WVCBP in the News

January 7, 2016 by Ted Boettner
Is It Time for WV to Consolidate?

The State Journal - West Virginia has been losing population for three straight years; the coal economy is in shambles; it now appears inevitable the state will lose a Congressional seat after the 2020 Census; and until now, government consolidation has never been taken seriously. Perhaps the time has come to realize the days of…

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January 7, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Agency Promotes Earned Income Tax Credit

Parkersburg News and Sentinel - A public policy research group is advocating a state Earned Income Tax Credit in West Virginia. ReadA bottom-up tax cut like the Earned Income Tax Credit could help residents who work for low pay make ends meet, said Sean O'Leary, a senior fiscal policy analyst with the West Virginia Center…

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January 1, 2016 by Sean O'Leary
Minimum Wage to Increase in W.Va.

Huntington Herald-Dispatch - A new year means a new, higher minimum wage for workers in West Virginia. ReadGov. Earl Ray Tomblin in 2014 signed into law House Bill 4283, which increased the state's minimum wage in two steps - from $7.25 to $8 per hour on Jan. 1, 2015, and again to $8.75 per hour…

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December 29, 2015 by Ted Boettner
Gazette Editorial: West Virginia’s Dwindling Population

Charleston Gazette -West Virginia lost about 6,000 people in the 2014-15 fiscal year — shrinking for the third straight year — the U.S. Census Bureau says. By losing one-fourth of a percent, the Mountain State had the nation's worst decline, while most of America keeps growing. ReadConsider this contrast: In the 1940 census, both West…

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December 26, 2015 by Ted Boettner
Report: West Virginia’s Recovery from Recession Below Average

Associated Press, Clarksburg Exponent-Telegram, WCHS-TV -A report says West Virginia is lagging much of the country when it comes to recovery from the recession. Read The Pew Charitable Trust report shows that the state's tax revenue was about 1.1 percent higher in mid-2015 than it was in 2007 when adjusted for inflation. Nationally, states brought…

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December 26, 2015 by Ted Boettner
Pew Report: WV Recession Recovery Below Average

Charleston Gazette-Mail - A new report from Pew Charitable Trusts shows that revenue in a majority of states has recovered from the recession of 2008-09, although recoveries have varied widely, with revenue in 21 states still below the pre-recession peak year of 2007 when adjusted for inflation. Read West Virginia's tax revenue, as of the…

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December 23, 2015 by Ted Boettner
U.S. Census: WV Continues to Lose Residents

Charleston Gazette-Mail - West Virginia lost more than 6,100 people between July 1, 2014, and July 1, 2015, according to the 2015 population estimates put out by the U.S. Census Bureau. ReadPercentage-wise, West Virginia's 0.25 percent decrease was the largest in the country. Six other states lost population, according to the Census: Illinois, Connecticut, Mississippi,…

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December 22, 2015 by Ted Boettner
Work, Training Relinked to WV Food Stamps

Charleston Gazette-Mail - Up to 47,700 West Virginians could lose their food stamp benefits next year unless they work part-time or take job-training classes. ReadThe state Department of Health and Human Resources announced Monday that it is reinstating work and job-training requirements for recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Program (SNAP) benefits in nine counties — Kanawha,…

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December 19, 2015 by WVCBP
Manchin, Capito Split on New Federal Budget

Charleston Gazette-Mail - West Virginia's two senators were on opposite sides of the giant year-end budget package passed Friday by Congress, and in somewhat unorthodox positions, with the Democrat bemoaning the billions the deal will add to federal debt and the Republican touting the funding increases for programs that will impact West Virginia. ReadRepublican Sen.…

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December 18, 2015 by Ted Boettner
Health-Care and Education Jobs Bolster States’ Employment

Wall Street Journal - Health care jobs are rising across the country, as an aging population demands more nurses, doctors and home health aides. The economy added 638,000 jobs in the education and health services industry sector between November 2014 and November 2015, the bulk of them in health care. ReadTwenty-one states added at least…

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