Democrats want AG’s opinion on auditor’s disputed tax deeds

CHARLESTON — Democratic lawmakers are asking West Virginia legislative leaders to seek a formal legal opinion on state Auditor Mark Hunt’s handling of nine disputed tax deeds, expanding scrutiny of transactions that prompted a Republican delegate to call for his resignation.

The House and Senate Democratic caucuses sent their request November 10 to House Speaker Roger Hanshaw (R-Clay) and Senate President Randy Smith (R-Preston). They want Attorney General J.B. McCuskey to examine whether Hunt had authority to sign the deeds, issue them after statutory deadlines without court orders and approve transactions involving someone working for his office.

The Senate was reviewing the request Wednesday, according to Senate Communications Director Jacque Bland.

The request marks a new step in the controversy surrounding Hunt’s decision to personally sign nine deeds between March and June 2025 transferring tax-delinquent properties to MAPA LLC. The company was incorporated under Patricia Johns, whose husband, Charleston attorney Robert L. Johns, is Hunt’s longtime friend and has worked for the auditor’s office.

Democratic lawmakers also want an opinion on whether Johns’ work for the office made the purchases inappropriate and what remedies might be available to affected property owners. Their request asks the legislative leaders to obtain legal guidance; it is not itself an announcement of an investigation or a finding of wrongdoing.

“This is not a partisan concern,” the caucuses wrote. “The 2022 tax-sale reforms were written carefully to protect West Virginians from losing their homes and land without due process. The Auditor’s handling of these tax deeds raises questions about what the law requires, and the Legislature should seek the advice of the Attorney General.”

The request follows a West Virginia Watch investigation and criticism from Del. Tristan Leavitt (R-Kanawha), who has called for Hunt’s resignation. Leavitt argues the dispute extends beyond whether the auditor could sign documents assigned by law to the deputy land commissioner: Once the statutory deadline passed, he says, a court order was required before anyone in the office could execute the deeds.

State law directs the deputy commissioner of delinquent and nonentered lands to execute and deliver a deed within 120 days after a purchaser’s right to it accrues, except when a court orders otherwise under a separate provision. That provision allows a purchaser to petition a circuit court to compel execution of a deed or appoint a commissioner to execute it.

Additional reporting has sharpened questions about the timing. The Parkersburg News and Sentinel reported that records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request showed Hunt signed eight deeds March 28, 2025, and one June 6, 2025. The newspaper reported all nine were signed outside the 120-day window.

MetroNews also reported that a transaction notice for one Boone County property expressly warned that a deed could not be executed after Nov. 14, 2024. The same transaction record listed the deed fee as received March 28, 2025. Hunt has maintained that the purchaser’s payments arrived on time and that paperwork was mishandled by his office.

Hunt defended his intervention during a Monday appearance on MetroNews’ “Talkline,” saying he acted to correct administrative mistakes and avoid litigation. He denied giving Johns preferential treatment.

“I would have done it for anyone who had the same problem,” Hunt said. “The auditor certainly has discretion to correct mistakes.”

Hunt also argued that his authority as the elected head of the office allowed him to sign the documents. He described a land division struggling with a workload expanded by changes to the state’s tax-sale process and said he took responsibility rather than leave a subordinate exposed to criticism.

“I’m the boss. I’ll take the heat,” Hunt said.

McCuskey, who served as auditor from 2017 until Hunt took office in 2025, has pushed back against Hunt’s characterization of the land division. The attorney general would be asked to evaluate the legal questions if legislative leaders forward the Democrats’ request.

“The Land Division of the West Virginia State Auditor’s Office has some of the hardest working public servants in the state. They are dedicated, intelligent and, above all, ethical,” McCuskey said in a statement reported by MetroNews.

“Claims that the land division was left in disarray do not match the facts of eight years of positive reform and success,” he said.

The legislative caucuses’ request is separate from West Virginia Democratic Party Chairman Mike Pushkin’s call Monday for an independent investigation into the transactions and potential conflicts involving private purchasers, employees, contractors and political contributors.

Hunt also has acknowledged that federal authorities requested documents from his office. He said Monday that no one had contacted him personally or notified him that he was a target or subject of an investigation. Available reporting does not establish that the nine disputed deeds are the subject of the federal inquiry.