County executive wants to make county more efficient so tax rate won’t have to keep rising
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| From the left: Mason Supervisor Penny Gross, Chief Financial Officer Joe Mondoro, and County Executive Bryan Hill. |
Fairfax County is one of the wealthiest counties in the nation, says Mason Supervisor Penny Gross, but finding the funds to meet its budget priorities continues to be a challenge. That’s because wealth is based on income, and Fairfax County doesn’t tax income, she told the audience at a Budget Town Hall March 15.
The majority of revenue, 65 percent, comes from property taxes, which continue to rise but there are limits on how much tax increases the public will accept. Only 3.1 percent of the county’s revenue comes from the state and local government. The rest is from sales taxes, fees, and other sources.
In an effort to cut expenses, County Executive Bryan Hill said he will ask staff to eliminate duplicative services and programs. His goal is “to make Fairfax County more efficient, because we cannot have residential tax increases each and every year.”
Hill said he is working with Fairfax County Schools Superintendent Scott Brabrand to co-locate services to improve efficiency and find a better cost-delivery system.
“My hope is that by 2020 we will live within our means without increasing the tax rate,” Hill said.
Meanwhile, Hill said, one of the top priorities in the advertised FY 2019 budget presented to the Board of Supervisors is increased compensation to county employees, including a 2.25 market rate adjustment and 2 percent (2.5 percent for uniformed public safety employees) in performance, merit and longevity increases.
Here are some highlights from the presentation by Joe Mondoro, the county’s chief financial officer:
- The advertised real estate tax rate is $1.155 per $100 of assessed value, an increase of 2.5 cents. The Board of Supervisors can approve a lower rate but not a higher one. [That should be viewed in the context of an increase in the real estate assessment of an average of 2.17 percent for 2019.]
- Nonresidential assessments are up 3.8 percent for FY 2019. That increase is primarily due to a decrease in office vacancy rates and an increase in rents.
- The proposed FY 2019 budget calls for an increase of $192 million, or 4.69 percent, over the budget adopted for FY 2018. Disbursements would be increased $181.48 million, or 4.42 percent, over the current budget.
- The budget calls for the county to transfer $2.26 billion to Fairfax County Public Schools, an increase of $95.1 million, or 4.38 percent, over FY 2018. That would fully fund FCPS – when taking into account a funding increase from the state.
- The local economy is finally catching up to the growth in the national economy. Fairfax County has been struggling for years, since the federal sequester in 2013 led to declines in federal defense spending.
- Job growth has been steadily rising since 2014. The number of jobs in Fairfax County rose 1.2 percent from 2016 to 2017.
- The budget calls for $7.5 million for public safety, which includes staffing for the South County Police Station to be built in 2021. That will require a redrawing of the boundaries for all the other police districts, resulting in increased response times for service calls.
- Additional public safety funding is included for more front-line police sergeants, gang prevention, and the Diversion First initiative, which provides mental health screening as an alternative to incarceration.
- Other priorities include funds for addressing the opioid crisis, early childhood education for those who can’t afford private preschool, and funding for Metro.
The Board of Supervisors will hold public hearings on the budget April 10-12. Sign up to speak here.
The BoS will adopt a budget for FY 2019 on May 1. The school hold board will hold public hearings on the FY 2019 FCPS budget May 15-16 and will adopt a budget May 24.
3 responses to “County executive wants to make county more efficient so tax rate won’t have to keep rising”
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So the County Supervisor wants continued tax rate increases until 2020 when the County plans to "live within our means"? I am pretty sure savings could be found before 2020.
2020 is only two years away; no government moves that quickly (except perhaps a dictatorship).
Why will opening the new South County Police Station and the redrawing the policing areas increase the response time. I would think it would DECREASE the response time.