January 14, 2022
To the Fairfax County Community,

On Wednesday, the 2022 session of the General Assembly began and new state leadership begins their term on Saturday. I want to thank Governor Northam for his service to the Commonwealth and I look forward to finding common ground and working with Governor Youngkin and his administration.

While Fairfax County does not introduce laws to the General Assembly, we do work with our legislators to lobby for the needs of our residents, especially during session. This includes opportunities to fund the priorities of local government.

With the state having a budget surplus this year, we are hopeful that we can make progress in areas where there are great needs for state investment. Two of these areas include funding for education and mental health. You can see our entire legislative package here.
Last week, I testified on behalf of Fairfax County to our local General Assembly delegation.
Education
  • What: As always, K-12 funding remains a top priority in Fairfax County. Over half of our budget goes to FCPS. We ask the General Assembly to update the way in which it funds public education in Virginia and reduce the gap between state and local funding.
  • Why: Educating a student in FCPS requires an investment of about $16,500 each year. $12,000 comes from the Fairfax County budget and property tax payers, while only $2,700 comes from the state. Unfortunately, the state's funding is insufficient to provide the quality of education our community has come to expect.
  • In comparison, in our neighboring Prince William County, the per pupil cost is about $12,300. Locally PWC invests $5,500, while the state contributes $5,000. 
  • How does it impact you? Because of this imbalance and Fairfax County's limited taxing authority, which forces us to be overly reliant on collecting revenue through property taxes, the responsibility for education funding is increasingly a challenge for the County. Overly relying on property taxes is regressive in my mind - especially as assessments skyrocket, causing strain to our taxpayers. (Assessments are based on market values derived from sales comparisons and the County is required to set land and building values based on those figures).
  • In contrast, the state's revenue primarily comes from income taxes. Given the surplus on the state level - a solid portion of which was generated in Fairfax County - we hope to make progress in these funding areas.
  • Consider this, in order to fund the state proposed 10% increase in teacher raises, Fairfax County would have to provide over $200 million over two years, compared to the state share of $47 million. This amounts to a 7-cent increase on the real estate tax rate. Such an increase would be unsustainable for our residents.
Mental Health and Criminal Justice
  • What? For too long, mental illness has been criminalized instead of treated. As a result, people don't get the needed support to move their lives forward. In Fairfax County, we have made a lot of progress in our mental health programs to divert nonviolent offenders with health issues away from the criminal justice system and into treatment. Since launching Diversion First in 2016 over 2,500 people have taken part in our programs. To bolster and sustain our efforts to connect non-violent offenders to needed resources, mental health and public safety funding must be increased. In addition, programs like ours must be recognized as necessary statewide and properly funded.
  • Why? This work requires significant resources. Take the the Office of the Commonwealth's Attorney (CA) as an example. Currently, the funding formula for the CA relies primarily on the number of felony indictments and sentences. While our diversion programs require a lot of prosecutorial work, state funding does not account for it. In fact, the current formula essentially discourages such efforts.
  • What does this mean for you? Again, it is a matter of the state investing and incentivizing smart practices. For every person held in our jail, it costs the tax payer $358.98 each day. As it stands now, the way we fund mental health in Virginia does not reflect the needs of our residents. We also know that challenges in the mental health area are on the rise partly due to the personal strain of the pandemic on so many people.
COVID-19
  • Tomorrow, a COVID-19 Community Testing Center opens at the Fairfax County Government Center in parking lot B. The testing center will operate Saturdays through Wednesdays by appointment only. Read more here.
  • It feels like I know a lot of people who have recently contracted COVID-19. Fortunately, they were vaccinated. Their symptoms seemed to be mild and after a few days, they all recovered. The truth is: vaccines have made a huge difference for our community over the past year. You stepped up, took the time and energy to act and, most likely, you saved lives by getting your vaccinations. I urge all of you not to give up; get vaccinated and boosted. Don’t wait. Please, schedule your appointment now. There are many in our community who are still vulnerable to the serious effects of COVID and now our local hospitals are starting to feel the strain. I urge everyone to get vaccinated and boosted as soon as you’re able.
  • What else can you do?
  • Wear a well-fitting mask while in public indoor settings. Don’t let up on this.
  • If you’re sick, stay home.
  • Around others? Don’t forget to wash your hands (frequently).
  • If you or a family member tests positive for COVID-19, follow these steps.
  • We are all concerned about COVID-19 but, by continuing to work together, we will get through this.
Snow
  • Fairfax County is expecting a winter storm this weekend of snow, ice, and rain.
  • For the latest snow information:
  • You can follow Fairfax County Government, Fairfax County's Office of Emergency Management, and VDOT Northern Virginia on Twitter.
  • You can sign up for Fairfax County Emergency Alerts here.
  • Follow the Fairfax County Emergency Blog here.
  • For questions about snow removal, shoveling, or other winter weather related questions, visit the County's snow webpage here.
  • VDOT/The roads
  • VDOT owns the majority of roads in Fairfax County and they are in charge of plowing them.
  • To report hazardous road conditions, call VDOT’s Customer Service Center at 1-800-367-7623 or visit online.
  • Road conditions can be tracked here and you can track VDOT's plows here.
  • VDOT asks that drivers carefully monitor weather reports for shifts in conditions and make plans now to avoid Wednesday travel.
  • Power outages
  • Dominion: Report a power outage online here or call 1-866-366-4357.
  • NOVEC: Report a power outage online here or call 703-335-0500.
  • Utilities:
  • Report problems:
  • Verizon: 1-800-837-4966
  • Cox: 703-378-8422
  • Washington Gas Emergency: 844-927-4427
  • Hypothermia Shelters: If you see someone who is unsheltered and you think they are at risk of hypothermia, call the County’s non-emergency police phone number: 703-691-2131.
  • Hypothermia Prevention for Pets: Be sure your pet is warm and has adequate care and shelter. Adequate shelter requires that the shelter:
  • Be suitable for the species, age, condition, size, and type of each animal.
  • Provide adequate space for each animal.
  • Be safe and protect each animal from injury during rain, sleet, snow, and ice.
  • Protect each animal from adverse effects of heat or cold and physical suffering.
  • Protect each animal from impairment of health.
  • Be properly lighted and properly cleaned.
  • Enables each animal to be clean and dry, except when detrimental to the species.
  • Provide a solid surface, resting platform, pad, floormat, or similar device that is large enough for the animal to lie on in a normal manner, and can be maintained in a sanitary manner. (This requirement is for cats and dogs).
Reflecting on our Success
In case you missed it, on January 1, I shared a video outlining some of our success as we have worked to respond to COVID-19.

Watch the video here.
Community Member Spotlight
Community member Debbie Fairbanks and her son, Stan, collected and donated 70 coats to New Hope Housing (NHH) in Bailey’s Crossroads.

NHH offers housing programs for Fairfax County's homeless residents and works to end the cycle of homelessness.
Health
Vaccine Resources:


COVID-19 Resources:

  • Fairfax County Health Department
  • To view the number of cases in Fairfax County this page is updated at noon daily.
  • Visit the County site on COVID-19, Health Department Website, and see their FAQs.
  • To view multilingual health materials visit the County's Language Portal.
  • Sign up for text message alerts: text FFXCOVID to 888777. Para inscribirse, textear FFXCOVIDESP a 888777.
  • Call the Health Department from 9am-7pm weekdays and 9:30am-5pm on weekends: 703-267-3511
  • Email: [email protected]. This account will be staffed Monday through Friday, 8am-8pm.
  • Inova has a helpful FAQ.
Sincerely,
Jeff McKay
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