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School Building Authority says surge of maintenance requests and project backlog persists despite recent supplemental funding
Summary
The West Virginia School Building Authority told the Senate Finance Committee it has awarded about $67 million of roughly $160 million in requests this cycle and continues to prioritize maintenance (roofs, HVAC) while planning to use investment income and possible bond issuances to stretch funds. Officials emphasized emergency repair prioritization for safety issues.
Andy Neptune, executive director of the West Virginia School Building Authority, told the Senate Finance Committee on Jan. 20 that the authority continues to manage a significant backlog of school construction and maintenance needs, even after recent supplemental appropriations.
Neptune and CFO Jordan Kirk said the SBA has partnered with counties since 1989 to provide multiple billions of dollars for school construction and local matches. Correcting a numerical transcription irregularity in the presentation, Neptune said the total partnership funding since inception is "in the billions," consisting of roughly $2.0 billion in state funds and about $1.88 billion in local contributions — more than $4 billion combined — for projects across all 55 counties.
The SBA reported about $160 million in requests for the current cycle and awarded roughly $67 million (about 42 percent of requests). Kirk said that this cycle’s work skewed more heavily toward maintenance — roofing, HVAC and other repairs — and estimated the new‑construction share at roughly 30 percent while noting the split can vary year to year.
Senators pressed the SBA on causes of project delays and cost increases; Neptune pointed to earlier pandemic‑era supply disruptions and FEMA stipulations on federally funded projects as primary drivers of multi‑year delays. He said the SBA maintains an emergency fund for severe safety concerns and prioritizes repairs that would threaten occupant safety, such as leaking roofs.
The SBA discussed financing tools: the authority has issued bonds in the recent past (the most recent issuance around FY2022–2023) and relies on lottery and excess‑lottery transfers to support construction debt service. Kirk said SBA staff also seek to maximize investment returns on funds to stretch dollars and sometimes phase projects to fund additional work.
No formal appropriation was taken during the presentation; senators thanked SBA leaders for their work and discussed options for long‑term funding strategies.
