DHHR officials meet

Group evaluates legislative session

By Jenni Vincent, Journal staff writer

State radio talk show host Hoppy Kerchevel, left, shares some tips for passing legislation with Eastern Panhandle Health and Human Services Collaborative members Kathy Boylan and Jan Callen at Friday’s spring meeting. (Journal photo by Jenni Vincent)

MARTINSBURG - Kathy Boylan shook her head, still sad as she recalled hearing about a man who only got about a third of his total tax refund back - simply because he'd chosen to get it quickly, through what's commonly called a "refund anticipation loan," she said.

While he was entitled to a refund of several thousand dollars, in the end he received less than a third of that amount, she said.

"Basically what it comes down to is that some tax preparers will take anywhere from 80 to 90 percent of their return for various fees," Boylan said. "And their interest rates are anywhere from 80 to 110 percent, so you can see how quickly that adds up."

Boylan, a state Department of Health and Human Resources community services manager, isn't alone in her concerns about how refund anticipation loans are handled.

As part of the Eastern Panhandle's Health and Human Services Collaborative, Boylan and approximately 40 other area professionals attended the group's spring meeting Friday afternoon to discuss the recent legislative session as well as their policy goals for 2010.

Guest speak Hoppy Kerchevel of Metronews, who routinely covers state politics and the Legislature on his radio show, encouraged audience members to actively begin working now on bills for next year's legislative session.

It's best to narrow it down to one priority in order to present "a really unified effort," Kerchevel said.

He said it's also necessary to spend time in Charleston after legislation is introduced because "nothing passes just because it's a good idea."

His advice wasn't lost on fellow collaborative member Trina Bartlett, who chaired the meeting and said that the organization is determined to be better prepared to participate in the legislative process and work with area legislators.

"We really want to step it up in the next year, because there are some really good issues out there that we want to tackle," said Bartlett, adding that she hopes draft legislation will be developed as early as August.

The goal is to have plenty of time to meet with area legislators and help them understand the issue, said Bartlett, who is employed as director of community input with the United Way of the Eastern Panhandle.

She said the group obtained a draft bill from a Boston organization that was modified for West Virginia, but that hadn't gone to legislators until December and it was too late to get started.

"We've learned the importance of getting started early. We also know now that we need to arm them with something that they can tell us whether or not it's something that will work in Charleston," Bartlett said.

"We also need to rally our troops and get the word out as much as possible about why this is a consumer protection issue, that it's not an anti-business bill," she said.

Collaborative members will advocate for the bill because it will "benefit the families, the people and the clients that we work with," Bartlett said. "Actually, this will benefit others, such as working West Virginians, not just our clients."

Bartlett said she envisions a bill that provides "full disclosure about what the fees and actual costs are for this type of tax preparation."

Enacting this type of legislation could potentially save "thousands of people hundreds of thousands of dollars," said Teresa Warnick, Friends in Action of the Eastern Panhandle program director.

"This is especially important in tough economic times, because this is money we want to keep right here in the Eastern Panhandle. Ironically, the interest on these loans goes to banks that are out of state, so it is West Virginia money that is just flowing away from here," Warnick said.

Kelly Duncan, volunteer coordinator with the Good Shepherd Caregivers, said she is eager to take what she heard back to her organization and get started working on the collaborative's legislative agenda.

"I think we're at a point where we're finding that it is very necessary to be politically active, to engage our legislators so that (they) can understand what our needs are," Duncan said following the meeting.

- Staff writer Jenni Vincent can be reached at (304) 263-3381, ext. 138, or jvincent@journal-news.net