April 2, 2026 - West Virginia’s two U.S. senators and coal operators anticipate more positive news for the industry during the final two years of Donald Trump as president.

Coal operators gathered over the last two days for the West Virginia Mining Symposium in the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center, hearing from both U.S. Senators Shelley Moore Capito and Jim Justice about the Trump administration and its approach with the future of coal.

Capito said during a Wednesday midday address at the symposium she is pleased with the current landscape of coal conversations in D.C.

“The president likes coal, he likes coal miners, and that’s good news for us.”

West Virginia Coal Association President Chris Hamilton agreed “it’s a great time in D.C.”

“In fact, we’ve never had a president in office before that talks about coal so proudly and is doing everything imaginable to help boost our industry here,” Hamilton said. “So, we’re very pleased with that. She [Capito] is 100% accurate, and we’re just so appreciative of President Trump and his energy team.”

Senator Jim Justice lauded the state’s coal mining when he took the podium Tuesday.

“West Virginia is a coal state through and through, and I could not be more proud of our hardworking energy producers. Attending the West Virginia Mining Symposium today gave me the opportunity to hear directly from the men and women who keep this industry running, and to better understand just how I can keep fighting for West Virginia coal jobs and our miners in Washington. These folks work their tails off and power our country every single day and I’ll always have their backs.”

Capito spoke about how important it is to her to support this industry.

“I’ve been doing this for years. I have a great relationship with not just our coal operators, but our coal miners. I’ve visited many of the sites. I know not just the history, but the absolute vital role that coal plays today. I just want to give them a pep talk to thank them for what they do, to keep it safe. We’ve had accidents, and those are always very tragic, and they work hard to be safe, and they work hard to follow the environmental parameters that are set out.”

Hamilton also praised Capito for attending and for her support of coal.

“It’s always important when Senator Capito attends one of our meetings. She’s always on point, and she always speaks very highly of our business and the miners that go out and extract this energy that’s consumed on a worldwide basis.”