CHARLESTON, W.Va. — It will be a “tough sell”, said the sponsor of a bill that would allow each county’s voters to choose whether or not they approve a sales tax for local road projects.
Residents in Monongalia County, represented by Del. Joe Statler (R), for instance, will head to the polls in May facing 6 levies to fund everything from parks and recreation to public transportation.
For that reason alone, Statler doesn’t see county commissioners in his district trying to add a sales tax referendum under the “Letting Our Counties Act Locally Act” to the primary or general ballots for 2016.
“In November there is also going to be an excess levy for the schools on the ballot. You would have concerns you’re trying to run two major like that at the same time. I just think it would probably not work in November,” Statler said.
Statler’s bill survived the legislative session on a nearly last minute vote in the House.
That’s after Senators added a measure Statler had wanted all along. The original house bill required a 60 percent majority for the passage of any county-proposed referendum.
“After a little discussion, a little more than I would’ve wanted, we got the House to agree to the 50 percent, the simple majority,” explained the sophomore lawmaker.
The bill provides authority for county commissions to come up with their own means of funding for road improvement projects. But, even if commissioners draft a plan for improvements, there’s no guarantee a sales tax of up to 1 percent would even make it to voters.
“Through a series of ways, it allows them set down, come up with a plan they want to work with and work with the Department of Highways who has the right to refuse and say we need to adopt the plan in a different way or move forward with it. After that’s done, you take it to the voters,” Statler said.
Risk associated with the legislation is not the burden it could be for counties, the delegate added.
“One, you can build as you go. In other words, on a cash basis. Or, you can sell bonds. If they sell the bonds, and put them out there, if something goes wrong, the counties or the state neither one are held accountable to those bonds. It would simply be the bond holders at risk. They have to look at their risk value and how they buy those bonds up.”
The final vote in the senate was passed by a 28-6 margin. The House passed the final version 57-40.
The legislation needs approval from Governor Tomblin.