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By Ed Smith
The Rockbridge County Board of Supervisors continues to make substantial progress in formulating a fiscal 2024 budget. Through three budget work sessions, the gap between proposed expenditures and projected revenues had been pared down Monday to $659,677 – from $2.4 million two weeks ago and $1.9 million last week.
In order to equalize the personal property tax rate to compensate for declining values of used cars since a surge in prices a year ago, the rate is to be raised from $3.80 to $4.25 per $100 value. This would still be a quarter less than the $4.50 rate that had been in effect prior to the current fiscal year. Last year the personal property tax was reduced from $4.50 to $3.80 to account for then-escalating values of used cars.
The planned local appropriation to the schools now stands at $17,081,824, which would represent at increase of $1,102,041, or 6.9 percent. The School Board had requested an increase in local funding of $1,253,784, or 7.85 percent. The supervisors’ latest budget document has the increase at the lower $1.1 million amount – a reduction of $150,000 to reflect pay raises of 5 percent, rather than 7 percent as requested by the School Board.
Constitutional officers, state employees, teachers and county employees are all now slated to receive 5 percent pay raises. The supervisors have acknowledged that inflation, especially as it relates to higher costs for insurance premiums, is hurting the workforce, but it was felt that the county can’t afford raises above 5 percent.
The supervisors do seem determined to not go below 5 percent raises for county employees. “Not only was inflation at 9 percent last year, there’s also pressure from insurance going up,” observed Leslie Ayers at Monday’s budget work session. “I would like to leave [the pay raises] at 5 percent. … We have to be more and more creative to come up with strategies other than cutting employees [pay] to the bone.”
“I agree, but we’re still looking at a [$660,000] budget gap,” said David McDaniel. “We can’t continue increasing expenditures by eight-and-a-half percent.”
Planned general fund expenditures for next year are listed in the latest budget document at $57,791,767, which would be an increase of $4,584,395 or 8.62 percent. Total general fund revenues are projected to be $57,132,090, an increase of $3,924,718, or 7.38 percent. The difference in these numbers is $659,677, which represents the current budget gap.
Although it doesn’t affect general fund spending, the supervisors did go along with a recommendation of the fire and rescue association to adopt a new formula for distributing rescue recovery funds to EMS agencies. They also agreed to a plan that will provide more funding for fire personnel based on the proportion of calls answered.
The county’s proposed budget still calls for equalizing the real estate tax rate by reducing it from 74 cents to 61 cents per $100 value to account for reassessments pushing up property values by 21 percent.
Like all localities across the state, the county is still awaiting final state budget action by the General Assembly. The supervisors are planning to hold their next budget work session prior to their next regular meeting on Monday, March 27.
