Beckley Register-Herald - For a state that has given much to build this nation of steel, laboring in the coal mines all these years, it is frustrating to watch West Virginia’s two U.S. senators stand in the way of the Biden administrative plan to repay a portion of that debt. Read the full article. Yes,…
Economic Security
West Virginia MetroNews - Gov. Jim Justice touted West Virginia’s improving unemployment rate while also saying not enough residents are going back to work. Read the full article. The statements were in two different parts of his regular pandemic briefing today. In one, he touted this week’s report that West Virginia’s unemployment rate has dropped to 5.8…
Overview Read the full fact sheet here. Under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), states, cities, counties, U.S. territories, and tribal nations will receive a total of $350 billion in Fiscal Recovery Funds to respond to the COVID-19 emergency and help bring back jobs. In West Virginia, the state government will receive $1.355 billion and…
Charleston Gazette-Mail - Gov. Jim Justice has joined 20 other Republican governors in announcing plans to end federal supplemental unemployment benefits, claiming “a lot, lot, lot of folks are scamming the system” by accepting the extra $300-a-week payment. Read the full article. Justice said Friday, and reiterated Monday, that he is ordering the $300 payments…
West Virginia MetroNews - Gov. Jim Justice announced today the state will halt enhanced pandemic unemployment benefits at midnight June 19, just before West Virginia Day. Read the full article. “We’ve got to have you back to work. America is all about work. That’s what’s made this great country,” Justice said during a briefing today.…
Last week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the April jobs report, showing that job growth slowed significantly in April and raising concerns about the economy. Following these disappointing jobs numbers were anecdotes from businesses claiming to struggle to find workers willing to work, particularly in the restaurant industry. "Generous" unemployment benefits were quickly blamed,…
West Virginia MetroNews - Gov. Jim Justice said Wednesday he’s considering eliminating the $300 weekly additional unemployment benefit that thousands of state residents receive before its September expiration date. Read the full article. Justice said he’s heard from employers that can’t fill jobs. He said some people still need the benefits but there are some…
The American Families Plan framework as outlined by the Biden Administration represents the single biggest investment in the economic security of workers and families since FDR’s New Deal. Two specific policies, permanent expansions of both the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC), will directly increase the household incomes of hundreds of…
Public News Service - Nearly 60% of West Virginia workers lack access to any form of time off, either paid or unpaid. Read the full article. Kelly Allen, executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, said families are being forced to choose between caring for a child or family member or getting a…
WOWK - On Inside West Virginia Politics, Seth DiStefano from the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy office says he supports President Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan, which affects the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit. Watch the full segment. “When it comes to West Virginia kids and West Virginia working families, there…