Fiscal Challenges Daunting in W.Va.
News-RegisterBy the end of this fiscal year, West Virginia's state budget may be $100 million out of balance. The state fund earmarked to repair and improve highways, not in good condition for years, is growing worse. Approval of gambling casinos in Ohio will drain money from Mountain State coffers. And legislators still have not devised ways to help cities and towns with beleaguered municipal pension plans or school districts with teacher retirement programs that are drowning in debt.
Yet West Virginia's state finances are among the most healthy in the nation. Good heavens!
In many respects, state government's financial position is good. As we have pointed out many times, that is a credit to the leadership of governors and legislators for several years. We do not even like to imagine the mess our state would be in had they not made the difficult, politically unpopular, yet prudent, decisions they did.
That does not change the fact that, as noted above, storm clouds are gathering. Gov. Joe Manchin and lawmakers should be looking for fiscal umbrellas - right now.
Protecting our state from a perfect storm of financial trouble will not be easy. Any one of the concerns listed at the beginning of this editorial would be enough to unnerve even the most creative, intelligent fiscal planner.
Fortunately, Manchin and lawmakers have not been sitting idle. The governor already is suggesting cuts in state spending. Legislators are attempting to address the municipal and teacher retirement challenges
Clearly, however, the time for talk is growing short. A comprehensive approach to keeping the state's finances in order - to maintaining them as the envy of most other states - needs to be devised quickly.
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Wheeldog
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11-11-09 4:15 PM
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"Wouldn't such a tax be a violation of the Interstate Commerce Clause? I'm not a lawyer. Someone please enlighten me," Ellis" Off hand, I think you are right. Taxes can be levied on the sale of products within a given state, but the simple transport of products across state lines would be exempt. This would particularly be the case where federal monies are used in the construction and maintenance of highways.
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EllisWyatt
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11-09-09 7:34 PM
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Wouldn't such a tax be a violation of the Interstate Commerce Clause? I'm not a lawyer. Someone please enlighten me.
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dyingov
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11-09-09 1:18 PM
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If every state charged a "tax" for products and resources that passed-through, we would be paying a lot more for those things. Think of all the products and services that are from other areas of the US and World.
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ConservativeKaty
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11-09-09 10:57 AM
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The tax on electricity used out of state, as proposed by Manchin, could more than make up a measley $100 million. Then again, that tax might just dry up electric purchases by the out-of-state businesses who will look or move elsewhere. Fortunately, Manchin is no financial Munchkin and will surely figure a way to balance the state's income and expenses.
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dyingov
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11-08-09 9:21 AM
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Joe and the boyz were realizing about 450-500 million in new revenue because of the gaming industry. The gaming "promise" was for reduced taxes and increased services...neither happened. They spent the money and soon even it will be reduced, then what?
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Wheeldog
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11-08-09 1:59 AM
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Back in the '70s there was a book titled, Small is Beautiful. WV and other states should take that message to heart. It will likely be a very long time (perhaps never) before state finances return to the level of the past few decades. That means it will be necessary to cut back on expenditures. It also means downsizing, eliminating all but the most essential programs and paring even those down to the most cost efficient models possible. Those who call for the shrinking of government should be happy with such cuts. Of course the roads may get a bit more bumpy and other services most rarely even think about could become less available.
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