EDITOR’S NOTE: We took a look into our editorial archive to see what was on our minds this time last year — and found that it was many of the same things as this year. We published an editorial Jan. 9, 2022, with a list of suggestions for how to use the $394 million surplus — now closer to $2 billion. There’s more money, but the same problems persist, so we’ve adapted last year’s list with this year’s numbers.
Gov. Jim Justice’s administration has been good about bringing in surpluses at the end of the fiscal year. But it’s also been notorious for squirrelling the money away in a “rainy day” fund while public services and amenities struggle to stay afloat. So here are a couple things Gov. Justice and the Legislature should spend that nearly $2 billion surplus on.
○ Schools. Always. West Virginia schools are chronically underfunded. While the governor approved a 5% pay raise for teachers last year, we still lag behind our neighbors. The 2022-23 minimum pay schedule for teachers puts salaries between $34,000 and $66,000, depending on certifications and years of experience. However, Salary.com says the median pay for teachers in 2022 was $49,500, while the national median was just under $56,000. In 2022, the average teacher’s salary in neighboring states was: Pennsylvania, $55,700; in Maryland, $57,600; Ohio, $54,500; and in Virginia, $55,800, according to Salary.com.
Monongalia County has some of the best schools in the state — and some of the best wages to attract quality teachers. However, Mon County is only able to stay competitive because Mon County voters consistently pass the education levy. But not every county has the tax base to support their schools or the generosity of their residents to make up the difference between what the school needs and what the state gives. In order for all West Virginia schools to meet, let alone exceed, national standards, they all need to be adequately funded.
○ Roads. A single word covers multitudes: Road repair, snow preparation and removal and flood control.
How do people know when they’ve crossed into West Virginia? The roads go from smooth to pot-holed and rugged in the blink of an eye. West Virginia’s state flower is the orange cone: It first appears in spring and sticks around until mid-winter sometimes. And yet, as much as roads seem to be constantly under construction, they consistently remain awful. Icy and dangerous in winter; flooded and damaged in summer.
Though there are many more worthy programs and agencies we could mention (like foster care, substance abuse programs, etc.), we don’t have the space to list them all.
The fact of the matter is there are dozens of services and amenities that are chronically underfunded, while Justice and his administration sit on mountains of tax dollars they call “surplus.” These are taxpayers’ funds, and the money needs to be invested back into the things that benefit the state as a whole. That $2 billion shouldn’t be put away for a rainy day when West Virginia is barely treading water now and a “rainy day” will only drown us.
