WVCBP in the News

February 16, 2016 by Ted Boettner
Center’s Report Says Tax Cuts Responsible for Budget Deficit

Charleston Gazette-Mail - When state budget officers put together the state's six-year budget forecast in 2012, they projected the state would have a general revenue budget of $5.29 billion in the coming budget year. ReadHowever, because of tax cuts and a sagging economy, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's proposed 2016-17 budget is $600 million smaller than…

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February 15, 2016 by WVCBP
WV Food Banks Fear Cuts to SNAP and TANF

West Virginia Public News Service, WTAP - Lawmakers may tighten access to West Virginia safety-net programs but food banks in the state say that would only raise the pressure on already-stretched feeding programs. ReadLegislation would expand work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP, formerly food stamps, and add drug testing for some…

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February 12, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
West Virginia Moves Toward Becoming The Next State With Voter ID

Think Progress - A controversial bill that would require West Virginians to show valid photo identification at the polls is making its way through the state's Republican-led Legislature, and opponents say it's likely to advance within the next few months. ReadOn Thursday, the West Virginia House's judiciary committee passed HB4013, which would require voters to…

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February 10, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Bill to Allow the Drug Testing of Welfare Recipients Passes Senate

Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Williamson Daily News - The State Senate passed a bill Tuesday that would allow drug testing of welfare recipients if "reasonable suspicion" of substance abuse exists. ReadAccording to the bill, reasonable suspicion means that a case worker "determines based upon the result of the drug screen that the applicant demonstrates qualities indicative…

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February 10, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
WV Senate Passes Welfare Drug Testing Bill

Huntington Herald-Dispatch - The West Virginia Senate has approved a bill that could lead to a 3-year pilot program to drug-test certain applicants for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, commonly referred to as TANF. ReadThe Senate approved Senate Bill 6 by a vote of 32-2 Tuesday morning. The bill moves to the House…

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February 10, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
State Budget Issues Could Potentially Impact University Operations

Daily Athenaeum - West Virginia University may soon feel the heat of the alarming budget shortfall the state is experiencing, largely due to market forces at work in the energy sector coupled with tax cuts made nearly a decade ago. ReadIn October of last year, Governor Earl Ray Tomblin announced a 4 percent budget cut…

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February 4, 2016 by Ted Boettner
House to Vote on Right-to-Work

Daily Athenaeum - Union leaders in West Virginia are angry over the state's right-to-work legislation expected to pass this year. The House of Delegates is expected to vote today on the bill after a last-minute amendment from the judiciary committee. ReadExperts agree that the legislation, which 25 other states have already passed, will drive down…

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February 3, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
The Legislature Today: Economists Debate Prevailing Wage

West Virginia Public Broadcasting - Democratic Senators continued with attempts to slow or kill a bill that repeals the state's prevailing wage, but the GOP majority maintains the bill will help West Virginia's economy. ListenSean O'Leary with the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy and John Deskins with the West Virginia University Bureau of…

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February 3, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Cutting SNAP Benefits Would Cost WV Economy

West Virginia Public News Service - Some state lawmakers want to make it harder for single adults to collect SNAP benefits. Critics say that would cost West Virginia's economy tens of millions of dollars a year. A plan at the legislature would make it more difficult for adults without dependents or disabilities to collect from…

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February 1, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Other States Facing Severance Tax Shortfalls

Beckley Register-Herald - As officials in Charleston grapple with how to tackle West Virginia's $354 million budget shortfall, due largely to less than expected severance tax collections, states facing similar financial gaps are using other ways to shore up their finances. ReadNearly one out of every seven dollars going into West Virginia's coffers comes from…

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