Delegate Josh Stowers, D-Lincoln, who's running for one of two seats in the new House 22nd District, said federal funding for West Virginia's highways continues to decline, and lawmakers must find new ways to pay for road construction and repairs.

"[Roads] are an everyday life issue," said Stowers, who recently was appointed by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin to serve on a special committee studying state highway funding. "It's an economic development issue. We have to fix our roads."

Delegate Patrick Lane, R-Kanawha, a candidate in the new House 38th District, echoed Stowers' comments. But Lane said gasoline taxes and license fees shouldn't be increased to build and repair roads.

"I'm simply not willing to raise taxes," said Lane, one of seven House candidates who met with Gazette editors in Charleston on Monday. "The answer is we have to reprioritize the [state] budget."

Delegate Ron Walters, R-Kanawha, a candidate in the new House 39th District, said the state could improve highways with funds now sitting idle in several state accounts. Three years from now, West Virginia also might be able to tap millions of dollars in personal income tax revenue now being used to pay off the state's workers' compensation debt, he said.

"I can't think of anything more important than a safe highway," Walters said. "It's fundamental."

Gary Johngrass, a Republican candidate in the 22nd District, suggested the state fund highway construction by allowing more casinos to open in West Virginia.

"The revenue is humungous," Johngrass said. "People are now flocking to casinos."

But Michael Moffatt, also a Republican running in the 22nd, said gambling has ruined cities such as Atlantic City, N.J.

"It's a hellhole except for the casinos," said Moffat, who also opposes giving tax breaks to casino operators to upgrade slot machines.

Stowers said gambling seems to have leveled off in West Virginia in recent years. "I don't know if the demand is there," he said.

Also Monday, several candidates spoke about a $750,000 audit of West Virginia's Department of Education and K-12 school system.

Ginny Moles, a Democrat running in the 38th District against Lane, said education changes are long overdue.

"We have students who graduate who aren't qualified to work at the Toyota plant [in Putnam County]," Moles said. "Our education system and workforce is not up to speed with other states."

Lane criticized state Board of Education members for worrying about how teachers unions would react to the audit's recommendations -- as reported in recent Gazette articles.

"I haven't seen anybody say, 'I'm worried about the kids,'" Lane said.

Lane said he supports the audit's recommendation to decrease the number of administrators at the Department of Education and at county school board central offices. Those cuts alone would save $45 million -- enough money to hire 600 teachers, Lane said.

"The bureaucracy in education has exploded," he said.

Clint Casto, a Democrat running against Ron Walters in the House 39th District, said teachers and administrators shouldn't always be blamed for the education problems. He said parents also must be responsible for their children's schooling.

Stowers, an assistant principal at Horace Mann Middle School in Charleston, said the state must do more to attract good teachers. One possibility: forgiving college loans for new teachers who work in rural schools.

"Teaching is not a profession people want to go in anymore," Stowers said. "The people applying for jobs are fewer and fewer every year."

Former Delegate Jeff Eldridge also is running as a Democrat in the House 22nd District. He did not attend Monday's interview with Gazette editors.

Reach Eric Eyre at erice...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-4869.