For Immediate Release: December 14, 2022 Contact: Renee Alves, 559-916-5939 Charleston, WV – Prior to the pandemic, West Virginia experienced a lost decade, with essentially no economic growth from 2009 to 2019. This happened despite years of so-called business friendly policies like tax cuts, right to work, repeal of the prevailing wage, and reductions in state spending that were…
Income and Work
Introduction Heading into the COVID-19 pandemic, West Virginia was already facing an economic crisis. The natural gas boom had fizzled, and in the months leading up to the pandemic, the Mountain State was steadily losing jobs and experiencing weak income and GDP growth. In 2019, West Virginia’s unemployment rate was 4.9 percent, the fourth highest…
Mountain State Spotlight, West Virginia Daily News, Beckley Register-Herald - Holland Cole grabs a tiny fist full of pink Play-Doh and kneads it. Next to her sits a box full of art supplies for sculpting trees, hearts, butterflies or anything a preschooler could desire. Her friend, 3-year-old Ayda James, molds purple and blue ponies, while…
The real-life consequences of repeatedly enacting flat state budgets are becoming clear across West Virginia in the form of state agency staffing shortages. Just this month, West Virginia Education Association (WVEA) officials warned of record teacher vacancies in the state’s public schools, and Governor Justice declared a state of emergency in the state’s correctional facilities…
Charleston Gazette-Mail - Right now, Congress has before it two major tax policy changes: One would give a tax break to wealthy tech and other corporations, while the other would help hundreds of thousands of West Virginia families and parents of kids across the country make ends meet during a time of rising prices. Read…
With temporary federal funding to help families afford child care ending soon, US Senators Patty Murray and Tim Kaine have proposed an increase in child care funding for all states that would give West Virginia an additional $77 million annually, allowing it to serve some 4,200 more children and build on pandemic-initiated improvements to our…
This coming Monday, West Virginia lawmakers will hold a special session to authorize a $600 million “revolving door” loan fund touted as a way to bring private investment and jobs to the state. Read the full op-ed. While Gov. Jim Justice celebrates it as a “self-sustaining” project, it requires a $600 million up-front commitment from…
As more West Virginians became vaccinated and a strong federal response boosted the economy, the Mountain State, along with the nation, has enjoyed a strong economic recovery from the pandemic. However, while the state's employment rates have recovered, West Virginia has continued to lose population, contributing to its labor force challenges. In recent months, the…
Charleston Gazette-Mail - A West Virginia House of Delegates bill making slight tweaks to the Senate’s signature unemployment bills will be up for passage Friday morning. Read the full article. If adopted, Senate Bill 2 would return to its original body for senators to either accept or reject the amendments adopted by House Finance Committee…
New Research Finds Opioid Overdose Deaths Decline with More Generous Unemployment Insurance Benefits
While life expectancy has steadily increased for Americans over the past century, these gains have slowed in recent decades — and even reversed course — in some populations due to the precipitous rise of opioid overdose deaths. This is of particular concern in West Virginia, the state hardest hit by the opioid epidemic and facing…