Issue 63

Prince William County

Last year, the County’s budget suffered a reduction of $40 million because of economic uncertainty. I’m incredibly pleased to share, on Tuesday evening, the Board of County Supervisors adopted a Fiscal Year 2022 budget which positions the county to help those impacted in the past year, as well as moving boldly into a future that is beneficial for all County residents.  

Some highlights of the impact of this year’s budget include expanding the Police/Community Services Co-Responder Unit for mental health calls that was fully started last year after a successful pilot program in 2019. Continuing our feeding program and supporting the actions of our Feeding Task Force that established a warehouse and very successful hub and spoke distribution network to efficiently get food to those who need it. Restoring funding for public safety items that had been put on hold, like new radios. Increasing spending on homeless services in all areas of the County with funding for continued locations in the I95/Route 1 corridor and the establishment of a greater level of service in the Manassas/Sudley corridor. Beginning the process of better funding the court system that saw assistance for Juvenile Court Services, court staffing and major additions to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office.

 

Too numerous to mention in detail, the budget funded area needs for Social Services, Security, the new Animal Shelter, the new Station 22 in Fire and Rescue, as well as increasing funding for Public Health and the establishment of the new Child Advocacy Center. Supporting our school system with increases in funding year over year. Establishing an Office of Sustainability to move us closer to our environmental goals. Giving employees merit raises of 3% that were cancelled last budget season. Supporting a last-minute request from the Sheriff’s office, for body worn cameras and replacement tasers, that will hopefully work toward support for law enforcement while simultaneously increasing transparency and accountability. 

All of these were achieved even with a reduction in the real estate tax rate, which went from $1.125 per $100 to $1.115 per $100. The first tax rate reduction since 2016. There were some increases, most notably the computer peripherals moving from $1.35 to $1.50 and the establishment of a $.40 per pack tax on cigarettes.

 

A budget is a reflection of our values. We value our residents, our children, our employees, and our workers on the front lines. We care about helping those in true need in our community, while laying the groundwork for a better and safer future for our children. We have addressed long standing funding needs in various areas while recognizing new needs amid the changing landscape. We are well-positioned for future success as we move forward together.

The CDC created the following graphics on choosing indoor and outdoor safer activities and how to participate in them for people who are fully vaccinated and for those who have not yet been vaccinated.

The tournament will unfold in three rounds over the course of a year. Round 1 is now open and has a monetary prize pool for accurate predictions.

Examples of prediction questions are:

Of the proposed projects, 4 are primarily located in PWC

NVTC is encouraging the public to review the 13 project applications for Round Two (FY22 - FY23) of the Commuter Choice I-395/95 Corridor program, and submit comments on the eligible and scored projects. After reviewing the project applications, members of the public can comment by:

Public comment submission period closes Monday, May 17, at 5:00 pm.