Economy

December 4, 2023 by Kelly Allen
State Officials Release November Revenue Numbers; Here’s What They Show

Charleston Gazette-Mail - West Virginia’s revenue collections for November were $404.8 million, $44 million above estimates, according to a monthly budget report released by Gov. Jim Justice. Fiscal year-to-date collection from July to November stands at $2.2 billion, exceeding estimates by $286.2 million. Read the full article. “Even as inflation continues to throw us a curveball, our…

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November 29, 2023 by Sean O'Leary
Census Data Shows Migration Mostly Happens To/From Neighboring States

According to newly released U.S. Census Bureau estimates, West Virginia's net migration was positive in 2022. Approximately 43,000 people moved to West Virginia from another state last year, though that's 1,000 fewer than moved to the state in 2021. The number of people who moved away from West Virginia to another state rose from 36,000…

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October 30, 2023 by Sean O'Leary
A Puddle of Money: Here’s What to Know About West Virginia’s Rainy Day Fund

Mountain State Spotlight - From the Greenbrier to the governor’s mansion, Jim Justice has spread the word about the state’s $1.8 billion surplus this year. But there’s another $1 billion just laying around, too.  Read the full article. It’s called the Rainy Day Fund. In plain English, it’s West Virginia’s emergency fund — the proverbial “oh crap”…

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October 15, 2023 by Seth DiStefano
‘Big Jim’ and Babydog Go to Washington?

New York Times, Seattle Times - Out of the driver’s seat of the Suburban with the ‘‘Coal 3’’ license plate emerged Gov. Jim Justice, Big Jim as they call him, looming over everyone who had been waiting for the past hour and a half. Read the full article. He had come to a gravel patch…

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October 4, 2023 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia Sees $109 Million Revenue Gap in First Quarter of Fiscal Year

The first quarter of FY 2024 ended with West Virginia collecting $109 million less than it collected in the first quarter of FY 2023, though the state did exceed the artificially low revenue estimates set by Governor Justice's administration. Most of the gap compared with last year was due to a collapse in severance tax…

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September 27, 2023 by WVCBP
New Report Looks at the State of West Virginia’s Unemployed and Those Outside the Workforce

For Immediate Release: September 27, 2023 Contact: Kelly Allen, 304-612-4180 Charleston, WV – Each year the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy releases its annual State of Working West Virginia report, which examines West Virginia's economy through the lens of its workers— the people who power our state and our economy. While each year's report has a slightly different…

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September 7, 2023 by Sean O'Leary
Checking in on West Virginia’s Economy

With the unofficial end of summer passing with Labor Day, now is a good time to check in on West Virginia's economy. And while the nation as a whole has experienced a strong recovery from the pandemic, West Virginia is lagging behind on several key indicators over the past year. The national economy has added…

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May 15, 2023 by Seth DiStefano
WV Center for Budget and Policy Talks Public Resources Amid Tax Cuts

WBOY - A representative from the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy (WVCBP) held a meeting at the Morgantown Public Library downtown this evening.   Read the full article. Much of the meeting spoke about how the state does not have a surplus of money in its budget and how the loss of the…

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April 25, 2023 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia’s Job Mismatch

The latest State Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed West Virginia had the highest job openings rate in the country, at 9.2 percent and with 71,000 job openings. While there has been much discussion about legislation to cut unemployment benefits in an attempt to "get people back…

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