Excess levy to go before Berkeley Co. voters

March 12, 1998

Excess levy to go before Berkeley Co. voters

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - Berkeley County taxpayers will not face an increase under the Board of Education's proposed excess levy, which will be on the May 12 ballot.

The Berkeley County Board of Education unanimously approved the renewal Tuesday night.

If passed, the levy will give the board $42 million, or about one-seventh of its budget, over four years, said James Welton, assistant superintendent and treasurer of Berkeley County schools.

The current levy expires June 30, 1999. As property assessments increase, so does the revenue from the levy, which generated $9.9 million in 1998.

The levy is expected to raise $10.5 million per year for four years, beginning in July 1999.

The West Virginia Legislature allows schools to set the tax levy rates for the operation of schools. A levy can run from one to five years, Welton said.

The proposed rates are 22 cents per $100 for farm equipment in Class I properties. Class II properties - homes - will be taxed at 45 cents per $100, Welton said.

Class III and IV properties - industrial properties, cars, mobile homes and trucks - will be taxed 90 cents per $100, Welton said.

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