WVCBP in the News

January 3, 2020 by WVCBP
GOP Leaders Preview Legislative Agendas Ahead of Session

WV News -  Business tax cuts, changing the bail system and creating a new court are some of the top priorities for West Virginia's Republican leaders in the upcoming legislative session, lawmakers said Friday. Read. Senate President Mitch Carmichael and House Speaker Roger Hanshaw gave reporters a broad preview of their 2020 agendas at an…

Read More
December 18, 2019 by Kelly Allen
Federal Appeals Court Agrees Individual Mandate Unconstitutional, Leaves Rest of ‘Obamacare’ to Lower Court

West Virginia Metro News - A federal appeals court on Wednesday struck down the individual mandate of former President Barack Obama’s health care law. Read/listen. Judges, however, also punted questions about the rest of the law to a district judge who previously ruled “Obamacare” as unconstitutional. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ 2-1 ruling prolongs…

Read More
December 12, 2019 by Seth DiStefano
Tax Cuts and Tax Increases Will be Debated in West Virginia Legislative Session

WOWK-TV - One of the biggest fights this year will be the ongoing battle to repeal the state’s Business Inventory Tax. Only 14 states levy this tax, and critics say it discourages out-of-state businesses from moving here. Read/watch full story. “I think it’s definitely a tax that needs to be reformed. I think It needs to…

Read More
December 5, 2019 by Seth DiStefano
New SNAP Rule Could Hit Ohio Valley Hardest

Ohio Valley Resource, WFPL, WV Public Broadcasting - The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates almost 700,000 people across the country will lose food stamps in a new Trump Administration rule announced Wednesday. Regional anti-hunger advocates and policy analysts say the Ohio Valley — and Appalachia in particular — could be disproportionately affected by this rule.…

Read More
November 26, 2019 by Sean O'Leary
Mark Sadd: Taking the Long View on Employment Figures

Charleston Gazette-Mail - Reporters dug into the details of Gov. Jim Justice’s announcement on Monday that the “number of West Virginians who have jobs is now the highest it’s been in more than a decade.” Justice claimed that 19,000 more people were working in the state than a year ago. Read full op-ed. Joining Justice…

Read More
November 25, 2019 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia Employment Numbers are Promising but Don’t Tell Full Story

West Virginia Metro News - Gov. Jim Justice is touting impressive West Virginia employment figures, although those numbers likely don’t tell the whole story. Read full article. Justice put the spotlight on federal labor statistics showing West Virginia gained 19,000 jobs over the past year. Moreover, the governor said, these are the best employment numbers for…

Read More
October 31, 2019 by WVCBP
WV’s 4th-Grade Math Scores Fall; Reading Lowest on Record

Charleston Gazette-Mail - In public schools in the majority of states, fourth-graders’ math scores held steady or improved on average on the National Assessment of Educational Progress from 2017 to this year. Read article. Not in West Virginia. It was among only three states to see statistically significant drops in their average scores in this…

Read More
October 22, 2019 by Sean O'Leary
Shrinking Congressional Districts Look for Federal Help

Roll Call - Despite explosive growth in other areas of the country since 2010, about 80 congressional districts have lost significant population over the decade — leaving many looking for help from the federal government. Read article. Some districts may have lost 30,000 or more people through 2018, many of them in manufacturing and mining areas…

Read More