By Charles Owens, Bluefield Daily Telegraph
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — Gov. Jim Justice offered a lukewarm defense Tuesday of Amendment 2, which will appear on the Nov. 8 ballot for West Virginia voters.
Amendment 2, if approved, would amend the state Constitution to give legislators the authority to eliminate the vehicle personal property tax paid by state residents each year, as well as the machinery and inventory tax.
Justice was asked by reporters Tuesday to state where he stands on Amendment 2.
The Republican governor said the constitutional amendment seemed “innocent looking” at first but is now being “driven by politics.”
Revenue collected from the personal property tax on motor vehicles is currently used by the localities to fund county services as well as for schools. For example, Mercer County receives about $11 million a year from the taxes with the school system getting approximately $8 million and $3 million being used by the county for services like law enforcement and parks, according to earlier estimates from Mercer County Assessor Lyle Cottle…
