This week, the Senate released a budget plan that confirms both chambers of Congress are racing down a path that could raise costs for food and health care for millions of families by endangering Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, all to enact windfall tax cuts for corporations and wealthy households. At the…
News Releases
For Immediate Release: April 3, 2025 Contact: Vivian Anderson, (304)-585-7413 McDowell County, WV— One of West Virginia’s most economically challenged and rural counties is bracing for the devastating impact of federal budget cuts, which threaten essential programs and the already fragile health care infrastructure that serves the region. The proposed cuts would drastically reduce funding for…
The WVCBP's education policy fellow, Tamaya Browder, released the following statement on March 20, 2025 in response to the Trump Administration's executive order to "eliminate the U.S. Department of Education". "The U.S. Department of Education provides critical support, funding, and protections for our nation’s school-aged children. While, to be clear, states and communities already determine…
This week West Virginia’s U.S. House members, Carol Miller and Riley Moore, both voted to advance a budget resolution that will take Medicaid and food assistance from millions of Americans and increase the deficit—all to pay for huge tax cuts for ultra-wealthy households and businesses. Kelly Allen, the WVCBP's executive director, issued the following statement.…
The WVCBP's executive director, Kelly Allen, issued the following statement in response to Governor Patrick Morrisey's February 12, 2025 State of the State address: "We applaud Governor Morrisey’s call to put our people’s interests over special interests, as well as the imperative he shared to prioritize the education and health of our population. But achieving…
For Immediate Release: February 6, 2025 Contact: Kelly Allen, (304)-612-4180 Charleston, WV – West Virginia’s new governor, Patrick Morrisey, has called for a “backyard brawl” with our neighboring states to ensure West Virginia has the most competitive possible environment to attract people to our state. Up to this point, that has centered almost exclusively on cutting taxes and…
For Immediate Release: December 12, 2024 Contact: Sean O'Leary, (304)-400-8899 Charleston, WV – The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy (WVCBP) is excited to announce the release of the 2024 KIDS COUNT® Data Book for West Virginia. KIDS COUNT in West Virginia is a joint effort by the Annie E. Casey Foundation and the WVCBP which provides an annual snapshot of…
“Lawmakers who voted to cut the personal income tax further despite dramatically slowing revenues in essence voted against much-needed investments in child welfare, health care services, public schools, and PEIA. These additional tax cuts cement the flat budgets that will make it nearly impossible for the next legislature and governor to reverse years of austerity…
For Immediate Release: October 8, 2024 Contact: Sean O'Leary, (304)-400-8899 Charleston, WV – Each year the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy releases our annual State of Working West Virginia report, which examines the Mountain State’s economy through the lens of its workers—the people who power our state and economy. While each year’s report has a slightly different focus, one consistent…
For Immediate Release: September 17, 2024 Contact: Jeff Biddle Jr., Executive Director, Midian Leadership Project, midianleadership@gmail.com, (304)-382-8288 Charleston, WV – West Virginia’s criminal legal system for children is at a crossroads. Juvenile reforms implemented in the 2010s led to decreases in the number of criminal cases filed against youth. But as West Virginia emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, the trend…