West Virginia Senate Approves Incentives for Cities, Counties To Consolidate Services

West Virginia Sen. William Ihlenfeld, D-Ohio, speaks Wednesday with a colleague on the Senate floor. Photo by Will Price, W.Va. Legislative Services
WHEELING — West Virginia’s counties and municipalities could get financial incentives to work together to provide public services under a bill before the State Legislature.
Senate Bill 117 passed the Senate this week in a 32-0 vote, and is now before the House Government Organization Committee.
Under the measure, counties who consolidate would become eligible for a 10 percent discount in their monthly regional jail bill for a period of 10 years following the consolidation.
In addition, counties and municipalities who participate would receive permission to implement a 1 percent sales and use tax, provided the tax doesn’t result in a combined sales and use tax rate over 7 percent.
Cities and counties that consolidate also would get preference for any road construction or repair project under consideration with the Division of Highways under the bill.
Ohio County Commissioner Tim McCormick, who serves as president of the County Commissioners Association of West Virginia, opposes the bill even if it would mean cheaper regional jail costs for counties.
“I would love to see that happen,” he said. “The county pays for all the regional jail bill. But this is just another weak attempt to resurrect the ‘metro government’ bill that came out years ago.”
Metro government was a plan put forth by former Sen. Brooks McCabe, D-Kanawha, to encourage local government to combine their services.
“Some of the ideas in the bill are intriguing,” McCormick said. “But if this is metro government, it’s a long way down the road if there is an end. If there was a cry for metro government, it would have taken place years ago.”
The County Commissioners Association of West Virginia opposes the bill, according to McCormick.
He said questions remain as to the respective roles of the county and municipality, and who pays for what.
As an example, McCormick asked who would pay health care benefits to employees where county and municipal governments have combined.
“We pay 100 percent of health care costs for county employees,” he said of Ohio County. “City (of Wheeling) employees pay a percentage of their health care. There are a lot of things that would have to be looked at. I was against metro-government when it came out, and I still am.”