| State agencies responded last week to a legislative request regarding how they would respond to an additional but hypothetical 6.5% budget cut by WV lawmakers, the state already reducing budgets by 4%.
The responses regarding the additional hypothetical reduction were somewhat draconian with the WV State Police, college branches, state recreational areas, correction facilities and state owned hospitals, laying off or closing.
The West Virginia State Police returned with their longtime list of detachment closings, which includes Calhoun and Wirt counties.
Some of the previous attempts to close the Calhoun detachment (and others) were not made public, those attempts adamantly opposed by the
Calhoun Commission.
READ: CALHOUN'S STATE POLICE DETACHMENT ON CUTTING BLOCK AGAIN
In the most recent revelation, the closing is only hypothetical.
During earlier closure efforts, a citizen commented "If a state trooper is called out on a domestic and has to travel from Big Otter to Five Forks, or from Parkersburg to Creston ... they better stock the cruisers with body bags. Because the only thing they will get there in time for is to bag the victim."
House Finance Chairman Eric Nelson, R-Kanawha, said the budget questions were asked to outline how agencies could absorb a hypothetical 6.5 percent additional cut in the 2016-17 budgets.
READ: WV agencies: Hypothetical budget cut could force layoffs, closure By Phil Kabler, Staff Writer for the Gazette-Mail
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