Blog

March 30, 2017 by Sean O'Leary
Forced Pooling Bill Includes Tax Cut for Natural Gas Industry

Yesterday, the state Senate passed SB 576, which would allow natural gas producers to force unwilling landowners to allow drilling on their property. But beyond empowering natural gas producers over landowners in the state, the bill was amended to include what is effectively a cut in the severance tax rate for natural gas production. The…

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March 29, 2017 by Sean O'Leary
Tax Reform Might Improve WV’s Business Tax Climate, Sound Familiar?

Today, the House will vote on HB 2933, the latest version of "tax reform" in the state. HB 2933 would broaden the sales tax base, lower the sales tax rate to 5%, and create a flat 5.1% income tax rate. The bill would drastically increase West Virginia's already regressive tax system. The vast majority of…

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March 26, 2017 by Ted Boettner
House and Senate Tax Proposals Shift Tax Load Onto Working Families (Updated)

The House and the Senate have advanced two similar tax bills that make substantial changes to the state's personal income and sales tax, which account for over 75 percent of state general revenue fund collections. Both of these bills will shift the tax load from the wealthy onto working families. It is unclear how either…

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March 24, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Constitutional Amendment Would Cripple State Finances Further

Today, the Senate Select Committee on Tax Reform will consider a joint resolution that calls for a constitutional amendment (SJR 8)  that would transform the state and local tax system in West Virginia. Called the "Fair and Simple Tax Reform" amendment, it is part of an upside down tax package that includes SB 335 that…

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March 23, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Repeal of ACA Would Shift $4 Billion in Costs to West Virginia State Budget

As the House of Representatives takes up repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and replacing it with the American Health Care Act (AHCA), a new report by the Urban Institute finds that the AHCA if enacted would cut federal funding for Medicaid in West Virginia by $4 billion over 10 years. To make up for…

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March 20, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Wealthiest 1% of West Virginians Gain from Tax Cuts in Health Care Repeal

The House proposal to repeal the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA) and replace it with the American Health Care Act (AHCA), provides only a tiny fraction of very wealthy West Virginians tax cuts while reducing the number of Americans with health coverage by an estimated 24 million. The two big tax cuts included in the…

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March 9, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Food Assistance Cutoff Needlessly Harms Vulnerable West Virginians and Economy

Yesterday, the House Health Committee passed out HB 2132 that imposes a statewide three-month time limit for SNAP food assistance for childless adults that are working fewer than 20 hours per week. This bill mirrors a similar provision found in SB 60 and HB 2741 that was discussed previously in this blog. If enacted, these…

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March 3, 2017 by Ted Boettner
Proposed Asset Limit for Food Assistance is Counterproductive and Expensive

The West Virginia Legislature has introduced legislation (SB 60 & HB 2741) that make it harder for low-income West Virginians to receive food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). If enacted, this legislation would create economic hardship for thousands of low-income West Virginians, drain our state of millions in SNAP dollars, and cost…

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February 28, 2017 by Ted Boettner
A Marriage Not Made in Heaven: A State EITC Without an Income Tax

Last Friday, the Senate Select Committee on Tax Reform explored the idea of amending SB 335 to include a version of a refundable state Earned Income Tax Credit. As noted previously, SB 335 would replace the personal and corporate income tax, along with the sales and use tax, with a general consumption tax of 8…

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