Berkeley County Health Department asks commission for $140,000 to shore up staffing after state funding drop

Berkeley County commissioners heard a fiscal-year 2026 funding request from the combined Berkeley County–Morgan County Health Department on Jan. 14, when department leaders described staff shortages, a building expansion and a recent loss of county-provided funds.

Director Kara Hardy introduced herself and outlined operations and staffing challenges at the start of the department’s presentation. Bill Kearns, the department’s CFO, told commissioners the health department is seeking a $140,000 increase in county support for fiscal 2026 to help recruit and retain staff.

The request follows what Kearns described as a “$20,200,000 reduction in our funds that the commission provides,” a cut the department said sharply reduces its surplus and increases reliance on grants. Kearns said the department operates about a $3 million annual budget, with roughly $2 million of that dedicated to personnel costs and about 30% of staff pay currently supplemented by grant funding. He warned that many grant-funded positions would disappear if grants ended.

Kara Hardy and Kearns said the department is expanding its offices — a roughly 4,000-square-foot addition — and expects roughly $41,000 in additional annual operating costs once the expansion opens. They also described hiring challenges: the department is actively recruiting sanitarians and other public-health staff but said current county and state salary limits make recruitment difficult.

Public-health leaders flagged two other concerns for commissioners: a new executive order (noted by the department) allowing religious and philosophical exemptions to vaccinations, and long delays in grant processing and reimbursement from state agencies. Kearns said grant award and reimbursement timelines can stretch months, creating cash-flow pressure for services that depend on grant reimbursements.

Commissioners asked about the department’s ability to set salaries and about state-level hiring flexibility. Kearns said West Virginia’s state health department controls base pay and that the local health department can request “special hiring rates” for some titles but that even the special rates often fall below market levels in the county.

Kearns closed the presentation by asking the commission to consider the $140,000 request for fiscal 2026. “We’re trying our best not to let you down,” he said, adding that the staff remain committed to maintaining services. Commissioners engaged in follow-up questions but took no immediate budget vote at the meeting.

Why it matters: County funding affects whether the health department can maintain routine services—immunizations, inspections, emergency preparedness—and whether it can retain staff whose pay is partially grant-funded. Department leaders said reductions in ongoing county support increase the risk that routine public-health duties will depend indefinitely on short-term grants.

Next steps: Department leaders asked commissioners to consider the FY2026 request as the county prepares its next budget. Commissioners asked follow-up questions about specifics of state grants and hiring rules and signaled they would review the request with county budget staff.