Dranesville Newsletter (.pdf)
Dear Dranesville Resident,
It’s March and the Fairfax County budget season is upon us once again. On February 28, County Executive Tony Griffin proposed a $3.52 billion balanced budget for Fiscal year 2013. After reviewing and revising the County Executive’s Advertised Budget, the Board of Supervisors will adopt the actual budget for Fiscal Year 2013 (July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013).
The County Executive’s proposed budget maintains the real estate tax rate of $1.07 per $100 of assessed value. Included in the proposal is a recommendation to transfer $1.68 billion to Fairfax County Public Schools operations, an increase of 4.5 percent over last year’s adopted budget plan.
Other highlights of the County Executive’s proposed budget include:
- Increasing the stormwater service rate by $0.01, for a total of $0.025 per $100 of assessed real estate value. This increase is proposed to meet increasing federal and state regulatory requirements for stormwater management.
- Increasing fares and fees for School Age Child Care (SACC), Park Authority and REC Center programs and Fairfax Connector buses.
- Providing a 2.18 percent Market Rate Adjustment (MRA) for salaries of all county employees.
It is very important that members of the Board hear your thoughts on this proposed budget. The next steps in the process are the publicizing of the proposed budget throughout the County, an extensive review by Board members, and the collection and consideration of the opinions of County residents and interested organizations.
Once again, this year I have convened my citizen budget task force, headed by Dranesville resident Rip Sullivan. The task force has been meeting every two weeks and will examine the proposed budget in great detail. Ultimately, they will make recommendations to me that I will share with the rest of the Board and consider as we develop our final budget.
Inside this issue you will find a schedule and information about upcoming budget informational meetings in Dranesville as well as the schedule of County Public Hearings before the Board of Supervisors and how to sign up to testify. To learn more about the FY2013 budget visit the County website at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dmb/.
In other County news, the Board of Supervisors met recently for a two day retreat to discuss County priorities and plans to address them. In addition, all members of the Board of Supervisors and the Fairfax County Public School Board met for a day-long retreat to discuss ways to achieve the mutual goal of providing a skilled work force for the County in the coming decade. This was the first time the Boards have met for this purpose and it was especially valuable because the School Board has six new members. I believe that this gathering, as well as future meetings targeting specific areas of concern, will benefit the entire community. You will find more information about both meetings in this issue.
It is a privilege to represent you. As always, I welcome your thoughts on how to best serve the Dranesville community. Please feel free to contact my office with your suggestions and concerns.
Best Wishes,
John W. Foust
Dranesville District Supervisor
1437 Balls Hill Road
McLean, VA 22101
Phone: 703-356-0551
Fax: 703-821-4275
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