CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Gov. Joe Manchin's proposal last week for the Public Employees Insurance Agency to consider the possibility of imposing a "fat tax" in the form of higher premiums for overweight insurees went over like the proverbial lead balloon with state employees.

I was talking with Gordon Simmons, an organizer for state Public Employees Union UE 170, who confirmed that state employees were infuriated by the proposal, particularly in light of not getting pay raises this year and having a $500 one-time bonus promised to them, then yanked away.

He called the "fat tax" Manchin's attempt to take the last shred of dignity away from state employees, and suggested that employee morale is at an all-time low.

Meanwhile, Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper sent a strongly worded three-page letter to PEIA Director Ted Cheatham Friday, calling the proposal punitive and discriminatory.

Carper said PEIA would be better served to follow Kanawha County's lead in requiring employees to get check-ups and blood tests.

"This effort is based on the premise that putting knowledge of their health conditions into their hands will encourage them to take steps to make improvements," he stated.

"Our approach is to emphasize the carrot and not the stick," Carper added. "We want to provide incentives and education to help our employees become healthier, not punish them if they cannot achieve dubious standards that may or may not be directly related to the quality of their health.  . . .

"PEIA should be pro-active in promoting good health and holding down health insurance costs, but incentives are much better than punitive measures," he concluded. "Alabama and North Carolina have received much criticism for trying to impose a 'fat tax' on public employees. Please do not add West Virginia to that list."

I've been critical of the state Department of Education's exorbitant spending of more than $2 million a year to host training conferences at luxury resorts around the state.

When the state Office of Technology hosts its 2009 Information Summit next week at the Charleston Civic Center, chief technology officer Kyle Schafer is taking steps to hold down expenses -- but at a potentially dubious price.

To hold down costs, the conference has sold sponsorships to various I.T. companies.

Sponsorships range in cost from $1,000 to be a co-host of the "social networking reception," to $1,500 to have the company logo on conference name-badge holders, and up to $4,000 each to be designated as a Platinum sponsor.

Platinum sponsors for the summit will be Cisco, Microsoft and Verizon; with six gold sponsors ($3,000 each), including Unisys; and nine silver sponsors ($2,000 each), including AT&T and Lenovo.

According to the Office of Technology's promotional materials, "As an event sponsor, your company will benefit from a broad menu of marketing opportunities that optimize your exposure and brand recognition to West Virginia professionals serving both public and private sector businesses."

But what happens the first time the technology office awards a lucrative state contract to one of these prime sponsors? Think maybe the losing bidders will have grounds to protest?

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Gov. Joe Manchin's proposal last week for the Public Employees Insurance Agency to consider the possibility of imposing a "fat tax" in the form of higher premiums for overweight insurees went over like the proverbial lead balloon with state employees.

I was talking with Gordon Simmons, an organizer for state Public Employees Union UE 170, who confirmed that state employees were infuriated by the proposal, particularly in light of not getting pay raises this year and having a $500 one-time bonus promised to them, then yanked away.

He called the "fat tax" Manchin's attempt to take the last shred of dignity away from state employees, and suggested that employee morale is at an all-time low.

Meanwhile, Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper sent a strongly worded three-page letter to PEIA Director Ted Cheatham Friday, calling the proposal punitive and discriminatory.

Carper said PEIA would be better served to follow Kanawha County's lead in requiring employees to get check-ups and blood tests.

"This effort is based on the premise that putting knowledge of their health conditions into their hands will encourage them to take steps to make improvements," he stated.

"Our approach is to emphasize the carrot and not the stick," Carper added. "We want to provide incentives and education to help our employees become healthier, not punish them if they cannot achieve dubious standards that may or may not be directly related to the quality of their health.  . . .

"PEIA should be pro-active in promoting good health and holding down health insurance costs, but incentives are much better than punitive measures," he concluded. "Alabama and North Carolina have received much criticism for trying to impose a 'fat tax' on public employees. Please do not add West Virginia to that list."

I've been critical of the state Department of Education's exorbitant spending of more than $2 million a year to host training conferences at luxury resorts around the state.

When the state Office of Technology hosts its 2009 Information Summit next week at the Charleston Civic Center, chief technology officer Kyle Schafer is taking steps to hold down expenses -- but at a potentially dubious price.

To hold down costs, the conference has sold sponsorships to various I.T. companies.

Sponsorships range in cost from $1,000 to be a co-host of the "social networking reception," to $1,500 to have the company logo on conference name-badge holders, and up to $4,000 each to be designated as a Platinum sponsor.

Platinum sponsors for the summit will be Cisco, Microsoft and Verizon; with six gold sponsors ($3,000 each), including Unisys; and nine silver sponsors ($2,000 each), including AT&T and Lenovo.

According to the Office of Technology's promotional materials, "As an event sponsor, your company will benefit from a broad menu of marketing opportunities that optimize your exposure and brand recognition to West Virginia professionals serving both public and private sector businesses."

But what happens the first time the technology office awards a lucrative state contract to one of these prime sponsors? Think maybe the losing bidders will have grounds to protest?

Speaking of conferences, General Services Division engineering manager Scott Mason was terminated, and four other GSD employees -- operations manager David Parsons, Jonathan Trout, custodial manager Jim Hawley and Roger Wines -- were reprimanded for "disruptive behavior" at the Purchasing Division's 2009 conference earlier this month at Canaan Valley Resort. All five were sent home from the conference.

After this week, Sen. Dan Foster, D-Kanawha, won't be the only member of the Legislature who can say he went to Harvard University.

Delegate Nancy Guthrie, D-Kanawha, is attending the weeklong Harvard Kennedy School executive education program on "Creating Collaborative Solutions -- Innovations in Government."

Guthrie said she was thrilled to be selected for the program, considering that past participants have come from 126 counties and have included more than 50 U.S. legislators.

The tuition is pricy ($6,300, including room and board), but Guthrie said she agreed to pick up half the cost, with the House paying the remainder.

More state-vehicle commuters:

Division of Corrections (3), Charles Hudson, James Perdue, John Smith.

Division of Juvenile Services (5), Brandon Gerwig, Joe Haddix, Vernard Humphreys, Alan Simmons, Paul Underwood.

Finally, the first I learned of The Greenbrier's $59-a-night promotion last week was when a lobbyist forwarded Eric Eyre's initial report from the Internet, with the comment, "A perfect place for the Department of Education's next (cheap) meeting.  . . ."

That's when I suggested that Eric check to see if it was legal under the Interstate Commerce Clause for The Greenbrier to offer discounts only to residents of West Virginia and Virginia.

Eric said that shortly after he made the inquiry to The Greenbrier, he got a call from resort owner Jim Justice announcing that the offer was now open to everyone.

Reach Phil Kabler at ph...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1220.