Budget

West Virginia lawmakers have finished a second day of budget session without approving a spending plan. Yesterday, a Senate budget panel cleared a 45-cent increase to the cigarette tax and higher taxes on e-cigarettes and other tobacco products. The package would raise about $78 million. The bill next moves to the Senate floor for discussion. It would then need approval in the House, where tax hikes face stiffer opposition. The next fiscal year starts July 1. A $270 million budget gap remains.