Position Statement: Standing Up for West Virginia’s Education Retirees

My campaign is rooted in a simple belief: West Virginia must honor the promises made to those who dedicated their lives to educating our children. Our retired school employees built the foundation of our public education system, yet too many are now struggling to make ends meet.

The fact that in West Virginia, education retirees do not receive automatic cost‑of‑living adjustments (COLAs) is appalling, and that for many retirees, their pension has never increased, even as inflation, healthcare costs, and basic living expenses continue to rise. This leaves our retired educators financially vulnerable after decades of public service serving our communities.

The problem has only been made worse by ongoing PEIA benefit cuts and premium increases. Retirees living on fixed incomes should not be asked to shoulder costs they simply cannot absorb. This is unacceptable, and as a candidate I refuse to ignore the hardship facing our retired teachers and school service personnel and will do everything I can to make this right.

I strongly support increasing the state income tax exemption for retired school employees to at least the first $20,000 in teacher retirement benefits. This is a practical, immediate step the state can take to provide meaningful financial relief and help retirees keep more of what they earned.

In addition, I support legislation that would guarantee a minimum monthly income for all education retirees and work to make this realized. No one who spent a career serving West Virginia’s students should be forced into poverty in retirement. Establishing a minimum income floor would provide dignity, stability, and peace of mind for those who gave so much to our state.

Supporting education retirees is about fairness, respect, and responsibility. I will always stand with West Virginia’s retired educators and fight to ensure they can retire with the security and dignity they deserve.

Thanks for your time,

Rob Vincent

“Honest work, Real solutions, A Better West Virginia”