WVCBP in the News

March 24, 2021 by Kelly Allen
Legislators, Advocates Promote Fair Pay Bills on National Equal Pay Day

The Dominion Post, Yahoo News - Wednesday was National Equal Pay Day and a group of legislators and other equal pay advocates held a virtual meeting to promote four bills aimed at ensuring fair pay for women and minorities in West Virginia. Read the full article. Three of the bills are called the Katherine Johnson…

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March 24, 2021 by WVCBP
West Virginia’s Drug Crisis Costs Billions Of Dollars A Year, Report Says

West Virginia Public Broadcasting - West Virginia consistently has one of the worst rates of drug overdose deaths in the nation, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show that toll has only been increasing in recent years. The West Virginia Center for Budget and Policy released a report on the economic toll of drug-related deaths and…

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March 23, 2021 by Renee Alves
Drug Crisis: Real Change is Needed to Combat Problem

Parkersburg News and Sentinel - If the human toll is not enough reason for some elected and bureaucratic officials to take seriously the fight against substance abuse and addiction in our state, here is one that might come closer to speaking their language: According to the Center on Budget and Policy, treating and addressing substance…

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March 23, 2021 by Sean O'Leary
Two Income Tax Reduction Bills Offer Differing Approaches for West Virginia Finances

WCHS - Two bills have been introduced to address West Virginia’s income tax debate. Both eventually eliminate the state's income tax, which counts for $2.1 billion of the state’s budget, but do it in very different ways. Read the full article. First, Governor Jim Justice's plan: Lower the state income tax but 60% the first year,…

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March 23, 2021 by Kelly Allen
House Finance Chairman Says New Tax Plan has ‘Wow Factor,’ but There are Complications Too

West Virginia MetroNews - The House Finance chairman says an income tax proposal that rolled out of committee this week has “wow factor.” Read the full article. “Real money, real dollars, citizens getting tax relief every year, that’s the wow factor,” House Finance Chairman Eric Householder, R-Berkeley, said today on MetroNews’ “Talkline.” The bill passed…

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March 22, 2021 by WVCBP
Report: Addiction Cost West Virginia Estimated $11B in 2019

WV News, Martinsburg Journal-News, Keyser Mineral Daily News Tribune - Treating and addressing drug addiction cost West Virginia an estimated $11.3 billion in one year, according to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy. Read the full article. The report, written by economist Jill Kriesky, says the state spent that much in…

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March 22, 2021 by WVCBP
Report: Addiction Epidemic Cost WV $11.3 Billion in 2019

Huntington Herald-Dispatch, Charleston-Gazette - A new report from the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy has estimated the addiction epidemic cost the state $11.3 billion in 2019 alone. Read the full article. The report, written by economist Jill Kriesky, examines the dollars spent on treating and addressing the diverse array of harms that stem…

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March 20, 2021 by WVCBP
Meredith Hartery, Collen Harshbarger: Equal Pay for Women in WV Essential

Charleston Gazette-Mail - March 24, 2021 is Equal Pay Day, the day when women and men around the country recognize the wage gap between working women and men and offer remedies to address pay inequity. Read the full op-ed. In West Virginia, women are paid, on average, 74 cents for every dollar their male counterparts…

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March 20, 2021 by WVCBP
State Senate Ignores Science, Experts, Research

Beckley Register-Herald - The state Senate, despite overwhelming evidence and expert testimony from doctors and public health officials begging them to avoid a certain crisis on our streets and back alleys, passed a bill this past week that places greater restrictions on community syringe exchange programs. read the full op-ed. Why? Because of tired and…

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