Voters to Decide How Public Safety Levy in Kanawha County, WV, is Spent

Kanawha County voters will decide in May whether to continue the Public Safety Levy. The measure, set to go into effect in 2028, will not change the amount of the levy, but it will change how the levy is distributed.

The Public Safety Levy rates vary based on property class but currently start at 6.09 cents per $100 of property value. Revenue from the levy is split between three categories:

*Kanawha Valley Regional Transportation Authority

*Kanawha County Emergency Ambulance Authority

*Kanawha County to distribute to county and other local agencies such as fire departments and law enforcement

Change in allocations

Currently, KRT and KCEAA both receive 43.5% of the funds and the county receives 13%.

The change would increase KCEAA’s percentage to 46% and the county’s percentage to 15%. These increases would be taken from KRT’s share, which would decrease to 39%.

The exact change in funds is hard to predict as the levy can overperform or underperform the estimate. Additionally, payment of back taxes can increase the amount of money the levy brings in in a year. An overperforming levy can mean that inflation has gone up, meaning costs go up as well.

The Public Safety Levy in its current form is based on an estimate of $18 million annually, meaning KCEAA and KRT receive around $7.8 million while the county receives $2.3 million.

The total levy amount typically increases every year as property values rise with officials estimating it will be about $19.5 million by 2029.

Using that estimation with the changes, KCEAA will receive $9 million, KRT will receive $7.6 million and the county will receive $2.9 million.

Efficiency at KRT

Commissioner Lance Wheeler said county officials, first responders, KRT and KCEAA all worked together to come up with the new allocations.

Sean Hill, executive director of KRT, said 55% of KRT’s budget comes from the Public Safety Levy. The funds go toward operations, labor, local grant matches and other items, he said.

He said he is grateful for the coordination with the County Commission and the years he has to plan for this. Additionally, if the levy fails at the ballot box, there is plenty of time to come up with another solution.

“We appreciate the County Commission because by putting the bus system in the Safety Levy, it helps protect public transit,” he said. “Public transit levies on their own don't always perform necessarily as well.”

Hill said KRT offers emergency-adjacent services such as cooling buses, warming buses and emergency evacuation services as a way of “giving back and pulling our weight.”

He said he now has a few years to find funding to make up the difference.

KRT is operating on a budget deficit of $885,000 on paper, although the year-to-date is around $1.5 million. Hill is preparing to spend $6 million to match grant funds for a total of around $30 million for a new maintenance facility.

Concern for KRT

Commissioner Natalie Tennant voted against the levy. She said Tuesday that she is 100% supportive of the Public Safety Levy as a whole but has concerns about how KRT will make up the funding, especially with a planned maintenance facility project in the works.

“We do have to find ways [to make up the difference], and maybe it’s in other forms of grants,” she said.

At the Feb. 5 County Commission meeting, Tennant talked about the benefit KRT brings to the county through both public transit and the work they do with the state to transport people in recovery to work and other necessary places.

In that meeting, Commission President Ben Salango said he didn’t look at the change as cutting a budget. Instead, he looks at it as reallocating resources as KCEAA faces major challenges.

Hill said KRT has already identified and set aside the $6 million grant matching funds.

KCEAA funding

Wheeler said with KRT seeing some savings, he felt it was appropriate to reallocate some of those resources to KCEAA “ which is doing everything they can to stay afloat” and Metro 911.

KCEAA — like EMS services across the state and across the country — is combatting rising costs as well as a $2.47 million deficit for Fiscal Year 2026.

According to Tom Susman, spokesperson for KCEAA, 22.5% of its budget comes from the levy. Susman said the levy provides additional resources KCEAA can use and the ability to position ambulances throughout the county.

“Without the levy there would be an increase in response times and the services provided would be reduced,” he said in a statement.

Metro 911 funding

Wheeler explained that Metro 911 needs increased funding due to the way phone bill fees are distributed. Metro 911 is currently operating on a $563,000 budget deficit.

All West Virginians pay a fee on their phone service that goes toward emergency dispatch services. All of the fees from Kanawha County landlines go directly to Metro 911, but fees on Kanawha County cellphones are redistributed statewide according to a formula.

The extra 2% in allocations to the county, or an estimated $600,000, would go toward Metro 911.

What’s next

The measure will be on the ballot in the primary election on May 12. If “yes” votes are the majority, the Public Safety Levy changes will go into effect in July 2028. If “no” votes are the majority, the Public Safety Levy will stop. Commissioners could try to pass a different levy in the general election.

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