A bill signed into law last week by Governor Tomblin will give a major tax incentive to companies that want to locate a cracker plant in West Virginia. According to the bill's fiscal note, this tax incentive would have no fiscal impact on the state. In reality, not only will the state lose millions in…
Reports & Briefs
As one of the least economically diverse states in the nation, West Virginia relies heavily on its natural resources for revenue. Funds from these resources fluctuate and, one day, will be gone. As the Marcellus “Gold Rush” comes to West Virginia, it is time for policymakers to consider establishing a permanent mineral trust fund in…
Governor Tomblin’s FY 2013 budget will give West Virginia a small surplus but the state could head for red ink in the near future as expenditures for the state’s correction system as well as Medicaid grow, and revenue from the business franchise tax is reduced to 0%. Read the report.
WVCBP Policy Analyst Sean O'Leary and Vice President Dr. Karen Kunz recently co-authored "West Virginia Economic Development Funding: The Role of Federal Earmarks" which examines the use of federal earmarks to fund economic development in West Virginia. The study discusses the state's dependence on federal earmarks and how this affects its ability to attract other…
As West Virginia policymakers consider legislation to regulate the state’s next big energy boom, this WVCBP report finds that strengthening the severance tax would help the state take advantage of its natural resource wealth and would not put the state at a competitive disadvantage. Read
Twenty-two percent of all West Virginians rely on Medicaid for health care. Cutting Medicaid benefits would hurt many of the state's poor, elderly and disabled. Medicaid Made Simple explains why Medicaid is so important to West Virginia, its people, its economy and its future. Read
President Obama's Jobs Act includes extending the temporary payroll tax cut passed last December. The payroll tax cut has been an effective stimulus in West Virginia benefiting approximately 900,000 people and providing $500 million in tax relief. The president's new proposal would provide a $1,500 tax cut to the average family, help prevent a renewed…
Although West Virginia has weathered the Great Recession better than most states, the state’s jobs deficit and high unemployment rate give West Virginia workers little to celebrate this 2011 Labor Day. With a jobs deficit of over 20,000 and with the number of unemployed workers double what it was three years ago, the labor market…
As policymakers debate regulating Marcellus Shale gas drilling, the state needs to protect itself from the booms and busts of energy development that have left many counties with undiversified economies, a less-educated workforce and poorer health outcomes. This is according to a new report by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, "Booms and…
The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy's guide -- “Property Taxes: A West Virginia Primer” -- explains how property taxes work and some of the important public services they fund. For hard copies please contact Linda Frame. Read