The County Board adopted the budget for the year ahead at our April meeting. The Budget for the year that starts on July 1 includes a tax rate increase for the first time in 5 years, reflecting the need to invest in critical priorities such as our environment and fighting climate change, mental health and substance abuse prevention for our teens, affordable housing and eviction prevention, our schools, and fighting hunger.
The 2-cent rate increase is lower than the rate increases in Fairfax and Alexandria, but growth in our property values means that we are asking all our residents, renters and homeowners alike, to invest in our community in a fiscally smart way that is aligned with our values.
I am proud of the balance we struck in this budget, mindful that we did not do everything we would like to do, and acutely aware that we are asking a lot of our residents. I believe Chair Garvey got it right in describing this budget: practical and caring. I hope after taking a look below, you'll agree.
On our overall tax rate, the debate at the mark-up of the budget centered on whether we should adopt a 1.8 cent tax increase or a 2-cent tax increase. I supported a 2-cent tax increase. Three thoughts to start with:
We funded a number of small, specific items such as the reopening of our nature centers, an additional $400K in funding for the Arlington Food Assistance Center, and an additional $250K for arts grants were relatively small, but important.
On other larger challenges, such as the increased cost of educating our students post-pandemic and our environment, significant work is ahead. We must be fiscally wise and enact change over the years to come.
We made two specific cuts to a personal training program and a behavioral health program for adolescents that needs reconsideration. Given group physical training classes and the need to focus our funding for behavioral health on programs that are evidence-based and serve those most in need, I believe these modest reductions are unfortunate, but show necessary fiscal restraint.
The most frequent public comment message the County Board heard on the budget from our residents was the desire for the County Board to work with our schools to develop after school programs for middle and high school students in our schools with the greatest percentages of students from low- and moderate-income households. I am very proud that we invested $2.2 million in programs for our students most in need and teenagers for whom after school programs can make a big difference. I worked hard behind the scenes on this and am determined to work to implement annual funding to invest in our teens.
On affordable housing, we invested significant funding in eviction prevention, with $450K in ongoing funding and $4.3 million in funding in total. Eviction prevention is more cost efficient than homeless response, though both must be funded and funded more over the coming years. I am proud of our work on this. I also led the effort to secure an additional $1 million in Affordable Housing Investment Funding (AHIF) funding for units affordable at 30% and below of area median income. Particular thanks to Mr. Karantonis and Ms. Coffey for their support of this effort. I see investing in these units as part of our continuum of homeless prevention and the economic ladder we need. With that $1 million, we invested $21.5 million in AHIF, a significant increase from last year.
On our environment and climate, we invested $3.5 million for a Climate Action fund over the next two years to prioritize energy improvements, stormwater, and tree canopy/heat island work. I am eager to work both on the environmental sustainability and livability issues and the energy/climate work ahead. Thanks are due to Ms. Cunningham for leadership in this area. Tree maintenance received significant investment of $1 million and I worked to add $240K for the tree canopy fund and tree equity work in areas in need of investment.
On our schools, my last email discussed in detail the challenges we face. Email me if you want me to forward that email to you for your review. I did not think we should adopt a 2.5 cent tax increase, but do think 2 cents is wise in an effort to partner with the returning school board members to address school funding issues.
On our employees and public safety, general employees received a 4.75 percent increase. I value our employees and believe we were below inflation over the past two years, which is part of why I supported 2 cents and not 1.8 cents.
With respect to public safety, I pushed for one-time bonuses of $2,750 for our Sherriff's Deputies, fire fighters, police, and a limited number of behavioral health responders. Our Sherriff's deputies need investment as part of their work to improve care in our jail--the job is perhaps harder now than it has ever been. (I also pushed for $100K more for a medical director in the jail and medical sensors to help keep those remanded to our care safe.)
Our Police Department is facing high vacancies as is our Fire Department and our Sheriff's Office is also facing retention challenges. Also, we have invested 26% in raises for our police over the last 2 years and this coming year, in total. Our Sheriff's Deputies have received 21.75% in raises for our Firefighters have received 17.5% in raises. Inflation has undermined the impact of those raises and, in the case of our police and fire departments they are the product of the collective bargaining agreements. That does not mean vacancies are not a problem and I would like to have done more to address vacancies and overtime.
Our Police, Fire Department, and Sheriff's Office wanted us to address compression in pay. I felt, under the circumstances, the $2,750 in one-time funding I fought for was a modest effort to respect the work and gratefulness for our first responders in an environment where we had much more one-time funding than ongoing funding. To be clear, at least two Board Members raised significant concerns about that funding, so I did have to fight for what we were able to get. I also believe, respectfully, the $2,750 this year is consistent with collective bargaining and fiscally responsible.
To understand the debate and how Board Members engaged in the details, watch the budget mark up, skimming through the session to get a sense of our work.
I was able to get $900,000 in additional funding for this priority. I am disappointed we were not able to do more. We will need to improve our efforts next year, even as there may be less funding for these grants. On the whole, however, I am proud of the step we took this year on this.
Several other priorities where we made progress in the budget were (1) health equity via Neighborhood Health and the Arlington Free Clinic, (2) history via grants to the Black Heritage Museum of Arlington and the Arlington Historical Society, and (3) economic development and planning through the Department of Community Planning and Development where we restored two planners. We also invested in diversion via our Department of Human Services, Public Defender, nonprofit grants, and Commonwealth's Attorney's Office. Diversion in these ways is smart policy that most agree on.
In addition to the County Budget, Transportation and Metro funding were a priority in April through my role as Chair of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission. The Commonwealth's budget has been the source of significant news coverage: I travelled to Richmond to meet with Secretary of Transportation Shep Miller, the Governor's Chief of Staff Jeff Goettman, and Deputy Secretary of Transportation Michael Sargent.
The Governor reduced funding for Metro in the budget via an amendment which the General Assembly rejected. The veto proposed a reduction of approximately $108 million, arguing that money Arlington and other localities planned to spend on other projects should be used to fill the Metro shortfall. I believe the General Assembly and ultimately the Governor will restore the funding, but I went to Richmond to make the case for that funding, which is important to Arlington because Metro is the backbone of our transportation-oriented economy.
With Evelyn.
Thank you for reading. Please email me if you have budget questions. I acknowledge being a little late with this report, but I wanted it to be sufficiently detailed so that you understand why I voted to ask you to invest more in Arlington via our taxes for the ideals we share.
With a heart that is full and grateful for the opportunity to serve you,
