Commission bars acceptance of written civil-service test scores from other counties for new hires

The Berkeley County Deputy Sheriff Civil Service Commission voted to prohibit acceptance of written civil-service test scores from other counties for new-hire eligibility lists and directed staff to add that prohibition to the commission's rules and regulations. Commissioners said they received guidance from a West Virginia Division of Personnel contact that nothing in the State Division of Personnel rules "automatically" prevents counties from accepting outside scores, but commissioners concluded local differences in testing procedures and the need to preserve the integrity of their own eligibility lists justified a local prohibition for new hires. The commission's rules currently do not explicitly address acceptance of out-of-county written scores for entry-level hiring. The motion covered written test scores for new hires; commissioners agreed to investigate and return to the commission later on whether and how promotion-related scores or transfer-credit provisions should be handled. The commission also asked counsel and staff to prepare a one-line amendment for rules that would make the new-hire prohibition explicit. Commissioners discussed fairness to local applicants and operational issues such as test timing and cutoff dates; the commission voted in favor of the amendment by voice vote.