Friday, April 12, 2013
Residents and stakeholders advocated for human services and employee compensation funding on Wednesday night.
Human services were on most people’s minds Wednesday night during the second marathon public hearing on the proposed Fiscal Year 2014 budget plan. A majority of the 50 or so speakers at the second of three hearings this week urged the Board of Supervisors to restore funding to services for the county’s most vulnerable residents. County Executive Ed Long’s $7 billion budget proposal includes an $8 million reserve to address cuts from sequestration and other federal reductions, but many human services officials say more is needed. The county’s Human Services Council has recommended supervisors approve an additional $3.3 million in funding, $1.25 of which would be put in a fund used only for immediate services needs. Many speakers during …
Employees have 8.66 percent less purchasing power than they did six years ago, they said, which may cause them to leave for jurisdictions with better compensation plans.
Fairfax County faces a number of budget challenges in Fiscal Year 2014. But top on the minds of county employees, they said at a public hearing with the county Board of Supervisors: better, fairer compensation. County Executive Ed Long's $7 billion FY2014 budget proposal raises real estate taxes and cuts funds to parks and libraries, among other services. It also includes a 2-cent increase in the real estate tax rate from $1.075 per $100 of assessed value to $1.095, expected to raise millions in revenue. But the budget doesn't include market rate adjustments to county employee salaries. The school system hopes to be able to give employees an increase of just under 2 percent. Randy Creller, chairman of the Employees Advisory Council, …
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
Fairfax County human services officials say more funds are needed for housing and other programs.
Fairfax County officials have said the impacts of sequestration are largely unknown, but for some of the county's low-income residents that's no longer true: Last week, the cuts forced the county to stop issuing Section 8 vouchers for affordable housing to families in need. Officials say that up to 150 families in the county might not be getting housing vouchers that will help them pay their rent. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provides funding to the county for the program, but the budget sequester has put that in jeopardy. The county stopped issuing vouchers earlier this month and while some residents were able to get help at the last minute, others might not be so fortunate. These cuts directly impact organizations…
Monday, April 8, 2013
The average resident would have to pay $262 more in taxes each year.
A series of public hearings on Fairfax County’s Fiscal Year 2014 budget package will kick off Tuesday evening, giving residents a chance to advocate for changes to funding allocations and other issues. County Executive Ed Long’s advertised $7 billion budget, unveiled in late February, proposes raising the county's real estate tax rate and making cuts to some county programs and services in an effort to close shortfalls. The 2-cent increase in the real estate tax rate, from $1.075 per $100 of assessed value to $1.095, is expected to raise approximately $42 million in revenues. But on top of new, higher real estate assessments, the increase would burden the average resident with approximately $262 more in taxes each year. Some officials …
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
John Dargle cited personal reasons for leaving the Park Authority; search for a new leader will take anywhere from six to nine months.
John Dargle has resigned from his position as director of the Fairfax County Park Authority. The resignation was announced in a release from parks officials Monday. In an email to Patch, Park Authority Board Chairman Bill Bouie wrote Dargle resigned to “pursue some other personal interests.” “The Park Authority Board wishes him the best in his future endeavors,” Bouie wrote. The Board will conduct a national search for a Dargle’s successor. Bouie said the search would likely take anywhere from six to nine months. Cindy Messigner, the authority's deputy director and chief financial officer, will serve as acting director until a successor is found. Messinger has worked in the Park Authority for more than 30 years. Parks face a $200,000 …
Monday, April 1, 2013
Design a budget to make funding increases or reductions to nine different areas of spending, including schools, public safety and compensation for county employees.
Fairfax County residents who want to know if they’re as smart as their supervisors have a week left to build their own Fiscal Year 2014 county budget. Supervisor John Cook (R-Braddock) introduced the tool, which allows residents to sit down and construct a budget based on the proposed package from County Executive Ed Long. The deadline for the exercise is Monday, April 8, before the first budget public hearing on April 9. Using Long’s list of reductions to agencies and another list of reductions not taken, residents are asked to make funding increases or reductions to nine different areas of spending, including schools, public safety and compensation for county employees. Residents also choose a tax rate based on the changes they make. …
Friday, March 22, 2013
One daycare provider says she fears some will go unlicensed due to costs associated with zoning inspection costs, another says she will be forced to close her business.
Fairfax County home day care providers will have to wait a little longer to find out whether officials will raise the number of children they’re legally allowed to care for. The county Planning Commission voted Wednesday night to defer its decision on a proposed permit that will let providers care for 12 kids instead of 10, the current limit with a permit. With a license from the Commonwealth of Virginia, a provider can care for up to 12 children. But Fairfax County ordinances only allow for seven children, unless the provider applies for the special permit. The county rarely enforced the law and many providers took on a dozen children, arguing they were allowed by the state. But new regulations require the county to enforce the by-right …
Saturday, March 16, 2013
A look back at this week's most popular stories at Centreville Patch.
Get Centreville news each day in your inbox. Sign up for our daily newsletter! Here's a list of the top nine stories this week at Centreville Patch: Centreville Easter Egg Hunts — Kiddie Academy of Centreville, Bull Run Regional Park and Sully Historic Site will host Easter Egg hunts. Crime Map: Sully District Larcenies — A dozen guitars, paint sprayers and tools are among the items stolen this week in Centreville and Chantilly. Auto Repair Mainstay Celebrates 25 Years in Centreville — Virginia Tire & Auto Service is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, and John Miller has worked at the Centreville branch since it opened. Fairfax County, Schools Officials Struggle With Budget — “We’re just growing too much,” Superintendent Jack Dale…
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Tax hike, no employee raises are some of the issues supervisors will tackle in committee meeting for Fiscal Year 2014 spending plan
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will begin to dig into the meat of the Fiscal Year 2014 budget during its first budget committee meeting Tuesday afternoon. p Supervisors will gather at 1 p.m. Tuesday in conference rooms 9 and 10 at Fairfax County Government Center to begin hammering out the details of County Executive Ed Long’s $7 billion advertised budget, which features no raises for employees and a slightly higher tax rate. The committee is also expected to go over the $2.5 billion Fairfax County Public Schools budget for fiscal 2014. School Board members requested $95 million from supervisors, a 5.5-percent increase in transfer, for a total of $1.78 billion. But Long was only able to give schools a 2 percent increase in …
Monday, March 4, 2013
Sully District Supervisor Michael Frey voted against the agreement because he was concerned the cost of the program would go up.
Fairfax County now has the authority to clean up illegal signs placed on roadway medians thanks to an agreement with the Virginia Department of Transportation. This week, the Board of Supervisors approved an agreement that has been in the works for months allowing the county to clear signs from public rights-of-way and issue fines to residents who post them. The program, which supervisors signed off on in an 8-2 vote, will cost the county $150,000. Non-violent prisoners on the Sheriff’s Office Community Labor Force will perform cleanup duties four days a week, Tuesday through Friday, starting later this year. Putting up signs on any state road is illegal, including advertisements and – especially – political signs, which all but took over…
Jane Morey Picardi
10:09 pm on Tuesday, April 9, 2013
This is what Mr. Obama calls a "crisis". It is designed to make the public think this decision was made by a republican congress. His motivation in coordination with the mass media is to make the less fortunate feel they can not survive without help from the government. In turn, earning life long supporters of his policies that keep the less fortunate down rather than creating jobs in the private… more ›