A Chesterfield County budget proposal presented yesterday to the Board of Supervisors is about $35 million less than the current budget and likely will mean job cuts and reductions in library and park hours and maintenance.
The $714.2 million proposal for fiscal 2010, said county Budget Director Allan Carmody, is still about $4 million more than was anticipated in February, but it represents a $41.9 million shortfall. The proposal is down 4.7 percent from the $749.4 million spending plan for fiscal 2009.
Cuts to make up the deficit will come from the consolidation and reorganization of departments, administrative staffing reductions, as well as from libraries and parks and mental-health programs, Carmody said.
"That means it will affect hours of operation; it will affect processing times," he said. "There has been a concentrated effort to minimize that impact on the employees and balancing the right sizing of government and services that we continue to provide."
The county tax rate will remain at 95 cents per $100 of assessed value. On average, taxpayers will see a decrease in their property tax bill this year, he said.
Carmody told the board that many job vacancies have not been filled in anticipation of the revenue loss.
The public has suggested efficiencies in energy consumption and county vehicle use, he said. County Administrator James J.L. Stegmaier said he recently sent a memo to all employees asking them to save energy by turning off lights when they leave offices and by shutting down computers when they go home.
The major beneficiaries from the proposed budget are public safety and schools. The two departments would receive $129 million and $298.1 million, respectively.
Board member James M. Holland, said that they had to make sure to be fair to smaller departments.
"We want to make sure that they are recognized and not unfairly targeted for cuts at this time," he said.
Board and county officials emphasized the need to continue to prepare for long-term revenue shortfall. Revenue projections won't increase significantly until 2013, Carmody said. This will require setting priorities, he said.
"We have to engage in dialogue with the community of what level of services we want and what level of service we're willing to pay."
The Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing on the proposed budget March 25.
Contact Juan Antonio Lizama at (804) 649-6513 or jlizama@timesdispatch.com.
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