FACTSHEET: HOW DELAYING BUILD BACK BETTER HURTS WEST VIRGINIANS

Every Day That Passes in 2022, West Virginians Are Feeling the Impact of Congress’ Failure to Pass the Build Back Better Act

The expiration of several crucial public investments on January 1, 2022, including Black Lung Trust funding and the expanded child tax credits, means that West Virginians are already being hurt by the failure to pass the Build Back Better Act. Here’s a rundown of how West Virginians are being impacted until Congress passes the Build Back Better Act:

Black Lung

• Funding rates for the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund expired on December 31, 2021, causing a 55% reduction in funding.
• The reduction in funding comes as black lung disease among coal miners has risen to historically unprecedented levels. The incidence rate of black lung has doubled nationwide since 2000 and 1 in 5 coal miners in Central Appalachia now have the disease.
• The Build Back Better would extend full funding rates for the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund through December 31, 2025.

Child Tax Credit + Earned Income Tax Credit 

• 13% of West Virginia children live in poverty, and over 300,000 qualify for expanded Child Tax Credit payments.
• 93% of West Virginia children would benefit from permanent expansion of the child tax credit.
• Without the Build Back Better Act, eligible West Virginia single parents and married parents will miss out on up to $5,450 or $3,800 a year, respectively, from expanded Child Tax Credits that they could use to pay bills and put food on the table.
• The Build Back Better Act would extend the expanded Child Tax Credit of $300 per month per child under 6, or $250 per month per child ages 6 to 17.

• Without the Build Back Better Act, 103,000 working West Virginians will miss out on up to $1,500 in tax cuts from the extension of the expanded Earned Income Tax Credit.

Child Care

• Without Build Back Better, West Virginia will lose the chance to create and support an estimated 6,010 new jobs in child care over 10 years.

• Without Build Back Better, West Virginia married parents will miss out on average savings of up to $5,750 a year on child care costs; single parents could save up to $5,850 a year.

• The Build Back Better Act could provide child care access to about 94,170 low-income West Virginia children, and ensure families pay no more than 7% of their income for high-quality child care.

Elder Care + Home & Community Based Services (HCBS)

• Without Build Back Better’s investments in services to support older people and people living with disabilities, West Virginia will lose the chance to create and support 12,200 new jobs each year over ten years.

• These investments would also add an estimated $3.3 million in additional income each year for current workers and their families in West Virginia.

Universal Pre-K

• Only about 25% of West Virginia 3- and 4-year-olds have access to publicly-funded preschool; preschool in West Virginia cost about $8,600 per year for those who couldn’t access a publicly-funded program.

• Without Build Back Better, West Virginia will miss out on expanded access to free preschool for over 27,753 additional 3- and 4-year-olds, as well as improved quality of education for those already enrolled.

• The Build Back Better Act would raise wages for child care and pre-k workers, leading to an overall increase in wages of $5.4 million to these West Virginia workers.

Clean Energy

• West Virginia is home to 8,996 clean energy jobs; the Build Back Better Act would set the U.S. on a course to reduce up to 52% of greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030, continuing to support and create these good-paying-paying West Virginia jobs.

• Without the Build Back Better Act’s investments in clean energy, West Virginia would miss out on over 34,080 jobs making West Virginia homes and businesses more energy efficient.

• The Build Back Better Act would make historic investments in clean energy technologies, and help middle class families save money transitioning to clean energy electrification.

Paid Leave

• Nearly 186,000 West Virginians worked in frontline industries, facing challenges managing family caregiving needs.

• Failure to pass Build Back Better would remove an additional $79 million annually in West Virginians’ paychecks through wage replacement and increased economic activity.

• The Build Back Better Act would permanently authorize the first-ever national paid family and medical leave guarantee, providing up to four weeks of paid leave.

Child Hunger

• In West Virginia, 21% of children live in food insecure households.

• Without Build Back Better, West Virginia will miss out on expanded access to free school meals for an additional 38,000 West Virginia students, and summer lunch programs for 204,542 students.

Housing

• 83,000 West Virginians are rent burdened, spending over 30% of their income on rent; renters have to work 1.7 full time jobs 68 hours per week earning minimum wage to afford a 2-bedroom rental home.

• The Build Back Better Act would expand rental and down payment assistance for West Virginians, supporting an estimated over 2,800 good-paying jobs in just the first year.

Health Care

• Without the Build Back Better Act, 31,000 West Virginians will remain without health coverage, resulting in a failure to close the Medicaid coverage gap.

• Without the Build Back Better Act, an estimated 441,852 West Virginians will remain without guaranteed or expanded Medicare coverage of hearing benefits.

• The Build Back Better Act would also extend premium tax credits so that 20,800 West Virginians can continue to save hundreds of dollars a year on premium costs, a national average of $600.

Prescription Drugs

• The average cost of prescription drug treatments increased 26.3%, while the annual income for West Virginians only increased 10.4%, resulting in an estimated 24% of West Virginians not taking medications as prescribed due to high costs.

• The Build Back Better Act would help ensure that drug costs do not increase faster than inflation by allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices.

• 251,038 West Virginians live with diabetes; the Build Back Better Act could lower the price of insulin from $600 to $35.