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”…
Economy
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
Every March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics revises state labor force statistics. Each month, the state unemployment rate and other labor statistics are approximated based on a sample national survey, which is used to produce an estimate for West Virginia. When other data sources are revised (e.g., when the Census releases new population data), those…
Mountain State Spotlight, Fayette Tribune - As Katonya Hart stood outside of the House of Delegates chamber at the West Virginia Capitol, a sparkly tiara fastened to her multicolored twists, the energy around her was undeniable. Read the full article. A floor below, the women of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. moved about in coordinated…
West Virginia MetroNews - West Virginia lawmakers have significant decisions ahead about millions of dollars in public support for a cutting-edge battery factory on the site of the old Weirton Steel mill. Read the full article. A delegate whose district is right up on the edge of that Hancock County property, Pat McGeehan, is sounding…