"The Journal" on Kump

                

Kump seeking re-election in 59th District

• By Tricia Lynn Strader For The Journal Newspaper 

• Mar 26, 2020

FALLING WATERS — Delegate Larry D. Kump, R-Berkeley/Morgan, is running for re-election in the 59th District.

Kump was elected to the seat in 2010 and 2012, defeated by Saira Blair in 2014, who served two terms, and elected again to a two-year term in 2018.

For most of his life, Kump has worked in positions serving the public and said he wishes to continue as long as voters are willing to send him back to the West Virginia House of Delegates. He said after his retirement, he was encouraged to run the first time by people who knew him and wanted him to put his expertise to work on behalf of the public.

“As always, my principles and practices are all about accountability, transparency and personal integrity,” Kump said. “For me, my decision to again serve in public office was because of my firm conviction and personal passion to do my best to be an independent voice on behalf of our personal liberties and responsibilities. As a liberty-minded and battle-tested Christian conservative, it is important for me to not listen to the loudest and most raucous voices in the public arena, but simply to hear the heartfelt feedback of concerned citizens.”

He is opposed in the Republican primary by Morgan County Commissioner Ken Reed, whose wife Tally Reed ran against Kump in 2018. The 59th District includes portions of Berkeley and Morgan counties, including the communities of Hedgesville, Cherry Run, Jones Spring and The Woods.

Kump believes experience counts in the private sector and in the Legislature and that he’s the best qualified candidate.

“I was in the criminal justice system as a high security prison case manager for 17 years,” he said. “Before that, I was a legislative director in the Pennsylvania state Senate almost directly after college. I worked in labor relations in the public sector for 18 years. I’ve got all kinds of public sector management, labor relations and accountability experience.”

He said details of his background can be found on his website, and he has either proposed or been a supporter of over 40 bills, many of which passed in the recent legislative session. He said he continues to remain a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, personal property rights, individual liberty and pro-life family values.

“Especially dear to my heart are those God-given rights and responsibilities promised to us by the First, Second, Third, Fourth and 10th amendments of our Constitution, including our personal property rights, as well as the rights of the yet unborn,” he said.

One of those bills was HB 4376, which he said protects the people’s rights and disallows municipalities from violating people’s Second Amendment rights.

HB 4522, he said, makes it easier to renew or get a West Virginia driver’s license if possessing the federal real ID.

“We loosened up how West Virginia dealt with that,” he said. “It makes it easier going forward, particularly for women. With name changes and marriages or divorces, it becomes a real hassle.”

He drafted and sponsored HB 2497, giving more protection to West Virginia public employees blowing the whistle on corruption or mismanagement, saying it was a big step forward, because no one would know more about what goes on in the government than the people who work in it.

“HB 4092 was the Foster Children and Foster Parents Bill of Rights, that I was proud to support,” Kump said. “We put money and protections in for foster children and foster parents. HB 4007 was the Born Alive Survivors Protection Act. I was a big supporter of that legislation.”

He also cited HB 4062, the pharmacy audit.

“When prescription drug companies provide a discount, this requires the discount be passed on to the health insurance premium or to the actual cost of the drugs for the consumer,” said Kump.

HB 4089 requires cursive writing to be taught in schools.

“Some students cannot write a letter, because they don’t know how to write in cursive,” said Kump. “That was a pet peeve of mine, and I voted strongly in favor of that proposal.”

He was proud to sponsor HB 2419, dealing with pre-trial release of inmates. They can be released without jail until trial date unless they are a violent offender, escape risk or a danger to public safety.

“That saves the taxpayers money. We don’t have to feed and house them while they wait for trial,” Kump said.

Two bills he had hoped would pass, but did not, were HB 4639, of which he was a primary sponsor, and HB 2605. He said HB 4639 would’ve allowed residents to renew vehicle inspections every two years instead of annually, and HB 2605 would’ve allowed changing municipal and county elections on odd election dates to primary or general election dates to encourage more voter turnout.

“Voter turnout’s usually low on June municipality election dates or county-levy dates,” he said. “In Berkeley County, on the last levy election, turnout was 6%.”

Other bills Kump cited include HB 4129, which takes some of the bureaucracy out of the adoption process; HB 4478, making any person previously convicted of human trafficking ineligible for a commercial driver’s license; and Adri’s and Owen’s Law, which establishes penalties for the abuse of an incapacitated adult and for a non-verbal special needs child.

He said he strongly supported Senate Bill 562, which also passed the House, to expunge the record of anyone found not guilty of a crime or dismissed from a crime.

Kump also said he and about a third of other legislators filed a taxpayer’s protection pledge, which says they vow not to raise taxes unless it replaces another existing tax.

“We have plenty of money in West Virginia. We just don’t allocate it right,” he said.

Visit www.LarryKump.us or www.LarryKump.com for more information.

Footnote: Your contribution to the re-election of Delegate Kump, whether modest or magnanimous, should be sent to

Friends of Larry D. Kump
P. O. Box 1131
Falling Waters, West Virginia 25419-1131

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May God bless you all real good!