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Justice unveils $4.3B budget

CHARLESTON — West Virginia lawmakers finally received a 2018 budget bill from the office of Gov. Jim Justice on Tuesday, the seventh day in the Senate of a special session called for the purpose of setting the budget.

On Tuesday, Justice also broadened his call for the special session and presented six additional pieces of legislation for lawmakers to consider. One of these — House Bill 115 — is the budget bill, and spending is expected to be set at about $4.3 billion.

The other bills pertain to tax procedures and administration, volunteer fire department workers’ compensation, the state Department of Health and Human Resources and Health Care Authority, the sale of DHHR-owned hospitals, and physician assistants.

Senate Finance Committee met and voted along party lines — with 11 Republicans in favor and six Democrats opposed — to approve changes made to the House’s tax reform bill, including a proposed increase in the sales tax from 6 percent to 7.25 percent. The committee added to the bill the sliding scale for severance taxes previously rejected by the House, and set the number of income tax brackets at four.

Deputy Revenue Secretary Mark Muchow testified the tax credits included in the tax reform bill would reduce revenue by $425 million annually by 2020. Increasing the sales tax to 7.25 percent, meanwhile, would generate just $354 million a year, he estimates.

Senate leadership believes the deficit will be made up by an anticipated increase in severance tax revenues in the coming years.

Also on Tuesday, Sen. Mike Maroney — absent during the current special session — was removed from the Senate Finance Committee.

Maroney, R-Marshall, and Sen. Dave Sypolt, R-Preston, were removed from the finance committee and placed on the judiciary committee. Sens. Mark Maynard, R-Wayne, and Chandler Swope, R-Mercer, were placed on the finance committee.

Maroney has not returned calls seeking comment during his absence.

“Obviously, this is a special session called for setting the budget, and it’s important that we be fully equipped,” said Senate Majority Leader Ryan Ferns, R-Ohio.

Typically, one Senate member from each district serves on the finance committee, with the second member on the judiciary. And the senior senator gets their choice of appointment.

But Ferns said this selection process represents a tradition in the Senate, and isn’t an official rule.

Maroney and Charles Clements, R-Wetzel, represent the 2nd Senate District.

House members convened at 4 p.m., and accepted the six bills requested by the governor for introduction.

The House and Senate are both set to meet at 10 a.m. today.

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