House Finance met this morning to consider two originating bills. The rules were suspended to hear the bill and consider it on the same day.
House Bill 4574 creates a reserve fund, the Temporary Shortfall Supplement Fund for the County Board of Education, for financially distressed counties that have fallen below five percent of available funding. The funding provided to the distressed county must be paid back to the state. The county would be required to present its financials to the State Board of Education upon request and follow all requirements through WVEIS. A report must be submitted to LOCEA after the county’s reserve fund falls below 5 percent for more than 60 days.
This bill stems from a county board of education that is unable to meet payroll due to fiscal problems. County BOEs are supposed to have two months of operational expenses in reserve in case of an emergency. Essential operating expenses include personnel, utilities, and contracts. The State Board of Education has taken over control of Hancock County Schools due to financial concerns. Two other counties at risk are Roane and Randolph. In the case of Hancock County, one-time funds were used to increase staffing, resulting in staffing overages per the school aide formula, and general revenue was used to enter into a turf lease. During this time, certain WEVIS functions were turned off, resulting in clean audits. The Board of Education and the Department of Education were unaware of these issues until late 2025. Hancock had a $5 million balance and clean audits. Other counties could be at risk if they do not begin making tough staffing cuts. The bill advanced to the House floor.
House Bill 4575, an appropriation bill, funds the Temporary Shortfall Supplement Fund for the County Board of Education with $8 million of surplus money. The bill advanced to the House floor.
The committee also heard from the State Police about their budget. In this fiscal year, $800,000 will be used to purchase new weapons equipped with optics to support critical incidents. Another $445,000 will be used to purchase vests.
Future costs include about $7.5 for 470 body cams and in-car camera systems. Additionally, facility security upgrades will cost $2.6 million, plus $200,000 annually. The Fiscal Year 2027 budget proposes a decrease, with costs for improving radio communications in the quiet zone of Pocahontas and for a WV CPRD actuary.
The committee will meet this afternoon to hear about the National Guard’s Budget.
