West Virignia Legislature Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Film Tax Credit Bill Overwhelmingly Passes House, May Signal Return Of Repealed Law

Movie makers may be returning to the Mountain State if they can get a break on their taxes. A bill that brings those breaks back is gaining legislative traction.

West Virginia’s Film Investment Tax Credit was repealed in 2018. Del. Dianna Graves, D-Kanawha, admits the previous law was bad, had loopholes, inconsistencies and did not provide a positive state return on investment. The lead sponsor of House Bill 2096, Graves said the new bill fixes what was broken, and more.

“The cap was too low. In fact, that was included in the audit done on that,” Graves said. “So we’ve raised the cap, and we’ve strengthened the audit procedures to make sure that it’s dollars spent here that’s going to generate a return.”

The new bill offers $10 million annually in film tax credits, and moves administration from tourism to economic development. That’s a move that makes good sense to bill supporter Del. Chad Lovejoy, D-Cabell.

“We need to diversify our economic strategies,” Lovejoy said. “And this is one more tool in the toolbox. We want to bring businesses to West Virginia and help our people participate in filmmaking.”

Del. Brandon Steele, R-Raleigh, voted against the film tax credit. Steele was concerned the bill still lacked adequate safeguards, and said it should not be a legislative priority.

“Back home in Raleigh County, you know, they’re not filmmakers,” Steele said. “They own small businesses, they’re paying a lot of B&O tax, they have local use taxes on them.”

Every West Virginia border state offers a film tax credit. Graves says there are filmmakers knocking at the door – ready to say lights, camera, action in the Mountain State.

“I want this money to come to West Virginia,” Graves said. “I want heads in beds for hotels, I want catering. I want construction. I want all of that. Industry drivers. I want them here in West Virginia. Spend your money with us.”

The Film Tax Credit bill passed the house 87 to 11 and is now in the Senate Finance Committee.

Governor Urges Caution in Final Tax Reform Plan

Gov. Jim Justice took questions from a legislative conference committee Thursday that is working on a compromised version of his tax reform plan, a rare appearance at the statehouse.

The Democratic governor and Republican Senators have been pushing the tax reform initiative as a way to balance the budget for the 2018 fiscal year.

Although the details of the bill have varied widely over the past couple weeks, at the center of the plan is a push to increase the consumer sales tax as a tradeoff for a reduced personal income tax and changes to the coal severance tax.

Thursday morning, Justice appeared before the conference committee working through the final details of that plan and was pushed for an opinion on one area in particular- the economic triggers.

Lawmakers pushed the governor for specific ideas on the circumstances they should define in code that would allow for future income tax rate reductions.

Justice said whether lawmakers want to create triggers that are based on revenue or on job growth, he feels it’s the Legislature’s decision to make, but he did offer some advice.

“Be safe,” he said. “Don’t be unrealistic that they can’t trigger, because we want them to trigger, but be protective of our state and be safe.”

Members of the conference committee will continue their work on the compromised bill Thursday afternoon and Friday morning.

Tomblin Vetoes 2017 Budget with 22 Days Until Government Shutdown

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has vetoed a budget plan that would take more than $180 million from the state’s Rainy Day Fund.

In his veto message, Tomblin called the budget “irresponsible”, saying it relies too heavily on one-time monies and leaves a significant shortfall for the 2018 and 2019 fiscal years.

The budget bill — largely approved on party lines in both the House and Senate — took $182.6 million from the Rainy Day Fund, another $60-plus million in other one-time monies, and made cuts to agency budgets to make up for the $270 million revenue shortfall expected in 2017.

In a press release, Tomblin said he and members on both sides of the aisle in the Senate have agreed to passing a 65 cent increase on the state’s cigarette tax to help close current and future budget holes. The governor is “strongly urging” members of the House to agree to the tax hike.

The House voted down a measure to increase the tax by 45 cents last month.

Lawmakers approved the budget June 2 and quickly left town after passing a resolution to return to Charleston on Sunday, June 12.

The deadline to approve a budget and avoid a state government shutdown is June 30; however, state leaders have said West Virginia will begin running into problems scheduling payments by the end of the week.

It would take a two-thirds vote of both chambers to override a budget veto.

Tomblin Signs Voter ID, Automatic Voter Registration Bill

Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has signed a bill that requires voters to show some form of identification before casting a ballot at his or her polling place as well as creates an an automatic voter registration process system.

The bill was the result of a conference committee on the final night of the session that negotiated an expanded list of the forms of identification. They include:

Any government issued ID or permit, with or without a photo, including a voter registration card
Any college or high school issued ID
A health insurance card
A utility bill
A bank card or bank statement
Verification of identification by another adult who has known the voter for at least 6 months, including a poll worker

The bill also requires the Secretary of State’s Office to work with the Division of Motor Vehicles to create an automatic voter registration system.
Currently, the DMV has an opt in voter registration policy that allows West Virginian to register to vote while applying for or renewing a license. The change would require West Virginians to opt out of the registration process.

On the final night of the session, Tomblin said he did not believe the requirement to provide some type of identification would place any additional burden on West Virginia voters.

The bill takes effect January 1, 2018.

Tomblin Signs Bill to Drug Test Certain Welfare Recipients

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin has signed a bill that requires the state Department of Health and Human Resources to apply for permission to drug test TANF recipients.

TANF is the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program that provides government benefits to working, low-income families.

If the state receives federal approval, the DHHR would then be charged to administer the three strike system.

After one failed drug test, a recipient does not lose any benefits, but is required to enter a workforce or rehabilitative program. After a second failed test, the recipients loses benefits until they complete that program, and after the third failed test, he or she loses benefits for life.

Drug tests will be administered to TANF applicants who have been convicted of a drug crime in the past three years or if a DHHR employee believes there is a “reasonable suspicion” that the applicant may be abusing drugs.

The bill takes effect in June.

Bill Would Cut Both Coal and Natural Gas Severance Tax Rates

During a session that has largely focused on how lawmakers will close a nearly $400 million budget gap, the Senate will vote on a bill Wednesday that will cut taxes for both the coal and natural gas industries.

Both industries are set to benefit from a bill signed by Governor Tomblin this week. That bill ends a special severance tax on coal and natural gas that was implemented to pay off West Virginia’s Worker’s Compensation Debt.

Late in the session, members of the Senate Finance Committee presented another bill to the chamber that would cut the standard coal severance tax by 2 percent over the next two fiscal years.

The end result would be a severance tax of 3 percent by July 1, 2018, which is estimated to cost the state more than $100 million in revenues.

Tuesday, members of the Senate amended the bill to include a cut in the severance tax on natural gas as well.

Sponsors say both industries are hurting and the tax breaks could help prevent further job losses.

The state is facing a $466 million revenue shortfall in the 2017 budget.