an unemployment rate of 3.7 percent in September 2008. This marked the lowest number of unemployed West Virginians in the history of the state. And Marion County was one of five state counties with a better unemployment percentage this fall, clocking in at just 3.1 percent.

The Cato Institute’s Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors gave West Virginia an “A” in 2008, reporting that it had made more pro-growth tax reforms than any other state.

These high marks have not gone without notice. Just this month, US Airways Magazine featured a lengthy article about the State of West Virginia as part of its promotional business series. The piece focuses on commerce, the energy sector, economic development, health care, higher education and quality of life in the state. That glossy magazine with vibrant picture — an even more vibrant facts and figures about the state’s business and economy — is available to every passenger of the airline across the globe.

With such good news, we couldn’t help but celebrate “The state of our economy” with a special Times West Virginian bonus edition today. Inside its pages, you will find why West Virginia has become a shining star in the midst of a nationwide economic storm.

From the highest level of government to our local retailers, dealers and businesses in North Central West Virginia, we’ve looked at not only how well the economy is doing, but how it’s poised to prosper in the future.

“The state of West Virginia, we’re going to get through this,” Gov. Joe Manchin told the Times West Virginian in a one-on-one interview for the bonus edition. “If anything, we’re going to prosper through this. We should take advantage of the situation. We have gotten our house in order. It gives us a chance to show off our state. With that, this is a safe haven.”

The future is bright for Wild, Wonderful West Virginia.