In spite of the wide ranging challenges that West Virginia public schools are facing such as inadequate funding, an outdated funding formula, and the rapidly expanding Hope Scholarship voucher program, our public school system continues to educate and support the vast majority of children in our state. These ongoing challenges have led to waves of…
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After a several month delay due to the federal government shutdown, West Virginia's jobs report resumed this month, showing a sluggish economy that lost 700 jobs in November, and 5,800 jobs since July, for five straight months of job losses. The steepest losses of the year were in the federal government sector, as the federal…
2026 may be the year that policymakers focus not on who pays the jail bills, but on how to use the jails less. This year, counties can expect to pay $8.4 million more on their jail bills – even if they don’t use the jail more than they did last year. That’s because after…
The Hope Scholarship is a school voucher program that diverts taxpayer funds from public education and other public goods to cover the costs of private schooling and other non-public education options. The program is expected to cost West Virginia about $245 million in Fiscal Year 2027. When the program began in 2022, about $9 million…
In early January, state lawmakers will return to Charleston with one task they are required to complete each legislative session: passing a balanced state budget. This process will be particularly challenging in the new year, happening amid declining state revenues from deep state tax cuts and a slowing economy, a looming budget deficit, and significant…
What is the Hope Scholarship? The Hope Scholarship is a school voucher program that diverts public taxpayer dollars to cover private school and other non-public school expenses like tuition and fees, uniforms, supplies, technology, and even extracurricular costs like dance lessons and zoo tickets. DOWNLOAD THIS BLOG POST AS A FACT SHEET HERE. The program…
This month, West Virginia residents, charitable organizations, small businesses, and the state government joined together in an effort to stem widespread hunger during the first delay in SNAP benefit distribution in history. The state’s 211 helpline saw a staggering 1,680 percent increase in calls of people needing help—largely with accessing food—compared to the same period…
West Virginians who get their health coverage through the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) Marketplace are beginning to see just how much Congress' inaction will cost them next year. As the state with the highest commercial health care costs in the country, West Virginia is among the states most impacted if Congress fails to extend the…
Proponents of the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (HR 1), including all four of West Virginia’s members of Congress, have repeatedly touted the tax provisions of the legislation as benefiting most or all West Virginia families. The WVCBP has already covered in detail how the SNAP and Medicaid provisions of HR 1 are particularly harmful for…
More than one in seven West Virginians (286,737 residents) lived in poverty in 2024, including over 73,000 children, according to new estimates out today from U.S. Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey. West Virginia’s official poverty rate in 2024 was 16.7 percent, unchanged from 2023. West Virginia’s poverty rate was 4.6 percentage points higher than…