CHARLESTON, W..Va. — Gov. Jim Justice plans a high noon Monday meeting with lawmakers from his own party over a contentious plan to lower personal income taxes as part of a deal to balance the state budget.
Justice, a Democrat, favors the income tax reductions backed by Republicans in the state Senate, even as Democrats from both the Senate and House of Delegates have become more vocal in their opposition.
This is the second Monday in a row for such a meeting. Last Monday, Justice caucused for three hours with House Democrats in a bid to gain their support for the personal income tax reductions — and the overall deal.
The governor also had a news conference in which he said anyone who stands in the way of a budget deal should be called out. And he spoke for a little more than an hour before a conference committee trying to reach consensus on a revenue plan.
In all instances, Justice expressed his support for the personal income tax reductions and his belief that giving up on any plan that includes the income tax cuts will mean catastrophic cuts to state agencies.
“The net-net of the whole thing is, if we throw this away and we go back to ground zero, there’s a lot of common everyday people that are going to get just killed,” Justice said last Monday as he left the marathon meeting with House Democrats.
“The alternative is going to have to be cuts. There’s no other way. If we lose this right now, there’s going to be so many just common everyday people are going to really get hurt.”
HOPPY KERCHEVAL: The state budget dumpster fire
This Friday afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Ryan Ferns told the Wheeling News-Register that if a deal including the income tax reductions isn’t broadly acceptable by Monday then it will have to be abandoned.
“On Monday, we’ll get a sense of what support there is and know if we’re going to do tax reform at all,” Ferns, R-Ohio, told the newspaper.
“If we can compromise on triggers — and bring back legislation that will get support — we’ll know Monday. If we can’t get it, we’ll abandon all attempts at tax reform.”
Senate Republicans have expressed enthusiasm about personal income tax cuts for months, starting in the regular session with the work of the Select Committee on Tax Reform. They believe the cuts will result in economic growth.
Governor Justice publicly backed the cuts starting the last night of the regular session, working closely with the Senate Republicans on a deal that also included his desire for $2.8 billion in spending on roads and bridges.
But the other groups involved — House Republicans, House Democrats and Senate Republicans — have expressed doubt, demonstrating their reluctance during multiple votes against the plan.
Criticism has been leveled for several reasons.
One is doubt that the state can handle cuts when it’s already struggling with the budget. Another is the other taxes having to be raised to contend with the income tax cuts. And, finally, the concern that lower- and middle-class wage earners would be particularly vulnerable to having their income tax reductions swamped by increases in the other taxes.
House Finance Chairman Eric Nelson, in a Sunday evening telephone interview, said the Democrats of both houses and House Republicans have grown in their opposition to the income tax cuts.
“From what I have seen and heard and saw Friday, that opposition has probably grown to its highest point yet,” said Nelson, R-Kanawha. “That opposition within the Republican House caucus has also grown.”
Democrats in both houses expressed opposition to the income tax reductions on Friday.
Here are samples of the comments.
House Minority Leader Tim Miley on MetroNews’ “Talkline”: “What they’re working on is not going to pass unless there are sufficient triggers and precautions to where we’re not going to send this state off the fiscal cliff.
“We’re not in a position to reduce income tax revenue. It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. It’s a laudable goal. It’s not the right thing to do at this time.”
.@HoppyKercheval and @TimMileyWV express mutual frustration over another proverbial dead-end with the budget. WATCH: https://t.co/wkudfIAoe1 pic.twitter.com/0oQcJjQ3N8
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) June 9, 2017
Senate Minority Leader Roman Prezioso, D-Marion, in floor remarks against further consideration of the income tax reductions:
“The personal income tax is a problem. That’s what we’re dealing with here.
“Let’s get beyond this thing. Let’s get out of this crisis. Let’s step back, take a deep breath, come back in and do a special session on the income tax.”
Senator Mike Romano, a Democrat from Harrison County, during floor remarks:
“I think we’re kind of living in a fantasy world,” Romano began by saying.
Then, talking about the income tax reduction plan that Senate Republicans have supported since the regular session, Roman said, “This is a bad idea.”
“We’ve gone far enough. You’ve risked enough. It’s time to vote on a budget.”
Senator John Unger, D-Berkeley, in a floor speech addressing Senate President Mitch Carmichael:
“Mr. President, we’ve got to stop this nonsense. We’ve got to deal with the budget. Let’s keep it simple.
“To sit here and be dishonest to the people of West Virginia by telling them we’re giving them a tax break is just not selling.”
Delegate Isaac Sponaugle, D-Pendleton, speaking on the House floor on Friday:
“We all know the votes aren’t here to do what the Senate wants to do. That’s not going to change over a 3-day holiday.
“We all know the votes aren’t here because of the personal income tax. The Senate Republicans are literally trying to shut the state down because they want tax reform.”
Delegate Andrew Robinson, D-Kanawha, who was questioning whether it was even worthwhile to extend the work of the conference committee because of clear doubts over the viability of the income tax cut aspect:
“It’s just not going to happen in this body.”
The House has twice voted down revenue bills that included the income tax reductions — and once refused to concur on another Senate bill including the reductions.
Senate Democrats have twice refused to vote in favor of bills including the income tax cuts. The first time, Justice publicly called the vote “unbelievable” and “petty politics.”
Last week in a news conference in the Governor’s Reception Room, the governor expressed frustrations about the lawmakers with whom he has been dealing.
“This is a dysfunctional group. They’re good people. But this is silly,” he said.
He added, “There are so many people here who, they love to do stuff that’s going to cause a bad result and then blame it on somebody else and hide behind something else, to where they don’t have to be responsible for it. Well, I’m not that way.”
Justice reiterated his belief that the deal he helped broker is a good one. He said anyone who causes the deal to fall apart should face consequences.
“You have people trying to re-trade the deal. We’ll never have a perfect deal,” Justice told reporters, adding that the deal on the table “is damn good.”
“I believe if you cause an event to happen and it becomes detrimental to someone else, you ought to be able to own it. In the world I’ve lived in forevermore, when you did something and messed something up there was always consequences.”
A meeting of a conference committee meant to negotiate differences in the revenue bill has been delayed until Monday afternoon because of Justice’s meeting with Democrats.
The House of Delegates plans its floor session for 11 a.m. and the Senate’s floor session is supposed to be at 1 p.m.