Charleston Gazette-Mail - Mark Twain popularized the phrase, “Lies, damn lies and statistics,” and that saying came to mind last week reading news accounts about a small net positive migration of new residents into the state during fiscal 2020-21. Read the full article. First cited by the director of a state right-wing think tank (right-wing…
Economy
Mountain State Spotlight, Beckley Register-Herald, My Buckhannon - When the pandemic hit West Virginia in the spring of 2020, the symptoms were immediate, even before cases and deaths were close to their peak: Shutdowns and public health concerns forced thousands of state residents out of their jobs. Read the full article. Continued unemployment claims skyrocketed from…
West Virginia's economy continues to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly two years after impacts were first felt in the state. After historic job losses in the spring of 2020, the state underwent a steep, but partial recovery in the summer. However, growth has been sluggish in recent months, and a substantial jobs gap…
Charleston Gazette-Mail, Logan Banner - Gov. Jim Justice on Monday announced that West Virginia exceeded revenue expectations for December 2021 by $124.4 million. Read the full article.
Charleston Gazette-Mail, Williamson Daily News- Federal COVID-19 pandemic relief and stimulus funds boosted federal grants to states to record levels in the 2019-20 budget year, an analysis by the Pew Federal Trusts found. Read the full article.
CNN, Kake - Almost all of the states that produce the most unfavorable economic and health care outcomes for children are among those poised to ban or severely restrict access to abortion if the Supreme Court overturns the nearly 50-year-old Roe v. Wade decision. Read the full article. That pattern underscores the paradox that the states most…
Charleston Gazette-Mail - Last month I traveled to New York for my birthday on my first trip since COVID hit. Read the full op-ed.
Charleston Gazette-Mail - I've covered the state budget process long enough to know that budget surpluses are better than budget deficits, so November tax collections of $435.6 million, $88.03 million above projections, is good news. Read the full article.
Charleston Gazette-Mail - State officials Monday discussed state and federal workforce shortage issues and the role the "benefits cliff effect" plays in exacerbating those shortages. Read the full article.
Charleston Gazette-Mail, Huntington Herald-Dispatch - Bolstered by another month of strong severance tax collection, the ongoing influx of billions of dollars of federal pandemic stimulus funds and plain old good timing, West Virginia tax collection for November came in at $435.6 million, or $88.03 million higher than projected, figures released by the Senate Finance Committee…