The governor of population-hemorrhaging West Virginia wants to fix that with...

[Phys251]

West Virginia has been bleeding out population for decades. In the 1952 presidential elections, it had eight EVs. In 2024, they're expected to have four.

How does he want to reverse that slide? A new theme park, income tax cuts, and one of the highest state sales taxes in the nation.

W.Va. Gov. Wants A Population Boom And A Disney Theme Park. His Plan? Income Tax Cuts

Republican Gov. Jim Justice says his plan to cut income taxes will entice throngs of people to move to West Virginia and maybe attract the next major amusement park. Critics say the plan is naive.

www.npr.org

Here's a better idea, West Virginia: Break your literal addiction to coal. If trump couldn't revive the coal economy, nobody can. Break your addiction and join the 21st-century economy. That new economy is here whether you like it or not, so you might as well come on board.

Or you could let states that have embraced high-tech businesses, such as California and Texas, keep leaving you further and further in your coal dust.

 

[RabidAlpaca]

Oof, that is such a bad move. Income tax is generally a progressive tax where the richer one is, the more they're supposed to pay (at least in theory and ignoring our perverse system of loopholes). A sales tax is regressive and hurts the poor and middle class far more. This is a direct transfer of wealth from an already struggling West Virginia populace to the few wealthy people the state has left. A wealthy person doesn't care if the widget they're buying costs 5% more, but for the person who's struggling from paycheck to paycheck it's a real kick in the nuts.

It's sad because in my opinion West Virginia is one of the most beautiful states, but the political leadership is so incredibly bad they're driving people away in droves. This will only exacerbate that.