W.Va. Chamber Survey:  Civil Justice Reform Tops Issues
91 Percent Say State’s Business Climate ‘Out Of Step’

March 28, 2005

CHARLESTON -- Civil justice reform is the number one issue on the minds of the members of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, according to an on-line survey that was conducted last week.  As part of the survey, members of the W.Va. Chamber were asked to rank 11 key business issues. 

When asked to rank the top issues that should be addressed, three-quarters of the respondents selected litigation/legal costs as the top issue.  More than 70 percent of the respondents picked Workers’ Compensation as the second most important issue that needs to be addressed.   Here is a listing of the top five issues that the membership said should to be addressed:

Litigation/legal costs              75.2%

Workers’ Compensation        72.0%

Taxation                                  67.2%

Health Care                            66.4%

Education                                36.8%

When asked about how the state’s business climate compared with surrounding states, a majority of the members ranked West Virginia as being slightly worse or much worse, particularly when it comes to Virginia and North Carolina.  Eight-six percent of the respondents said West Virginia ranks poor/very poor when it comes to litigation/legal costs, and 84 percent said the same for Workers’ Comp.  On a positive note, 70 percent of the respondents indicated a positive/neutral viewpoint about the state’s energy costs, and 66 percent had that view of the state’s workforce.

The most telling result from the survey is that 91 percent of the respondents said the state’s business climate is unfavorable/out of step when compared to the rest of the nation.

One interesting outcome of the survey is the West Virginia Chamber’s members are nearly split on their outlook for the state.  When asked “What is your opinion about West Virginia ’s direction/future?”, the respondents said:

            Very Optimistic            3.2%

            Optimistic                   41.6%

            Neutral                        24.0%

            Negative                     25.6%

            Very Negative               5.6%

“The results of this survey, which includes an equal number of small and large employer respondents, affirms the policy priorities of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce,” said Steve Roberts, President. “Our members, who provide the jobs and tax revenues of this state, have stated once again that West Virginia is out of step on key business issues, and they want to see action, particularly on civil justice reform.

“However, as the state tackles more and more of these business issues, such as it did recently with Workers’ Compensation, employers in the state are beginning to indicate that they see things starting to improve,” Roberts added.  “Let’s build on this momentum by enacting civil justice reform.”