School Board budget still has to shrink

Palmyra — Budget woes of the county met the harsh reality the largest part of the budget is facing addition shortfalls.

Fluvanna County Public Schools receive over 60 percent of the county budget. Of the budget the schools develop, over 80 percent comes from the state and federal government. The projected funds from outside and inside the county are going to be less for the schools.

“You aren’t going to get $15 million,” Supervisor Chairman Gene Ott, Rivanna District, said to the School Board.

At the last School Board meeting, district superintendent Dr. Tom Smith projected the county to provide $2 million less than last year.

The School Board budget already has cut $2.1 million with almost another $600,000 more to go using the budget proposed by former governor Tim Kaine.

With Governor Bob McDonnell’s proposed composite index unfreeze, Fluvanna could be hit with an addition $400,000 burden. The composite index measure the ability of a locality to pay.

The index is calculated two years prior and Fluvanna’s index raised from .3685 to .3867 meaning the wealth of the county improved. Of the 131 localities measured, only 40 localities will benefit from the index being unfrozen.

The county is facing a 21 cent increase in tax to cover the shortfall if more from the entire county budget isn’t cut. An increase of a penny of taxes equates to $357,000 additional revenue.

“We are not looking to put this on the tax payers,” Ott said.

Vice chairman supervisor Shaun Kenney, Columbia District, reported only 90 percent of the county population paid taxes this last year citing people cannot afford to pay up to a 71 cent tax rate.

“The pot of money is generally fixed,” Kenney added.

A subject continually in debate is the 12 percent of the budget devoted to debt service. A majority of the debt is the construction of the new high school, which is not forgotten by supervisors or board members.

After multiple questions on the decision to build the over $70 million high school, School Board member Bertha Armstrong, Fork Union District, fired back, “Yes I voted for the new high school and I’m still proud I did.”

Ott told the School Board, “The Dominio Plan is the 71 million [to build the high school].”

The construction of the new high school is the first and the bulk of the first phase of the Dominio Plan. The second part of the first phase is to renovate the current high school to become a middle school then renovate the current middle school to become an upper elementary school. The final phase of the Dominio Plan calls for expansion of the new high school then construction of a middle and elementary schools.

Ott doubted the county could afford another projected $16 million to complete the Dominio Plan. The high school is scheduled to be completed in Dec. 2011.

The School Board will hold a public budget session March 1 at 5 pm in the School Board room. The Board of Supervisors will hold a public budget session for agency presentations on March 3 at 6 pm in the county circuit courtroom.

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