Farm and Dairy – West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice recently announced a proposed state budget for fiscal year 2023. Read the full article.
The overall budget is essentially flat, staying consistent in investments in food, agriculture, natural resources and infrastructure, with just a 1.4% increase from last year’s budget to just over $4.6 billion. Most of that increase comes from a bump in public employee salaries across state agencies.
The proposal lines up with Justice’s history of proposing mostly flat budgets for the last several years. Some argue, however, a flat budget means low expectations and a lack of investment in the state. The state’s ag and conservation agencies have already brought up needs for more investment in committee hearings.
