Legislators on Wednesday proposed changing a section of state code cited in a recent lawsuit that alleges West Virginia University is breaking the law by relocating its Institute of Technology.
Introduced by Senate and House Republicans and Democrats, the bills would complicate an opposition group's attempt to stall the college's move to Beckley and clear a legal hurdle for WVU by removing from state code language that says WVU Tech shall remain headquartered in Montgomery.
After years of speculation the Montgomery school would close or move, WVU officials announced in August plans to relocate WVU Tech programs to Beckley. On Sept. 1, the university Board of Governors unanimously approved the move.
Moving the school, which has one of the nation's top engineering programs, has been controversial. It's the subject of a lawsuit alleging WVU failed to follow laws passed in 2008 that required its leaders to revitalize the Montgomery campus, which is estimated to have $100 million in deferred maintenance needs.
The bills also include strikeouts of existing code mandating WVU to develop a plan to address capital improvement needs of the Montgomery campus. The lawsuit, filed in Kanawha Circuit Court earlier this month, alleges WVU ignored that requirement.
Republican Delegate Paul Espinosa, a co-sponsor of the bill and chairman of the committee it has been assigned to, was not available to comment Wednesday due to a prolonged floor discussion on a bill that will repeal West Virginia's prevailing wage.
It remains to be seen if the bill will make it through the Legislature, but Senate President Bill Cole has said lawmakers would be willing to clarify statute, should the move make it necessary.
WVU officials have lobbied for the changes.
Rob Alsop, WVU's vice president of legal, government and entrepreneurial engagement, told the Gazette-Mail earlier this month the university was looking for lawmakers to sponsor a bill that would clear up state code involving WVU Tech. The two bills introduced Wednesday are the result of those efforts, he confirmed in an email.
In addition to working with legislators, WVU officials have prevented legal battles by brokering agreements with local governments affected by the move.
Kanawha and Fayette county commissioners as well as the town of Smithers have signed the agreement, which requires WVU to maintain Montgomery facilities it will vacate and help each government deal with economic loss. The town of Montgomery is the agreement's only holdout, but council members will consider signing at their next meeting in February.
The college has been under WVU's control since 1996 and has been in Montgomery since it was established in 1895.
While some locals demand the college remain in Montgomery, its future there has been debated for years. Since assuming control, WVU has invested millions into repairs to the beleaguered campus and has covered annual operating budget shortfalls since 2011.
WVU officials have said moving the college to Beckley, into buildings acquired from the former Mountain State University for $8 million, is the only viable way to preserve the college's programs.
The bill would make sure WVU Tech's engineering program remains a permanent component of the college's curriculum. It also would require WVU to collaborate with Marshall and Concord universities and Bluefield State College.
Unless it is stopped in court, WVU Tech will relocate in 2017. Starting this fall, first-year students will be admitted to the Beckley campus. Sophomores, juniors and seniors, however, can finish their degrees in Montgomery.
No senators or delegates representing Montgomery and the Upper Kanawha Valley are sponsoring the bill. It does, however, have the support of most senators and delegates from districts in which WVU's Morgantown and Beckley campuses are located.
Reach Samuel Speciale at sam.speciale@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-7939 or follow @samueljspeciale on Twitter.