CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – There has been a public fight between West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey (R) and the state’s Legislature on income tax cuts.
Morrisey has pushed since the beginning of this legislative session for a 10 percent income tax cut, while lawmakers appeared set for a 5 percent cut.
Morrisey has posted on social media several times, pushing state legislators to get a tax cut across the finish line, even at one point specifically calling out House Finance Chairman Vernon Criss (R-Wood).
Tax cuts and school choice used to be page one of the Republican platform— guess House Finance Chair Vernon Criss hasn’t gotten that far.
— Patrick Morrisey (@MorriseyWV) February 19, 2026
West Virginians are still waiting for the Legislature to deliver meaningful income tax relief to citizens.
Today is Day 52 of the 60 day session. Time is running out. Demand your Delegate and Senator pass income tax cuts NOW!
— Patrick Morrisey (@MorriseyWV) March 6, 2026
Morrisey baked in a 5 percent income tax cut into his budget proposal’s revenue estimate, which legislators are required to adhere to when crafting their own version of the budget.
The governor asked lawmakers to help him find another 5 percent to make the full tax cut a 10 percent one. But the Legislature only kept the original 5 percent cut in their budget.
Wednesday, the House Finance Committee made that decision one step closer to being official.
“[Morrisey] had no reason to ask for a 10 percent cut without providing the legislation or the vessel to be able to do that. So the five percent is what he’s going to get,” Criss said in a hallway interview Wednesday. “In my opinion, 10 percent was going to be too much. That was $250 million and I just didn’t see it.”
House Minority Leader Sean Hornbuckle (D-Cabell) tried to make several amendments to the tax cut bill, including trying to make the tax cut tiered, so people with lower incomes would get a higher tax cut than wealthier people. He also proposed an amendment that would provide a $350 per child tax credit for child care. All attempted amendments failed.
Hornbuckle criticized the tax cut, saying the state’s economy hadn’t hit the mark previously set that would trigger a tax cut. He also said the money could be better used elsewhere, and that the average West Virginian would only get about $70 per year back in their pockets because of it.
“The question is, with $125 million a state, how many potholes could that fill in the state of West Virginia?” Hornbuckle said in a hallway interview. “How many roads and bridges could $125 million fix? We see that PEIA premium increases are up. Could it help that? We could put more money into childcare. We have schools that are shutting their doors right now. How many schools could they keep open?”
“It’s irresponsible, the way that we’re spending money,” he continued. “If you’re going to spend money, we need to give it back to West Virginians in a much more profound way.”
The bill also included an increase for taxes on vaping products, estimated to bring in $16 million in state revenue.
If finalized, the tax cut will be applied to tax filings for 2026, and it will be permanent.
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