Preston County, West Virginia, Commission receives opioid settlement funds, approves software contract
Attorney Hunter Mullens, right, delivered another disbursement of funds from the opioid litigation to the Preston County Commission totaling $203,800.78.
Angie Pase, development director of the Tucker Community Foundation, requested $3,500 from the commission for the 2025 “Run For It.”
Many members of the community were present during the most recent commission meeting.
Attorney Hunter Mullens, right, presents settlement letters to the Preston County Commission.
Chief Tax Deputy Rebecca Zuchowski, left, and Sheriff Scott Spiker delivered updates on the ongoing corrections for the Sheriff's Tax Office.
KINGWOOD, W.Va. (WV News) — The Preston County Commission received another round of opioid settlement funds, approved a software systems contract and continued discussions on necessary corrections for the Sheriff’s Tax Office.
Attorney Hunter Mullens returned to the commission with another disbursement of funds from the opioid litigation totaling $203,800.78.
The litigation is still processing opioid settlement funds, and additional disbursements should be available, he said.
The settlement money comes from lawsuits filed by the West Virginia Attorney General’s Office against opioid manufacturers and distributors, officials said.
Money received from the settlement will be allocated to reimburse counties for financial losses during the height of the opioid epidemic, officials said.
Commissioner Samantha Stone said that after inquiring with several banks, Clear Mountain Bank agreed to allow the commission to deposit the new funds into a pre-existing certificate of deposit with previously received settlement funds, maintaining an interest rate of 4%.
Commissioner Don Smith said this would be the best course of action since interest rates for new CDs have decreased across the board.
Meanwhile, commissioners received updates on the Sheriff’s Tax Office.
Chief Tax Deputy Rebecca Zuchowski said significant progress had been made thanks to the assistance of financial consultant and former state Assistant Auditor Mary Ann Claytor.
Following continued complications with needed corrections in the office, Claytor was contacted, officials said.
Zuchowski said Claytor was able to close the books but was unsure whether the corrections had been accurately implemented in the tax system.
The next step would be to contact their representative from Compiled Technologies to implement the corrections. However, there have been issues reaching the representative who assists the office with this process, Zuchowski said.
The biggest concern is that they will make a bigger mess if Clator’s corrections are not correctly implemented into the system the county currently uses, she said.
The county has a contract with Compiled Technologies, which is paid for its services, and if the company continues to fail in fulfilling its contractual obligations, legal action will be necessary, Smith said.
While officials continue working toward implementing the corrections, the tax distribution still needs to be addressed, Zuchowski said, adding that she plans to meet with Claytor in person by the end of the week to work on those issues.
Following the tax office discussion, commissioners approved a quote from Software Systems Inc. for its services.
County Administrator Nathan Raybeck said the grand total for Software Systems’ services is $169,102.10.
While there was concern about moving forward with Software Systems without having accurate numbers to input into the system, the project remains on schedule.
It will be two months from the time of approval before Software Systems services will be ready to use because they have to order the hardware from International Business Machines, Raybeck said.
This timeline should allow officials in the tax office to finalize accurate numbers before Software Systems’ services are fully implemented, he said.
“For my own recommendation, this is something we absolutely have to do,” Raybeck said.
He added that the set cost in the quote is for one year, noting that the annual cost will decrease over time because the system’s cost is based on usage.
Also at the meeting:
— Angie Pase, development director of the Tucker Community Foundation, requested $3,500 from the commission for the 2025 “Run For It.”
“Run For It” is a 2K/5K walk that raises funds and awareness for nonprofit and charitable organizations within the Tucker Community Foundation’s service area, officials said.
As of last year, the program has raised more than $3.2 million for communities within the service area, Pase said.
Since 2014, the commission has invested $30,125 in the program, and the return to nonprofit organizations in Preston County has been $198,477.
“There were a lot of teams from Preston County last year, and they hope to build on that again this year,” Pase said.
Commissioners said they would need a formal letter requesting funding and would review the request as budget season approaches.
