While the Daily Mail didn't really say the earth is flat, their editorial this morning on Bush's tax cuts reflects the same logic. They argue that Bush's tax cuts fueled the economic recovery after the 2000/2001 recession, that the cuts haven't added to the deficit, and that the tax cuts really helped the non-rich. As…
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The 2009 Recovery Act enhanced the federal Child Tax Credit (CTC) to allow low-income working parents to count more of their wages toward the credit. According to CBP analysis of Census data, this resulted in approximately an additional 2,200 West Virginian households (those earning between $9,950 and $12,500 annually) receiving the refundable credit in 2009 (and…
According to the Database of State Incentives for Renewable & Efficiency (DSIRE), West Virginia is way behind the curve when it comes to providing financial incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency, compared to surrounding states. Let's start with renewable energy. Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia each offer an average of…
Every year, the Tax Foundation releases its State Business Tax Climate Index. Every year, West Virginia fares poorly in this ranking, this year we come in at 37. The argument is that taxes matter to businesses, they affect business decisions, job creation and the long-term health of a state's economy. Therefore, a state with low tax costs will…
Working families in West Virginia could see less child care support next year. If Congress doesn't take action before January, the federal Child Care & Dependent Tax Credit (CCDC) will revert to its 1990s form, reducing the amount of child care assistance parents receive across the board. Currently, the CCDC reduces the total tax bill…
As many know, the fears of job loss from federal cap-and-trade legislation runs high in West Virginia. WVU predicts that it could cost West Virginia 25,00 jobs unless significant worker protections and new capital toward sustainable energy development are included in the legislation. This doesn't have to be our fate. We CAN have a cap on…
Rory Mcllmoil (Downstream Strategies ) and I will be testifying Monday, July 19 at 11am to the Subcommittee B of the Joint Standing Committee on Finance on our report, "The Impact of Coal on the West Virginia State Budget." We will be joined in adiscussion of coal's impact on the West Virginia state budget and…
Jumping off from from my previous entry about unemployment benefits, I wanted to share this chart, which was presented to the House Budget Committee earlier this month by Mark Zandi, the chief economist of Moody's Economics and former economic adviser to Senator John McCain during his presidential run. Mr. Zandi's full testimony is available here, and is worth…
There is a lot of buzz lately at the national level regarding tax cuts, unemployment extensions, and the federal deficit. Last month, Congress failed to pass an extension of unemployment subsidies, which means by the end of this month 13,300 unemployed West Virginians will have exhausted their benefits, putting them at risk of succumbing to the dangers of long-term unemployment.…
Major hat tip to Daniel Indiviglio of the Atlantic Monthly for this chart.