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Today is the last day of West Virginia's 2023 Fiscal Year. Undoubtedly in the coming days, Governor Justice will tout the so-called revenue "surplus" from this fiscal year, but it cannot be overlooked that a significant portion of that surplus was only made possible due to the Justice Administration intentionally low-balling revenue estimates, thus all…

Michigan has become the 24th state to pass "right-to-work" legislation. Essentially that means collective bargaining agreements cannot require nonunion employees to pay union dues. However, nonunion employees may still often benefit from wage agreements, a grievance process, and other benefits negotiated by the union. West Virginia does not have a "right-to-work" law, but some think…

WBOY, WOWK, MSN - President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday that $10,000 in student debt will be canceled for Americans who make less than $125,000 annually, leaving a large percentage of West Virginia students debt free. Read the full article. According to the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, a third of student loan borrowers in…

Last week, we took a look at the total cost of the state's tax cuts of the past few years. According to state officials, cuts to the food tax and business taxes will cost the state $360 million in lost revenue this year, with more than half of the loss coming from the cuts to…

West Virginia MetroNews - Last year’s child tax credit expansion provided families with a revenue source for routine expenses and essential items as well as funding for emergencies and addressing debt, according to a recent report. Read the full article. The Brookings Institution’s Global Economy and Development program released a study detailing the effects of the expanded…

State Journal - A recent study by an Illinois-based public policy institute suggests prevailing wage laws help improve income disparities between white and minority construction workers. Read. 

Charleston Daily Mail --"West Virginia was found to have weak enforcement standards in four of the five programs examined, and is ranked 29th among the states," according to the study by Good Jobs First and the West Virginia Center on Budget & Policy. Read

WCHS-TV - A new study shows more students are living in poverty now compared to students almost a decade ago. Read/WatchThe nonprofit EdBuild analyzed U.S. Census estimates to determine an increase of student poverty from 2006 to 2013.Over those years, the percentage jumped from 31 percent of students living in poverty to 49 percent in…

Beckley Register-Herald - In October elected officials sitting on the Select Joint Committee on Tax Reform committee heard from the conservative The Tax Foundation that eliminating the business personal property tax would create jobs and grow the economy. Read However, a recent study by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy found the business…

The State Journal -- These conclusions agree with the understanding of Ted Boettner, executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, which has published on this issue in its October 2011 "Marshall University Natural Gas Tax Study Proves Virtually Nothing" and, in December 2011, "Investing in the Future: Making the Severance Tax…