MORGANTOWN — Morgantown’s annexation conflict has rippled to the Capitol, where the Senate Government Organization Committee began work on Tuesday on a bill to ban annexation by minor boundary adjustment.
The committee took up a committee substitute version of SB 209 that changed the outright ban to a restricted approach to minor boundary adjustment.
As background, Morgantown’s annexation tug-of-war kicked off at the beginning of last year. The city received an annexation report in January and released its plan in April. City Council intended to grow the city by about a third via minor boundary adjustment, adding 3.8 square miles, 12,380 new residents, 367 businesses and 43 miles of roads.
Minor boundary adjustment is one of three means a city may annex territory. The other two ways are via petition by 5% of the freeholders followed by a citywide vote, or via petition by both a majority of the qualified voters and a majority of the freeholders in the proposed new territory file petition.
In minor boundary adjustment, the city bypasses the freeholders and voters and applies to the county commission, which decides if the application meets the various threshold requirements, including whether the annexation could be efficiently and cost effectively accomplished under either of the other two methods.
The committee substitute (com sub) for SB 209 would limit the area to be annexed to no more than 1% of the city’s total area, with an exclusion for streets certain other areas (Morgantown’s proposal is closer to 33%).
The com sub says that if the county commission determines annexation could be more efficiently or cost effectively via the other methods, it must deny the application.
The com sub places a two-year moratorium on a reapplication for the same area, except upon a court order issued via appeal byu the city.
If the commission grants the application, the city must obtain consent from the voters in the proposed new territory.
Sen. Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, has proposed an amendment to the com sub on behalf of the West Virginia Municipal League.
Susan Economou, league deputy executive director, explained the amendment. Along with the two-year moratorium, is restricts annexation by minor boundary adjustment to commercial areas, and bars annexation of residential properties.
The committee took no immediate action on the amendment, but heard instead from Morgantown resident Michael Callen.
Callen came to address the original version of the bill, but tried to tailor his remarks to both versions, He said the bill isn’t about annexation. “It’s about protecting the most precious right of American citizenship, the right to vote.”
Cities can negotiate regarding annexation via the other methods, he said. If it can’t work out a satisfactory arrangement, should it have the power to deny the residents the right to vote, he asked.
He cited the example of Morgantown, where the group FAIR, Forced Annexation Isn’t Right, has fought the city to a standstill, for now.
Business owners borrow and invest based on projected costs, Callen said, and forced annexation injects instability and increases risk.
He hadn’t had the chance to digest the implications of the com sub, but said he’s not sure the bill could be adequately reformed to where it’s not abusive of the right to vote.
The issue isn’t confined to Morgantown, he said. It’s statewide. Anexation by minor boundary adjustment gives cites, with well-funded legal representation, leverage over residents with less money and fewer resources.
The committee took up the bill near the end of Tuesday’s meeting and took no action on it. It will continue deliberation at a future meeting.
Tweet David Beard @dbeardtdp Email dbeard@dominionpost.com
