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Group effort needed to pass budget

It takes three to tango when it comes to enacting a state budget in West Virginia. If Gov. Jim Justice thinks he can get it done with just two of the three partners, he is mistaken.

Since he vetoed a budget proposal sent to him by lawmakers a few weeks ago, Justice has been attempting to cajole lawmakers into going along with his version of a spending plan. At last report, the governor’s plan required $244 million in tax increases.

During the last few days of the Legislature’s regular session, Justice seems to have restricted his efforts to working with state senators on a budget. According to a report Tuesday, he has reverted to that as he attempts to get his way on the budget.

House of Delegates Speaker Tim Armstead told a reporter that he met with the governor’s chief of staff last week. Then, Armstead said, he received a call informing him Justice wanted to meet only with Senate leaders to discuss the budget.

“Speaker Armstead and I are honestly like on different planets,” Justice commented, adding, “And I believe he’s on a different planet from his own membership.”

That is open to dispute. Many delegates have made it clear they want no part of the governor’s tax-and-spend agenda. The Liberty Caucus, more than a dozen lawmakers staunchly opposed to tax increases, is composed of House of Delegates members.

Talking with state senators may be easier for the governor. But no state budget can be approved solely through a vote in that body. The House must approve, too. With a special session on the budget to begin next Thursday, time is short to get the House involved.

Let us hope Justice’s reported exclusion of Armstead from budget talks is only temporary. Even if he and state senators agree, a budget viewed favorably by a majority in the House will have to be written at some point.

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