EDITOR’S NOTE: John B. Christensen is a volunteer worker for Democrat Hannah Geffert’s current election campaign against Republican Jason Barrett to represent Jefferson County in the West Virginia Senate. A registered Independent voter, Christensen is a renewable energy consultant at Mountain View Solar in Martinsburg.
olar energy production is getting less and less expensive, and does not harm our forests or mountains. But solar energy farms take up significant amounts of space. County governments who have zoning ordinances, like Jefferson County, have the authority to determine where solar farms could be located. However, if Republican Delegate Jason Barrett had his way, Jefferson County would lose that element of local control.
You remember Mr. Barrett. He’s the guy who in 2020 ran as a Democrat, asked Democrats to contribute to his campaign, asked Democrats to vote for him and then, 5½ weeks after the election said he was now a Republican. He said he switched because he “could no longer support the direction” the party was moving.
What happened in those 5½ weeks to change his mind he did not say. I think he probably got a deal that he couldn’t pass up.
House Bill 4553, which Barrett co-sponsored, would have amended the zoning provisions of West Virginia law to take away from counties with zoning the ability to decide the appropriate location of small energy producers like Jefferson County. Fortunately, the bill died when time ran out for the Legislature.
There is only so much land. How that land is used can have profound effects on a community. Land use affects property values and quality of life issues. It affects the need for local government to provide water and sewer service and police and fire protection. It affects the ability to build affordable housing and the economic growth of the community. These are local matters, and should be determined at the local level.
One assault on local control was successful. Barrett was a co-sponsor of HB 4567, which would eliminated the ability of a municipality to impose a business and occupation tax on the sales of new automobiles.
Another assault on local control looms in a proposed amendment to the West Virginia Constitution. If passed, it will allow Charleston to take away the ability of local governments to tax much of the personal property of businesses. This will eliminate a major source of revenue for local fire and police protection and for schools and other services.
In other words, it will deprive local governments of the ability to control their budgets. Mr. Barrett supports this reduction of local control, too. We are at a distinct disadvantage unless we elect good people to do our work.
Hannah Geffert believes in local control and has voted that way in the West Virginia Senate. We need to keep Geffert in the Senate so we have a fighting chance at keeping local control.
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