2023 Tax Cuts: West Virginia Governor Signs Largest Cut in History

West Virginia Governor Jim Justice has signed a bill into law that decreased the residents’ personal income taxes. The Governor states that these 2023 tax cuts are the largest in history the state has ever had.

On March 7, West Virginia Governor Jim Justice signed a bill into law that decreases the residents’ personal income taxes by 21.25%. Justice stated that these 2023 tax cuts are the largest in history the state has ever had. In addition, the bill also returned over $750 million to the West Virginians. Justice was supported by legislators and state officials when he signed the bill that passed the House of Delegates.

An article on the WCHS-TV states that the 2023 tax cuts were larger than the 15% cut approved by West Virginia’s Senate. Nonetheless, it was smaller than what Justice has originally proposed. Reports say Justice proposed a 50% decrease in taxes in 3 years, where 30% must be cut in the first year. The House approved Justice’s 50% proposal in January but was changed last March 4.

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2023 Tax Cuts to Improve Population Growth

According to Raby, Justice intends to improve the population growth upon signing the bill. This is because the state of West Virginia lost more of its residents compared to other states between 2010 to 2020. The U.S. Census Bureau revealed that around 59,000 residents or 3.2% of the population declined. The state has also lost a substantial amount of jobs related to mining when power plants considered using renewable sources of energy.

In addition, the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, a non-profit organization, revealed that the state ranked sixth in the worst job growth thirty years after the income tax bracket for top earners was reduced in 1987.

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