The Berkeley County Commission is comprised of five members elected by countywide vote to serve six-year terms. Each county commissioner must be elected from different Magisterial Districts of the County. There are six Magisterial Districts in Berkeley County: Adam Stephen, Norborne, Potomac, Shenandoah, Tuscarora and Valley. View interactive political district map here.
The County Commission is the governing body of Berkeley County. At the first session of the County Commission each year, a member is chosen by the body to serve as President and another member is chosen to serve as Vice-President.
The County Commission is responsible for a wide array of county affairs, including maintaining the Courthouse and other county-owned facilities and property, including the Berkeley Senior Center, County Garage, Berkeley County Day Report Center, Berkeley County Recovery Resource Center and headquarters for Emergency Communications, Emergency Management and law enforcement division of the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office.
Each year, the County Commission reviews and equalizes the assessments of the County as returned by the County Assessor. This review process provides citizens with the opportunity to pursue correction of errors with property evaluations to make valuations comply with the law.
Duties and Responsibilities of the County Commission include:
- Fund the county’s capital and operating budgets as well as other county departments and agencies.
- Own and maintain county property, including custody of all deeds and other papers presented for record.
- Lay and disburse county levies based on assessed property values.
- Provide for general public health, safety and welfare of Berkeley County residents and visitors.
- Adopt various orders, ordinances and regulations as authorized by the West Virginia Legislature.
- Act as the Board of Review and Equalization to consider appeals of property values for assessment of property values.
- Act as the Board of Canvassers in review of election results and certification of the election.
- Appoint Fiduciary Commissioners to oversee and settle certain estates.
- Responsible for annexations and minor boundary adjustments of municipalities
- They may submit an excess levy for voter approval in a regular election. Excess levies may not exceed three years in duration and voter approval for passage is 60% of all votes cast for and against.
- Appoint members to the following County authorities, boards, commissions, public service districts and other organizations: