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Registration open for 2/7 annual meeting: Ambassador Michael Sullivan to speak

Michael SullivanDecember 29, 2011 -- Online registration is now open for the WVCBP annual meeting on February 7, 2012: Creating Sustainable Wealth From Non-Renewable Resources. Ambassador Michael Sullivan will be the keynote speaker. Ambassador Sullivan served as Governor of Wyoming from 1987 to 1995 and was U.S. Ambassador to Ireland from 1999 to 2001. He will discuss how Wyoming’s Permanent Mineral Trust Fund benefits the people of Wyoming and how West Virginia can learn from this experience. The meeting, focusing on creating sustainable wealth from non-renewable resources,  will be held at the Charleston Marriott Town Center in Charleston, West Virginia from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m.  The meeting is free and the public is invited, but advance registration is required.  Read more and register online.

Issue Brief: Cracking the cracker bill

February 2, 2012 -- A bill signed into law last week by Governor Tomblin will give a major tax incentive to companies that want to locate a cracker plant in West Virginia. According to the bill's fiscal note, this tax incentive would have no fiscal impact on the state. In reality, not only will the state lose millions in tax revenue, it will have to shoulder the costs of increased demand on public services that such a facility will require once it locates here. Read

Permanent mineral trust fund would set aside money for when resources are gone

Economic Diversification Trust Fund ReportJanuary 30, 2012 -- As one of the least economically diverse states in the nation, West Virginia relies heavily on its natural resources for revenue. Funds from these resources fluctuate and, one day, will be gone. As the Marcellus “Gold Rush” comes to West Virginia, it is time for policymakers to consider establishing a permanent mineral trust fund in West Virginia, similar to what six other states have done. “Creating an Economic Diversification Fund: Turning Nonrenewable Natural Resources into Sustainable Wealth for West Virginia” highlights the benefits that such funds have brought to other states and how one could benefit West Virginia. Read the report.

Jobs Count: West Virginia’s unemployment rate dropped throughout 2011

Jobs CountWest Virginia’s unemployment rate dropped throughout 2011 and the state added jobs. While this is good news, the state’s employment levels are still below pre-recession levels and job recovery remains shaky.  “Overall, 2011 was a major improvement over the job market's performance in 2010. However, high unemployment is still a problem for the state, and the job market took a small step back in December," said Sean O’Leary, policy analyst with the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy.

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Analysis of governor’s FY 2013 budget available

January 20, 2012 -- Governor Tomblin’s FY 2013 budget will give West Virginia a small surplus but the state could head for red ink in the near future as expenditures for the state’s correction system as well as Medicaid grow, and revenue from the business franchise tax is reduced to 0%. Read the report.

West Virginia ranks 29th among the states--
Report: States lack sound, consistent policies to enforce job-creation and other performance requirements in economic development subsidy programs

January 17, 2012 -- "Money-Back Guarantees for Taxpayers: Clawbacks and Other Enforcement Safeguards in State Economic Development Subsidy Programs," published by Good Jobs First, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center based in Washington, DC looks at the performance standards built into subsidy programs. "Money-Back Guarantees" rates states on how well they enforce those standards. Read it at: www.goodjobsfirst.org.

The role of earmarks in public development funding

Role of Earmarks in Federal Development FundingDecember 19, 2011 -- WVCBP Policy Analyst Sean O'Leary and Vice President Dr. Karen Kunz recently co-authored "West Virginia Economic Development Funding: The Role of Federal Earmarks" which examined the use of federal earmarks to fund economic development in West Virginia. The study discusses the state's dependence on federal earmarks and how this affects its ability to attract other more reliable forms of revenue.

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West Virginia scores poorly in national report on job subsidies

December 14, 2011 -- West Virginia spends millions of dollars a year on economic development. A report released by Good Jobs First shows that West Virginia has scored a D+ on providing public benefits with its subsidies. Read the report.

Severance tax important to West Virginia's future, does not deter production

December 13, 2011 -- As West Virginia policymakers consider legislation to regulate the state’s next big energy boom, a new WVCBP report (Investing in the Future: Making the Severance Tax Stonger for West Virginia) finds that strengthening the severance tax would help the state take advantage of its natural resource wealth and would not put the state at a competitive disadvantage. Read the report.

Natural gas severance taxes do not deter drilling

November 15, 2011 -- WVCBP Executive Director Ted Boettner and Policy Analyst Sean O'Leary presented on severance taxes to Finance Subcommittee B, a standing joint interim committee which includes Finance Committee chairs from both the House and Senate. The presentation consisted of findings from a policy memo (Marshall University Natural Gas Tax Study Proves Virtually Nothing) that highlighted the importance of the severance tax and its effect on production and employment. View the presentation by O'Leary and Boettner.

Broadband access crucial to economic development

October, 2011 -- West Virginia is behind nationally in terms of broadband access which is crucial to economic development. What policy actions can help West Virginia conquer the “digital divide” that exists between rural and non-rural communities in terms of broadband access? Read our Policy Brief

Policy Memo: Marshall University natural gas tax study proves virtually nothing

A Marshall University study fails to look at the big picture in its analysis of the natural gas severance tax burden. This WVCBP paper suggests different ways to look at this severance tax impact which more accurately compare West Virginia's tax rate to those of other energy-producing states. Read

West Virginia Medicaid made simple

Medicaid Made SimpleTwenty-two percent of all West Virginians rely on Medicaid for health care. Cutting Medicaid benefits would hurt many of the state's poor, elderly and disabled. Medicaid Made Simple explains why Medicaid is so important to West Virginia, its people, its economy and its future.

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Save up, not spend down: Eliminating the asset test for families in Medicaid and TANF

Save Up, Not Spend DownIt's time to eliminate the asset test for Medicaid and TANF. Right now low-income West Virginians are required to spend down their assets like retirement accounts before they can qualify for financial assistance like Medicaid. Families are depleting resources that could help in the long-term so they can qualify for short-term assistance. Many other states don't do this, and West Virginia could save administrative costs and help its low-income families by following their lead. Read report

 

Extending the payroll tax cut

President Obama's Jobs Act includes extending the temporary payroll tax cut passed last December. The payroll tax cut has been an effective stimulus in West Virginia benefiting approximately 900,000 people and providing $500 million in tax relief. The president's new proposal would provide a $1,500 tax cut to the average family, help prevent a renewed recession and provide more additional economic stimulus than other measures like a cut in the corporate tax rate. Read