WVCBP in the News

December 23, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Who Owns West Virginia? Part Two

West Virginia Public Broadcasting - According to a recent report, the top 25 landowners in West Virginia own about 20 percent of the surface in the state. And perhaps not surprisingly, most of those landowners live elsewhere. The report, released by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, is the first to take a…

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December 16, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Report Examines Landownership in West Virginia

Martinsburg Journal - In its recently released report titled "Who Owns West Virginia?", the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy shows that in parts of the state, especially in the southern part, private lands are held by very few landowners and most are out-of-state companies. Read For instance, more than 51 percent of the…

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December 11, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Who Owns West Virginia?

West Virginia Public Broadcasting - It could be argued that West Virginia has never been "owned" by her inhabitants. Before European settlement, of course, ideas of land ownership were not in vogue. Then King Charles II rewarded many loyal friends with large swaths of land and by 1730s, 800,000 acres in what would become West…

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December 11, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Editorial – Another Look: Who Owns West Virginia?

Charleston Gazette - In six West Virginia counties, the top 10 landowners control at least 50 percent of the private land. Not one of the state's 10 largest landowners is headquartered in West Virginia. Read These findings in a new report from the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy and the American Friends Service…

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December 10, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Top Owners of Land Remain Based Out of State

Huntington Herald-Dispatch - A finding nearly four decades ago that West Virginia's biggest landowners are headquartered out of state remains true today, according to a study released Monday by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. Read The report, "Who Owns West Virginia in the 21st Century?," is coauthored by the West Virginia Center…

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December 9, 2013 by Ted Boettner
West Virginia Still Owned by Absentee Companies, Report Says

Charleston Gazette - Much of West Virginia is still owned by large, mainly absentee corporations, according to an updated examination of landownership being released today. Read Twenty-five corporations own nearly 18 percent of the state's roughly 13 million private acres, according to the report produced by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy and…

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December 6, 2013 by WVCBP
Medicaid Could Save State Millions on Inmate Health, Study Says

Charleston Gazette - With Medicaid expanding to cover those who make up to about $15,000 a year, West Virginia could save millions of dollars over the next few years by using Medicaid funds for treating eligible inmates, a health policy analyst said. Read Brandon Merritt, of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, estimates…

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December 5, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Should the Minimum Wage Be Raised?

West Virginia Metro News - Thousands of fast food workers across the United States are uniting to continue the call for a higher minimum wage and the ability to unionize. Read The current federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour or about $15,000 a year for full-time work. On Thursday, those workers and labor organizers…

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December 2, 2013 by Ted Boettner
How Much Can West Virginia Count on Shale Jobs?

West Virginia Public News Service - Less than 1 percent of West Virginia's jobs come from Marcellus shale drilling. That has many asking how much the state can count on that industry for its future. In a recently released study, the Multi-State Shale Research Collaborative found drilling and related work accounted for .8 percent of…

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November 27, 2013 by Ted Boettner
Jay Says Cut in Food Aid Hurts West Virginia

Charleston Gazette - Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., said thousands of West Virginians celebrating Thanksgiving will be plagued by "devastating" reductions in federal food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Department of Agriculture's Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). Read In his weekly Wednesday column, Rockefeller wrote, "It's a time of gratitude and…

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