By Leann Ray | Editor-in-chief
As we gear up for West Virginia Day this weekend, we're celebrating the stories that help our state thrive. From investigations to community-focused coverage, our newsroom works every day to keep West Virginians informed.
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The Ultimate Fighting Championship ring on the White House South Lawn on Thursday, June 11, 2026. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)
WV lawmaker, congressional delegation listed as targets in foiled UFC terror plot, court records say
By Lori Kersey
Men charged in a foiled domestic terror plot intended for the Ultimate Fighting Championship match on the White House lawn Sunday meant to target a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates and the state’s entire congressional delegation, court documents show.
The West Virginia State Capitol (Photo by Perry Bennett/West Virginia Legislative Photography)
By Caity Coyne
Gov. Patrick Morrisey appointed Aaron Snodgrass as the new state budget director earlier this month following the departure of two long-tenured leads in the office.
NATIONAL
People shop the shelves at the Ritenour Co-Care Food Pantry just outside of St. Louis last week. The nonprofit has seen rising need as grocery prices soar and thousands of Missourians lose federal food assistance. (Photo courtesy of Ritenour Co-Care Food Pantry)
By Kevin Hardy
Families are facing rising grocery prices at the same time that many of the most vulnerable are losing access to the nation’s largest food assistance program, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. More than 4 million Americans lost SNAP benefits between February 2025 and this February, according to analyses of the most recent federal data. The numbers are expected to increase as states whittle the rolls further as required by the broad tax and spending law President Donald Trump signed last summer, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
By Ashley Murray
WASHINGTON — The White House on Wednesday read to reporters a 14-point memorandum of understanding with Iran to stop the ongoing war and allow for further negotiations, but did not release the exact text.
By Amelia Twyman
WASHINGTON — U.S. House and Senate Democrats, mostly from Western states, are demanding transparency from the Interior Department after media reports revealed the Trump administration redirected roughly $90 million in national parks fees to help fund renovations and upcoming celebratory displays in Washington, D.C.
By Jennifer Shutt
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Federal Emergency Management Agency testified before a U.S. Senate committee Wednesday that if confirmed he would ensure natural disaster recovery efforts are “objective” and “fair.”
By Sam Gauntt
WASHINGTON — The Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against a transgender healthcare nonprofit Wednesday, accusing it of misleading and coercing parents over gender-affirming treatment for their children.
COMMENTARY
West Virginia spends about 44% of its general budget on primary and secondary education. (Photo by Marcus Constantino for West Virginia Watch)
By Andrew Donaldson
Torricelli invented the first barometer to put a mathematical reading to how atmospheric pressure affects the environment in 1644. Soon after, Pascal had it hauled up a mountain to prove altitude affected the pressure readings. Then came the understanding that pressure changes could be measured to know a storm is coming.
In West Virginia, school closures are where 40 years of decisions finally show up on the gauge.
ICYMI
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