With this month's Special Session on education reform looming, Speaker Hanshaw has floated the idea of replacing one controversial policy proposal, Education Savings Accounts (ESA), with another, tax credit scholarships. Like ESA's, tax credit scholarships are another voucher-like policy that create financial incentives for students to leave the public school system and enter into the…
Tax and Budget
Working families with low- and moderate-incomes often struggle to keep afloat and many childless adults are often taxed into poverty. On April 10, 2019, Senators Sherrod Brown, Michael Bennet, Richard Durbin, and Ron Wyden introduced the “Working Families Tax Relief Act” that aims to expand both the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) as well as…
The State Supreme Court heard several cases earlier this month on oil and natural gas property taxes that could have a significant impact on local government and school district finances, and also potentially impact the state budget. At issue is how the State Tax Department calculates production expenses on natural gas wells. When valuing oil and…
The 2019 Legislative Session ended last week, with the state budget passed a day early. While every year, the budget undergoes some changes from the governor’s proposal to the final product, this year saw relatively few changes. The FY 2020 budget proposed by Governor Justice includes new spending initiatives and pay raises while avoiding spending cuts…
On Crossover Day, the West Virginia House of Delegates passed two bills that have the intended purpose of boosting coal production and putting coal miners back to work. Unfortunately, they chose to do so in a very ineffective and expensive way, through cuts and rebates to the severance tax. HB 3142 would cut the severance…
House Income Tax Cut Plan Mostly Benefits Wealthy and Puts Large Holes in the State Budget (HB 3137)
On Wednesday, the House Finance Committee originated HB 3137 that would reduce the state's five personal income tax rates by a half of a percentage point (0.5%) each time a newly created "personal income tax reduction fund" that is funded by online sales taxes and lottery revenues reaches a balance of $200 million. Since higher-income…
Making ends meet is a struggle for many West Virginians employed in lower-wage jobs. In fact, 23% of workers in West Virginia are employed in low-wage jobs and a quarter of those live in poverty. People working in their communities as daycare workers, restaurant servers, home health aides, administrative assistants, and many other lower-income jobs deserve to be able to…
On Tuesday, February 19, WVCBP Executive Director Ted Boettner presented this testimony to a subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee urging members to reject calls for an Article V Convention of States to make amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
Governor Jim Justice’s FY 2020 budget includes new spending initiatives and pay raises while avoiding spending cuts as the state’s financial situation shows signs of stability. While the FY 2020 budget is an improvement after years of budget cuts, it represents a missed opportunity to reverse the damage of past mistakes and invest in a…