Charleston Gazette - Last week, the West Virginia Center for Budget and Policy reported that coal mining and natural gas extraction, two of West Virginia's largest industries, accounted for 5.5 percent of the state's total personal income in 2011. By comparison, the federal Medicaid program made up 4.4 percent, Medicare 6.6 percent and Social Security…
WVCBP in the News
Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin is rejecting a proposal that he form a bipartisan commission to begin more serious planning for the decline of Southern West Virginia's coal industry. Tomblin has also rejected a proposal by the West Virginia Center for Budget and Policy for a small increase in coal taxes to create a "future fund"…
Energy policy is an important issue in the presidential campaign and West Virginia coal has been a part of the discussion. "The regulations may have long-term impact" on the coal industry, but recent mine closures are due more to the plunge in prices for natural gas that make coal less cost-competitive, says Ted Boettner, executive director…
AP vie The Huffington Post -- Thin Appalachian seams won't magically thicken and become easier or cheaper to mine, as the West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy notes. Read
Public News Service - According to the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, West Virginia does a terrible job tracking and evaluating the tax breaks intended to spark job growth. Read
Charleston Daily Mail -- The consulting firm that helped Gestamp negotiate the deal has said the value of the incentives "could eclipse an estimated $55 million." Analyst Sean O'Leary of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy has estimated the incentives are worth $84.4 million. Read
Charleston Daily Mail -- "It's all a shift, unless you want to cut back massively on local services beyond education," said Ted Boettner, Executive Director of the liberal West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. Read
The Charleston Gazette -- Earlier this year, the West Virginia Center for Budget and Policy looked closely at the models Energy Department officials use to forecast future coal production trends. Read
Agence Global - The West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, for example, has proposed a small increase in taxes on coal and natural gas, to be funneled into a Future Fund for educational and infrastructure projects to help build a new economy. Ted Boettner, executive director of the center, notes that other energy states…
The State Journal -- "Lower-income families and lower-income individuals, like a single mother who doesn't have a lot of money, are the people going without the insurance simply on the basis that they can't afford it," said Stuart Frazier, Policy Analyst with the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. Read