CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Another member of Gov. Jim Justice’s original staff is departing.
Today is the last day for Jason Pizatella, deputy chief of staff. He’s going to work for a Charleston law firm, which plans to make an announcement next week about his hire. Pizatella says his departure from the Justice administration is voluntary.
“I just think that the timing is right. I wish the governor and the administration nothing but the absolute best,” said Pizatella, 35, who was also a veteran of previous administrations, including almost six years under former Democratic Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin.
This makes the fourth key departure from the Justice administration since the governor switched parties from Democrat to Republican on Aug. 3.
Press Secretary Grant Herring came to work that Friday but left that afternoon and only returned to gather up his belongings. Herring was a veteran of Democratic political campaigns at the national level. He has not been replaced so far.
Chief of staff Nick Casey, a former state Democratic Party chairman, was fired on August 14 via telephone call from Justice. Casey said he was fired for being a Democrat, and Justice later said he believed Casey’s close identification with Democratic Party politics would have bothered him long-term.
State Senator Mike Hall, a longtime Republican legislator from Putnam County, was hired to be the new chief of staff.
Derek Scarbro, Justice’s director of intergovernmental affairs, gave notice in late August. He and his wife, Sara, were already living in Cabell County and Scarbro took an economic diversification job with the Robert C. Byrd Institute.
Another Justice staffer, Joey Garcia, the senior counsel for legislation and policy, filed for a waiver with the state Ethics Commission to search for work elsewhere while continuing to serve in the administration.
Another of the communications staff, Marcus Constantino, whose main responsibilities were video and social media, also left right after the party switch announcement.
General Counsel Brian Abraham, Communications Director Butch Antolini and Legislative Director Bob Ashley remain.
After his party switch, Justice had said he’d hired his staff for their skills rather than because of party affiliation. Still, he said, if some felt uncomfortable working for a Republican administration they might choose to go.
In a late-August news conference at the Capitol, Justice had hinted that departures could be on the way.
“Some people on my staff — not in my cabinet — my staff has been primarily hand-picked all from the Democrat side, and that makes it cumbersome and difficult for them. It’s going to be cumbersome and difficult for them working for the Legislature and all that kind of stuff, so there’s some things we still have to address there,” Justice said.
Pizatella is an attorney and had worked in some leadership capacity for the last four West Virginia governors, He was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for state Auditor in 2016.
Before coming to work for Justice, Pizatella was the president and chief executive officer of the Morgantown Area Chamber of Commerce, an organization representing over 400 businesses throughout greater Morgantown and Monongalia County.
Pizatella’s roles with the state have included a wide range of leadership positions including deputy state tax commissioner, acting secretary of the Department of Revenue, acting secretary of the Department of Administration, and a prior stint as deputy chief of staff in the Governor’s Office while also serving as the liaison to the state Legislature.
A lifelong West Virginian and native of Fairmont, Marion County, Pizatella graduated from West Virginia University and the West Virginia University College of Law.