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By Bob Weaver
It is good news for rural counties who depend on the Budget Digest. It
has been declared legal, sorta. Now it must be
discussed, debated and a decision made before the West Virginia
Legislature which will attach a final seal of approval. It now
has some elements of legislative process. It still has the potential
for certain legislators to carve a million bucks for the money
pot for their pet projects, while the poorer counties get "more than
their fair share" based on population.
Counties like Calhoun would have great difficulty replacing equipment,
upgrading projects or doing much of anything special for
the community without Digest money, particularly since Del. Bill
Stemple has been a member of the House of Delegates.
Stemple has been able to increase the amount of money the county gets
for local projects.
A decision on the Budget Digest was issued Monday with a 4-to-1 vote
approving the system. The suit said the Digest process
was flawed, politically driven and secretly decided with money being
given to pet projects for politicians who are in favor with
the House and Senate leadership. The dissenting vote by Justice Robin
Davis said it had "obfuscated the law."
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