Politician/Riley Brown

Riley Brown (born June 15, 1941) was an American politician and former Army veteran who served as the Governor of West Virginia from 1989 to 1997. He previously served in the West Virginia House of Delegates from 1981 to 1989 as a delegate from the 10th District.

Early Life
Brown was born in Point Pleasant, West Virginia to parents Anderson and Mary Brown as the oldest of two. Brown's father was a foreman at the local coal mine, and his grandfather, owned a small grocery store in town. His father and his grandfather both served as Point Pleasent's mayor in the 1930s.

Brown graduated from the Point Pleasant High School in 1958, finishing one year early. His family could not afford college, so he worked various jobs, including a gas station attendant, a mechanic, and a bricklayer, until enlisting in the United States Army in 1963. He served in the Vietnam War from 1966 to 1970, when he was honorably discharged after receiving a knee injury. This caused him to have a limp for the rest of his life.

Once returning from the war, Brown attended college at West Virginia University and chose a degree in business management. He dropped out in 1972 to focus on his job at a coal mine, which he held from 1970 to 1980.

West Virginia House of Delegates
In 1981, Brown was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates, representing the 10th District. Brown served four terms in this district, which represented his hometown of Point Pleasant and surrounding areas. Brown was a relatively popular delegate, garnering around 53% of the vote during his campaigns, and keeping a consistent 55% approval rating throughout his time in office.

While serving, he voted with the Democrats 59% of the time, and the Republicans 41% of the time. He voted with the Republicans numerous times to eliminate the state gasoline and sales tax, but those never signed by the Democrat governor.

First Term
Brown was sworn in as Governor of West Virginia on January 16, 1989. He ran on the idea of 'Better Government, not Bigger Government', which became his campaign slogan before and during his time in office. He won all but 11 out of West Virginia's 55 counties.

During his first term, he created the Governor's Commission of Fair Taxation, which was a thorough review of the state's tax structure. The Commission made numerous recommendations for improvement. He streamlined administrative costs from education and other government sectors. The new tax laws reduced the debts exceeding $500 million and creating a $100 million surplus. Because of the reforms, Financial World magazine called the state the most improved in the nation.

As governor, Brown focused his efforts on economic development, modern roads and infrastructure, prisons and jails, a clean environment, health care, and government management. West Virginia's economy improved during his first term. Unemployment dropped from 6.4% to 6% throughout his time in office.

Brown raised teachers' salaries from 49th to 31st in the nation and trained more than 19,000 educators through a statewide Center for Professional Development with the goal of putting technology to its best use in West Virginia's classrooms. He encouraged the use of computers and technology in West Virginia public schools, resulting in the West Virginia Basic Skills Computer Program, which began with kindergarten and extended through sixth grade. His common refrain for "computers in every classroom" since has been expanded to include grades 7–12. In 1996, West Virginia's advances in education technology gained national recognition when Brown received the Computerworld Smithsonian Award.

Second Term
Brown was sworn in for this second and final term as Governor of West Virginia on January 16, 1993, winning every county in the state.

Brown supported a school-building program that led to $850 million in investments for 58 new schools and 780 school renovations, directly benefiting two-thirds of West Virginia's public school students.

Another product of Brown's tenure is the Tamarack, the Best of West Virginia. The facility is a museum, art gallery, and collection of studios for visiting artists that showcases products of West Virginia and organizes the state's "cottage industry." Tamarack is the center of an integrated distribution and marketing network for products by more than 1,200 West Virginia artists.

2000 Presidential Campaign
On November 16, 1999 Brown announced his campaign for President of the United States. Brown performed well in the Democratic primary, mainly getting support from the Southern and Rocky Mountain states. He came 3rd against Maryland Senator James Tracy, and California Governor Andrea Soto.

United States Senator
Brown was sworn in as the junior Senator from West Virginia on January 3, 2003, and left the Senate after choosing not to run for another term on January 3, 2015. Throughout his time in office, he had a conservative voting record, voting with the Republicans 50.8% of the time. This was due to the ever-growing Republican popularity in West Virginia.

Committee Assignments

 * Finance Committee
 * Taxation and IRS Oversight Sub-Committee
 * Energy and Natural Resources Committee
 * National Parks Sub-Committee

Personal Life
He married his wife, Wendy Harbour, on September 6, 1975. They had two children, Matthew and Emily Brown.