Blog

July 23, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Senate Health Bill (BCRA) Would Hit West Virginia Hardest

While it is unclear what version of the legislation the U.S. Senate will plan to take up on Tuesday (7/25) when they vote to proceed to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the revised version of the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA) would be particularly harmful to West Virginians. An updated report from the…

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July 7, 2017 by Seth DiStefano
SNAP Helps Over 81,000 West Virginia Workers

SNAP plays a crucial role helping workers in low-paying jobs afford a basic diet in West Virginia. Each year between 2013 and 2015, an average of 81,000 West Virginia workers lived in households that participated in SNAP within the last year, according to analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. For many of…

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July 5, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Yes, State Government and Taxes Are Shrinking

When lawmakers passed a "bare-bones" state budget, some lawmakers  expressed that the state government needs to "live within its means" because of our "shrinking population and tax base." Other lawmakers have suggested that our state budget is too big and that we will need to "continue making cuts to programs and services" and that we should…

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June 30, 2017 by Sean O'Leary
Senate Health Care Bill Cuts Medicaid to Pay for Tax Cuts for the Rich – UPDATED

The Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA), the latest Republican plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was introduced in the U.S. Senate on June 22, 2017, and is awaiting a vote. In its current form, the bill would eliminate most of the provisions of the ACA, including its tax provisions, and drastically cut…

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June 23, 2017 by Ted Boettner
A Short History of the 2017 Budget Crisis in West Virginia (So Far)

This week, Governor Justice said he would let the state budget become law instead of signing it because the budget contained so many cuts ( a "travesty") and that his proposed tax plans failed to become law. Governor Justice mostly blamed Democrats and Republicans in the House of Delegates, along with the Senate Democrats, for…

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June 22, 2017 by Sean O'Leary
Comparing the FY 2017 and FY 2018 Budgets

Earlier this week, this post covered all the changes in the final FY 2018 budget with the governor's original proposal, with the final budget coming in at $280.3 million below the governor's original proposal. But how does it compare with last year's budget? The FY 2018 base budget (General Revenue, Lottery, and Excess Lottery) totaled $4.653…

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June 20, 2017 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia Finally has a Budget

After failing to come to an agreement on a plan to either completely overhaul the state's tax system, or simply raise some revenue to close the upcoming budget gap, the legislature passed a "bare bones" budget over the weekend, ending the extended special session just two weeks before a possible government shutdown. The FY 2018…

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June 14, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Additional Revenues Still Needed to Avoid Cuts to Critical Needs

As MetroNews reported, the state Senate passed a state budget of $4.225 billion in General Revenue Fund spending for FY 2018. The budget contains deep cuts in Medicaid and higher education above and beyond what the governor proposed during the regular and special legislative session. The budget also relies on updated revenue estimates of $169.9…

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June 13, 2017 by Sean O'Leary
More Budget Cuts on the Table (Updated 6/15/17)

As the extended special session drags on, with no agreement on a tax bill yet, the House has made adjustments to the governor's budget plan submitted at the beginning of the special session. To recap, after vetoing the budget passed during the regular session, which was balanced by taking $90 million from the Rainy Day…

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June 8, 2017 by WVCBP
Guest Blog: Kansas’ Experiment Yields Valuable Lessons

Heidi Holliday, Executive Director of the Kansas Center for Economic Growth   You're welcome, America. Our state, Kansas, just wrapped up a 5-year long experiment in governance from which the other 49 states can now glean some important lessons. The Kansas Legislature has voted to roll back much of the 2012 package of tax cuts…

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