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Randolph County Commission holds first reading of proposed 0.4% ambulance service fee
Summary
Randolph County EMS officials told commissioners they face a projected $1 million shortfall and presented a first reading of an ordinance to add a 0.4% Special Emergency Ambulance Service Fee collected via sales-tax-reporting businesses; the commission discussed exemptions, administrative retention, and next steps.
At its April 2, 2026 meeting, the Randolph County Commission held a first reading of an ordinance to establish a Special Emergency Ambulance Service Fee intended to stabilize local EMS funding. Randolph County EMS representative Kurt Gainer said the service is staffed with 37 full-time employees across three stations and operates 11 ambulances, and faces significant revenue pressure: "next fiscal year they will be one million dollars short," Gainer told the commission.
Commissioner David Kesling reviewed the ordinance language and funding mechanics, explaining the proposal would add a 0.4% fee in addition to the 6% West Virginia sales tax and would be collected by businesses that remit sales taxes. Kesling said the fee would be remitted monthly to the Randolph County Sheriff's Office and deposited into a dedicated Randolph County EMS Fund; the county may retain up to 6% of collections for administration. Kesling read the ordinance's stated exemptions, which include volunteer fire departments, schools, churches, senior centers, the Randolph County Fair, Randolph County 4‑H, municipalities and any business already exempt from state sales tax.
Gainer and EMS board members described operational pressures that prompted the proposal: lost hospital transport contracts, rising equipment and radio costs, reduced municipal support and the lingering effects of federal disruptions to Medicare payments. Board member Dave Bobes said some transports now require long runs to Charleston; Jim Sayre said the authority made contract offers that were not accepted. Commissioners discussed alternatives Gainer said were considered — a levy or an amusement tax — and why the ambulance fee was proposed instead.
The ordinance is at first reading; commissioners noted it can be amended and will be reviewed annually as part of the budget process. No final vote on the ordinance was recorded at the April 2 meeting; the item will return for further consideration.
