Tonight, Gov. Patrick Morrisey will deliver his first State of the State Address to lawmakers and West Virginia residents from the state Capitol. There will be the usual pomp and circumstance surrounding such events, but Morrisey has much work to do in the months ahead — there will be no time for folksy sayings or shenanigans, as the state was forced to deal with the prior eight years. No, first on Morrisey’s list must be how to address the $400 million hole in the state budget left by the Justice Administration.

Morrisey has said the budget hole comes from a combination of one-time money being used on ongoing general fund expenditures and the underfunding of departments and agencies, along with natural growth in future expenses.

Lawmakers also passed what now has amounted to about a 25 percent cut in the personal income tax and opted to refund personal property tax payments to residents. Morrisey now worries that state leaders may not have had their ducks in a row when it came to paying for those cuts.

“I strongly support the ongoing effort to continue to cut taxes. But as you know, I (was) very clear last year … I said, please continue to cut taxes, but you must pay for them,” Morrisey said. “The taxes have not been paid for. … We’re going to find a way to make that happen.”

Then there’s also what Morrisey sees as the failure by the prior administration to fully fund certain departments. The governor said the Department of Tourism, Public Defenders Services and the Department of Homeland Security/Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation will need $81 million by March to continue to operate.

“That was intentionally done so that there would be a need to come back to the Legislature. We have to work to find a solution to that,” Morrisey said.

That’s the level of accountability and transparency we need from our chief executive. If there’s a budget hole, identify it, inform the public and get it fixed.

We can’t afford to continue kicking the can down the road.

Another item that needs addressed is education. West Virginia cannot be competitive with its neighboring states — a Morrisey priority — unless we improve public education.

The latest scores from The Nation’s Report Card show West Virginia trailing its neighbors. That needs to end.

There are other issues — child protective services stands out, particularly given the order this past week from Circuit Judge Tim Sweeney ordering officials with the state Department of Human Services to report to work in his four-county circuit and serve as CPS workers — but addressing the budget and education will help move everything else.

Morrisey has set the stage for what should be a transparent administration. Let’s hope he stands by that philosophy during his address tonight and then moving forward.