Governor Patrick Morrisey’s suggested budget report, which is very different from the delegates proposed and approved by the House of Delegates on Friday, April 4, 2025 (Perry Bennett | West Virginia Legislative Photography)
The West Virginia House of Delegates has its version of the state budget on Friday for the coming year with several clear differences between the originally requested by governor Patrick Morrisey at the beginning of the session.
With three members absent and are not voted, the budget bill passed the house 80-17. Eight Republican delegates – dels. Chris Anders, R-Berkeley; Elias Coop-Gonzalez, R-Randolph; Henry Dillon, R-Wayne; Laura Kimble, R-Harrison; Bill Rideror, R-Jefferson; Adam Vance, R-Wyoming and Lisa White, R-Berkeley-Lait the nine Democrats of the Chamber voted against the proposed household.
As proposedThe house budget – House bill 2026 – is based on the budget of the previous year and continues a tradition of relatively “flat” budgets for the state of West Virginia. There are about 5.127 billion US dollars in basic expenses.
Morrisey had been critical this tradition of the “flat” budgets. Before the start of the legislative period, he said that the practice was used to incorrectly increased the income of the state, and so seem that more money in the state is available in the state through the operate of one -off means that are included for the necessary programs but are not included in the estimated output needs.
He said the approach of former governor Jim Justice to the budget breeded long -term problems that he now inherited. Morrisey’s office projected in January There would be a budget hole of 400 million US dollars That the legislature would have to deal with one another due to this dependence on one -off means.
But del. Vernon Criss, who acts as chairman of the House Committee on Finance, I never believed The budget hole actually existed. On Friday, Criss confirmed his beliefs, in response to questions from DEL.
“It was never,” said Criss, R-Wood.
At the beginning of this year, Morrisey’s office estimated that the income for the coming financial year would be around 5.323 billion US dollars. The Governor version of the budget had spent all of these potential dollars, which made the biggest difference between the household of the house and Morrisey by taking excess means. As suggested, the house’s budget is almost 129 million US dollars as excess expenses that could later be assigned if the funds remain available by the end of this financial year.
Criss who was vocally critical From Morrisey’s governor during this session said that the governor’s proposed budget was problematic insofar as it did not include the “pillow” excess funds that can act as a safety net if revenues are tiny, and the values ​​that enable the legislator to better pursue the financing allocations and the operate of state dollars.
“The governor’s budget would spend every dollar and have no reserve account,” said Criss. “He also collapsed all the advertising books, which takes away our task to ensure that we watch the dollars. We adapt the dollars -that is our job. When we got his budget, based on his Pro -Forma leaf, it was useless.”
Proposed changes and changes to the advertising book financing
Before he said goodbye on Friday, members of the house took 10 changes to the proposed budget law and only passed two of them.
The First, the assumed changes came from del. Joe Statler, R-Monongalia, added $ 2 million to the Office of Emergency Medical Services for the training and support of the state’s EMS.
The Second adopted change was from del. Michael Hite, R-Berkeley, introduced and changed how funds for several programs by the Foreign Ministry for Human Services are used and acquired for the disposal of the State Department of Human Services.
All other eight changes that were coordinated by the legislators during the budget process were introduced by Democrats. All except for one were coordinated with the voice.
If these changes were approved, these changes would have:
- Translated $ 50 million In the West Virginia Flood Resiliency Trust Fund – A Currently not financed Household line – from the Revenue Defall Reserve Fund. With six members absent, The legislature voted 75-19 against the change. Her voice came just a few weeks later Devastating floods Beat the state’s southern coal fields, Take life And harmful dozens of buildings that go beyond the repair.
- Added $ 10 million to the water development authority to improve the state’s many needy and missing water systems.
- 32 million US dollars added In the financing of subsidies for childcare, the legislature have emphasized In the past two years, the state has been required. Despite these needs – and inquiries from companies to make the program a priority to support working parents – Little work was done The legislature on this topic and only about 6.3 million US dollars are currently assigned in the household of the house for childcare.
- Give $ 20 million to the workforce of the workforce to ensure teenagers summer employment. This fund is included in the household of the house due to the expiry of federal funds.
- The Herbert Henderson Office for minority matters of the state again with A Almost $ 400,000 allocation. This office was completely removed after a budget Executive order From Morrisey forbid everything Initiatives for diversity, equity and inclusion in the state.
- 5 million dollars added In the financing of West Virginia State University.
- Added $ 15 million In financing for West Virginia University.
- Increased different allocations On the state -suction programs of the state, including an additional 1 million US dollar for the IDD reference program, 32 million US dollars for titles XIX for Seniors Citizens Waiver program and 1.3 million US dollars for the program for traumatic brain injuries.
The proposed budget of the house – as it remains flat – had only a few increases for budget lines. At a committee meeting at the beginning of this week, House Counsel said that one of them, another 30 million US dollars for the Foreign Ministry for Rehabilitation and Corrections, were “only fulfilling their operational requirements”.
Further increases are a further 40 million US dollars for the employer share for the insurance agency for public workers, 7 million US dollars for the birth of the Ministry of Health on three programs, 1 million US dollars for the house and the Senate for Examination Services and $ 7 million Bump for the state’s Hope scholarship program, Among other things, tiny increases.
And while the State Department of Human Services – replacing some dollars in the budget of the past year – an additional 90 million US dollars is allocated – the department is still underfunded Because it is an ongoing nursing crisis.
Under the proposal of the house, Dohs only receives about 121 million US dollars for care. Morrisey’s budget had about 182 million US The department said it needs.
The agency is also suspended with high vacancies of employment employees for child protection services, which the house in all agencies in its proposed budget took into account the entire administrative authority. According to the lawyer of the house, authorities with continuously high vacancy rates were exposed to a budget reduction of 2% of around 8 million US dollars.
Further expenses in the household of the house are a decline in the state dollars of $ 11 million in the school aid formula, a reduction in funds by 15 million US dollars to the WVU and a decrease in funds of 1.2 million US dollars for the Richter retirement systems.
The Herbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs no longer exists in the household of the house, while the Ministry of Art, Culture and History moves under the Department of Tourism, and the Ministry of Economic Development is followed by the trade department. According to previous budget presentations, these closures and mergers of the agency at 300,000 US dollars indicate.
What’s next
With the coordination of the house on Friday, the version of the state budget goes to the Senate for examination.
In the meantime, however, the Senate is still considering its own version of the state budget, which Morrisey originally looks much more similar than that of the house.
On Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee approved the Senate’s budget proposal. The budget – Senate Bill 300 – should be read in the Senate for the first time in the Senate on Monday.
The budget of the Senate in Morrisey’s revenue expenditure of 5.3 billion US dollars remains, but priorities for these expenses look a little different.
During a press conference with reporters on Thursday, Morrisey said that he was not concerned that the two budget proposals that are in circulation around the legislation will take mighty differences. In response to a question from Steven All Adams of Ogden Newspapers, Morrisey said that there were regular meetings between his team and his leadership in both chambers of the legislature.
“I think what you have here is a process,” said Morrisey. “The house has an important opinion that the Senate has an important opinion that the executive has an important opinion and they have these three groups that come together, and then try to achieve a budget that everyone agreed.”
The legislator is to be denied on Saturday, April 12th at midnight at midnight.
