Justice Calls For A Special Session To Address Taxes And Childcare

Gov. Jim Justice announced Monday a special legislative session to take place on September 30. 

He says he will ask the legislature to tackle a proposed additional 5 percent income tax cut, and address child care in the state.  

“I hope absolutely, in every way, everybody in the legislature hears their voice, those people, it’s their money,” Justice said in a pre-recorded video. 

According to reporting from West Virginia Watch, legislators on both sides of the aisle have expressed concerns about the viability of a tax cut on the state’s budget.

Senate Finance Chair, Eric Tarr, R-Putnam, said that the tax cut would need to be met with reductions in spending. House Democrats worry the tax cut could create a financial cliff in the future, where spending exceeds revenues. 

Going into the 2024 regular legislative session, many lawmakers across the political spectrum said child care would be one of the primary priorities. By the end of the session, not a single bill was passed that addressed child care. 

Over the summer the issue gained momentum again. During the August interim, child care advocates gathered on the capitol lawn to hold a press conference urging legislators to do more to address a child care desert in the state.

Legislators from both chambers, and both sides of the aisle, attended and said they are committed to growing child care in the state. 

Del. Kayla Young, D-Kanawha, has been a long time proponent of improving child care in the state. She says it is a necessary element in improving the state’s workforce, which has the second lowest workforce participation rate in the nation. 

“Here in West Virginia, we’re losing child care centers left and right, and we just need to make sure folks can get to work,” Young said. 

Sen. Michael Oliverio, R-Monongalia, said he has talked to child care providers and parents in his district and realizes there is a problem that needs to be addressed. 

“I’m told, in my community now, there are three facilities that have gone out, and several more hanging on a thread,” Oliverio said. “We already have outsized demand for these services, and a real short supply of facilities to provide that.”