Missing from this morning’s Wheeling Intelligencer is the WV House’s passage of a bill encouraging solar energy in the state. From the Associated Press:

W.Va. House passes bill making it easier to use solar energy

The article explains:

It could soon be easier for power companies to use solar energy under a bill passed Tuesday in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

Lawmakers voted 75-23 to approve the measure after around an hour of debate that revolved around whether it’s better to focus on coal or renewable energy sources.

The state commerce department pushed for the bill, saying big companies want to know that they can use renewable energy sources before relocating to a state. The proposal would create a regulatory program for utilities to use a small amount of renewables.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail’s front-page article provides more details including reaction by some House members:

“I’m a coal guy,” Delegate Rodney Miller, D-Boone, said. “Growing up, it put food on the table. But unfortunately, those days are gone.”

Not all delegates agreed, however, including one from the Northern Panhandle:

Delegate Pat McGeehan, R-Hancock, called green energy a fad and chastised the Republican-controlled Legislature for embracing the plan.

Note -- Ogden’s political reporter, Steven Allen Adams, also wrote a story about the House vote that appeared in today's Parkersburg News and Sentinel. Adam’s coverage is not in this morning’s Intelligencer; two I-70 bridge pictures take-up half of the front page.