South Charleston council votes to submit proposed 2026 budget to West Virginia auditor after public hearing

The South Charleston City Council voted to submit the proposed fiscal year 2026 city budget to the West Virginia Auditor's Office after opening a state-required public hearing and receiving no public comments.

The finance committee recommended submitting the draft budget to the auditor’s office for review. The committee described the proposal as a balanced budget that includes step increases for city employees; a number of capital requests were removed from the proposal to achieve that balance, and the committee said those items can be revisited if additional revenue becomes available.

The council opened the public hearing as required by state law, asked for public comment and, finding none, closed the hearing before taking the formal vote to transmit the draft to the auditor’s office for review. A formal motion to submit the budget was seconded by Councilwoman Walker and approved by roll-call vote with all members recorded as voting yes.

The submission begins the statutory review process by the West Virginia Auditor’s Office. No public testimony on the budget was recorded at the meeting, and no timetable for the auditor’s review or further council action was provided during the session.