MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Even as reopening begins across the state, many municipalities are still trying to quantify the economic damage of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Revenue for the City of Morgantown has been free falling since business closures began on March 17. Morgantown City Council initially approved a budget in March that included $39.7 million in revenue and expenses. About two weeks later in response to COVID-19 an amendment dropping revenue and expenses by $3.1 million was approved.
Morgantown Director of Finance Jim Goff said revenues are plummeting, how far is the difficult question to answer.
“A very rapid decline in economic activity right now, to try to put a value on that, we’ve estimated 30 percent for this June 30, 2020 quarter for our revenues to be down,” Goff said.
The amendment included projected deep cuts in projected revenue from items like the Municipal Service Fee, B & O tax, hotel tax and the Wine & Liquor Tax. Spending cuts included the elimination of cost-of-living increase, summer work crews, overtime, travel and train, pay increases and declining to fill numerous vacant positions. No layoffs or furloughs have occurred up to this point.
The 32,000 WVU students have been away from campus for the last two months, driving revenues further down. Goff said that’s really never happened before so trying to project what the effect on revenues has been a difficult, constantly changing task.
In addition to the loss of students, Morgantown area businesses have also been impacted by the “stay at home and safer at orders” as well.
“They (the businesses) won’t submit their returns until July for this period of time,” Goff said. “So, we’re really not going to know how deep this loss is probably until the beginning to the middle of August.”
A report from the Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization says in cities like Ames, Iowa, the home of Iowa State University, officials are predicting a budget shortfall of more than $9 million. About half the Ames population of 67,000 is made up of students at Iowa State University, also a Big 12 school.
WVU students returning in the fall, along with fall sports would give the city many more options.
“If it’s (WVU) in session in the fall, we could be in a situation where we’re looking at budgets and bringing some of this spending back,” Goff said.
His focus has been on conserving cash reserves in order to continue to pay for essential services.