senator manchin said in part, "i appreciate the early actions of the west virginia public service commission and the utilities that operate in the state to stop service disconnections when customers have not been able to pay their bills. in the middle of a pandemic is not the time to cut off essential services… i urge the commission not to approve any rate hikes while we are still very much in the middle of battling the coronavirus and have not yet begun our economic recovery. it is not the time to raise costs on customers already struggling to pay their bills. i look forward to working with you on this issue to protect west virginians." manchin advocates for assistance for families, youth, and children in crisis as a result of covid-19 pandemic washington, dc - u.s. senator joe manchin (d-wv) led senators lisa murkowski (r-ak), dan sullivan (r-ak), and kyrsten sinema (d-az) in advocating for the senate to provide support for children, youth, and families in crisis or experiencing homelessness during the covid-19 pandemic. 