Mountain State residents consider themselves as unbiased, “all the time free,” and as self-sufficient as we will be. Latest political traits would recommend we consider in small authorities, low taxes and coping with as little interference from the oldsters in Washington, D.C., as potential.
Actuality is kind of totally different nevertheless, as WalletHub’s “2023’s Most and Least Federally Dependent States” places West Virginia in second place — behind solely Alaska.
Removed from being useless final on this research, the place we’re accustomed to touchdown in so many comparisons of states, this time West Virginia residents are primary … when it comes to being probably the most federally dependent within the nation. Our state authorities’s dependency on the feds ranks ninth. Then again, the state ranks forty ninth for gross home product (per capita). Our previous pal Mississippi is fiftieth. The Mountain State’s tax charges rank seventeenth.
“States obtain federal support for a lot of causes, from offering reduction from pure disasters and well being crises just like the COVID-19 pandemic to funding enhancements in schooling, transportation, infrastructure, healthcare and extra,” WalletHub defined, in prefacing its report.
Right here in West Virginia, nevertheless, the state has proved itself to be a “sluggish spender” with regards to the sort of federal support that’s obtained as the results of a pure catastrophe. Nonetheless, our residents, communities and the state authorities itself depend on federal taxpayer {dollars} to get by — everyday and 12 months after 12 months.
It’s one more metric that demonstrates the paradox right here in West Virginia; and one which SHOULD inspire lawmakers and financial improvement officers to be working their hardest to draw the sorts of employers that may present jobs to free us from the chains we cast ourselves. Growth and diversification of our economic system might assist break that dependency on the feds, however provided that we make the modifications that may appeal to and retain, quite than repel.
Voters acquired a transparent image this session of which lawmakers are keen to do this work, and which might a lot quite watch us whither into complete dependence on federal taxpayer {dollars} than transfer the state ahead. Voters received’t neglect — backward-looking lawmakers can rely upon that.
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