Officials, Advocates Ask for More Funding in Fairfax Schools

School board asks Fairfax County supervisors for more money Tuesday to deal with growing pains and teacher pay.

Fairfax County Executive Ed Long has recommended giving the county's school system a 2 percent increase in funding over the transfer it received last year. But at Tuesday night’s public hearing on the county’s Fiscal Year 2014 budget plan, schools officials and advocates said it still wasn't enough. Fairfax County School Board Chairman Ilryong Moon kicked off the first day of public input on County Executive Ed Long’s proposed $7 billion budget plan, asking the Board of Supervisors for a higher transfer to the school system. Long’s budget, which raises real estate taxes and cuts funds to parks, libraries and some other services, provides the school system with $1.72 billion – approximately $62 million less than the school board was hoping …

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Jody

10:44 am on Monday, April 29, 2013

So true T-Bird. Union statement above: “Your decisions on our pay and benefits will be a demonstration of your belief in us.” Of course we believe in them. We also expect them to do their best at teaching whether they get a raise or not. What I believe is that we're in a recession, we can't ignore the fact that county money is tight (county employees have a pay freeze), and that any raises above …   more ›

Residents Advocate for More Parks, Police Funding at Fairfax Budget Town Hall

Sequestration's impacts on the Fairfax County FY2014 budget plan become a bit clearer at Dranesville District meeting in Herndon.

Parks, libraries, police positions and sequestration were among topics discussed at a Fairfax County Budget meeting in Herndon on Wednesday night. Residents gathered in the Herndon Town Council chambers for a presentation on the county’s proposed $7 billion budget package for Fiscal Year 2014. As currently advertised, County Executive Ed Long’s budget would raise the real estate tax rate from $1.075 per $100 of assessed value to $1.095, as well as cut funding from parks, libraries and other county services. Like most of this season’s budget meetings, Wednesday’s began with talk of sequestration and its impact on the county. “We think there will be direct county program impact,” said Chief Financial Officer Susan Datta. “There will probably…

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Fairfax County Budget: Town Hall Comes to Herndon

Give your supervisor feedback on the county's proposed $7 billion plan for Fiscal Year 2014.

Fairfax County supervisors will hold a series of town hall meetings this week to discuss the county’s Fiscal Year 2014 budget plan. County Executive Ed Long’s $7 billion budget package, proposed in late February, would raise the real estate tax rate from $1.075 per $100 of assessed value to $1.095, as well as cut funding from parks, libraries and other county services. The increase in the real estate tax rate would raise a projected $42 million in revenue but would burden county taxpayers with $262 more in annual real estate taxes. This week’s town hall meetings will give residents and constituents an opportunity to voice their concerns and suggestions for the budget, which will be formally adopted April 30. For the Dranesville District, …

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Letter to the Editor: Input on Fairfax County Budget

Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust sent the following to his constituents for comment on the Fairfax County FY2014 Budget.

Dear Dranesville Resident, It is budget season in Fairfax County.  On February 26, County Executive Ed Long submitted his FY 2014 Advertised Budget proposal to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. Attached you will find a document with a summary description of his proposed FY 2014 Advertised Budget Plan, along with a calendar of budget-related events and a summary of the Plan (see the media box at the right and click on the pdf). For details about the FY 2014 Advertised Budget, visit the County website at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dmb. The Board of Supervisors is currently conducting an extensive review of the proposed budget plan leading up to the Budget Adoption on April 30. This is the fifth year I have convened the Dranesville …

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Foust to Hold County Budget Meeting in Herndon

District residents will get a chance to ask questions about the budget process and county spending Wednesday.

Dranesville district Supervisor John Foust will host a meeting on the Fairfax County budget at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 3.  The meeting will give Dranesville district area residents the opportunity to learn more about the Fiscal Year 2014 budget, as well as discuss it and ask questions.  County management and budget staff will be on hand to present a summary presentation of the budget and respond to questions.  The meeting will be at 7 p.m. April 3 in the Herndon Town Council Chambers, 765 Lynn St. in downtown Herndon. For more details on the budget, visit http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dmb For more information on the Dranesville budget meeting, contact Jane Edmondson in Supervisor Foust’s Dranesville district office at 703-356-0551 or email …

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Sequestration is Coming. How Will it Impact Fairfax County?

Tighter budgets, diminished real estate values and more...

Sequestration threatens to destabilize the Northern Virginia economy, and some say the effects of the across-the-board cuts to federal programs and contracts will be felt across Fairfax County.  "Businesses are in business because they know how to plan for problems and deal with them. But not knowing what to plan for is devastating to them," said Dr. Gerald Gordon, president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority to Patch.   Localities across the Commonwealth are bracing themselves against the uncertainty of sequestration. It seems unlikely that Congress will reach an agreement on $1.2 trillion in debt reduction by March 1, and the U.S. military will be forced to cut $46 billion and domestic defense spending will be …

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Schools Officials: Fairfax County Budget Proposal Falls Short

Superintendent Jack Dale, some school board members say lower-than-expected increase in transfer from the county won't meet classroom needs.

Fairfax County schools officials said Tuesday they were surprised at County Executive Ed Long's lower-than-expected proposed increase in transfer to the school system, which will leave school board $62 million short on their own Fiscal Year 2014 budget. Just more than half of the county's revenues go toward Fairfax County Public Schools each year; nearly three quarters of the school system's annual budget relies on a transfer from the county.  Long's proposed $7 billion budget includes an increase of 2 percent in transfer to Fairfax County Public Schools, or $33.7 million. Schools officials requested $95 million, a 5.7 percent increase in transfer, for a total of $1.78 billion in FY 2014, largely to fund what is expected to be an …

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Fairfax County to Unveil FY2014 Budget Today

The county faces a $169 million shortfall.

Fairfax County Executive Ed Long will unveil the county’s proposed Fiscal Year 2014 budget today. The county faces budget shortfalls of $169 million and $274 million in fiscal years 2014 and 2015, respectively. In order to better prepare for the future, he says, Long will present a multi-year budget plan for FY2014-2015 during the Board of Supervisors regularly scheduled Feb. 26 meeting. Those shortfalls are based on keeping the tax rate unchanged while also increasing the transfer to Fairfax County Public Schools. Fairfax County School Board officials intend to ask for an increase of 5.5 percent – or $92.4 million – for a total transfer of $1.77 billion. During a joint meeting of the two boards in November 2012, Long included an increase …

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County Wants Your Input on FY14-15 Budget

Community invited to share ideas at series of meetings as officials project a shortfall of more than $100 million.

In preparation to assist the Fairfax County decision-makers with the FY 2014 - FY 2015 budget process, the county is seeking input from the community for cost-saving suggestions, reductions and revenue enhancements. County Executive Edward Long has indicated increasing requirements for services means that the County faces a projected budget shortfall of more than $100 million in both FY 2014 and FY 2015. He has called for spending reduction options from county agencies totaling 5 percent for both years. The County Executive will propose his FY 2014 Budget to the Board of Supervisors on Feb. 26, 2013, and has scheduled community engagement opportunities to hear feedback from residents. Citizens are invited to attend one of three community …

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Board Adopts Final 2013 Fairfax County Budget

The FY 2013 budget passed in an 8-2 vote.