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Commission to revise Article II to add bonus points for certified officers and study PAT exemption for active WV-certified staff
Summary
Commissioners agreed to draft Article II language reinstating bonus points for current or previously certified law-enforcement officers, directed staff to schedule a special meeting July 1 to finalize revisions, and opened a separate issue to study whether active West Virginia-certified officers should be exempt from the physical-agility test.
Commissioners at the Berkeley County Deputy Sheriff Civil Service Commission on June 17 took steps to advance a package of changes to Article II (Employment) that would reinstate bonus points for currently or previously certified law-enforcement officers and to study a proposed exemption from the Physical Agility Test (PAT) for currently active West Virginia-certified officers.
Commissioner D. Scott Wilson, who has led the drafting effort, said a revised Article II draft and Attachment One (physical-agility standards) had been circulated and several editorial changes made. The proposed Article II language would add a bonus-points provision for eligible certified or previously certified officers; the draft also narrows a prior definitional ambiguity about who qualifies as a "law enforcement officer." Mr. Wilson asked the commission to aim to finalize and adopt the revisions by July, if remaining issues were resolved.
Chief Tom A. Young and Chief Eric Burnett participated in discussion about a separate proposal to exempt currently active West Virginia-certified officers from the PAT, on the grounds that active officers maintain certification through their agencies. Chief Young clarified that the exemption would apply only to currently active West Virginia-certified officers and that officers certified in other states would still be subject to full testing requirements. Commissioner Wilson and President Dale Buck urged caution and agreed the PAT-exemption proposal should be tracked as a separate issue for further review.
The commission also voted to instruct Mr. Patrick Henry, the commission's outside counsel on earlier review work, to cease additional drafting so the commission could proceed internally with revisions. President Buck moved to contact Mr. Henry and request he discontinue work on the Article II revisions; Commissioner Vigh seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
The commission scheduled a special meeting for Wednesday, July 1, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. to consider only Article II proposed revisions. Mr. Alderton will post required notices and seek a public-streaming-capable location. Commissioners emphasized the need for an open meeting to adopt any formal rule changes.
