Ranked-choice voting, a climate resolution, the contentious Melwood development proposal and the draft Fiscal Year 2026 county budget are all on the agenda for a County Board meeting slated for Saturday (Feb. 22).
Among the highlights:
budget
Arlington School Board members for six months have promised a new approach to tackling the school system’s budget-development process.
Those assurances are about to be put to the test.
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The results of an audit on Arlington Independent Media are out, revealing substantial gaps and errors in how the nonprofit handled some $2 million in county-provided funds.
The audit report appears to have been uploaded by Arlington County yesterday, the day after ARLnow reported on delays in its release. It suggests that AIM failed to provide adequate documentation for over $1 million in expenditures, including payments to dozens of third-party contractors.
Arlington County is facing a $30-40 million budget gap in the fiscal year starting July 1.
Arlington’s” budget season” is now underway and county leaders are focused on how to allocate funds and balance the budget. But with more than half of county spending considered non-discretionary, options for cuts are somewhat limited.
On the other hand, another way to close the budget gap — higher property tax rates — looks to be politically challenging given that a continuous rise in home assessments paired with a tax rate increase last year has Arlington homeowners more sensitive to higher taxes.
Given our recent reporting on some of the potential options and tradeoffs, which option for balancing the budget are you leaning towards?
If you vote for cuts, let us know where in the budget should they be made.
As Arlington County eyes another possible tax increase this fiscal year, County Manager Mark Schwartz warns that trimming the county $1.65 billion budget would be no small task.
From the rising costs of compensation to funding commitments that can’t be altered in the short term, Schwartz suggested that cutting costs to fill an anticipated budget gap of $30 to $40 million — about 2% of Arlington’s $1.65 billion budget — isn’t as easy as some might think.
Arlington residents and its county government need to face an uncertain future by remaining committed to community values, Arlington’s new County Board chair says.
Takis Karantonis, who has sat on the Board since 2020, on Tuesday (Jan. 7) was elected unanimously to serve as chair for the coming year. After the vote, he laid out his priorities for 2025 and expressed his emotions about elevation to the top position in county leadership.
Proposals for new and expanded support of lower- and moderate-income Arlington homeowners could run into budget headwinds in 2025.
County staff closed out 2024 by presenting a host of proposals to County Board members. They aim to support those priced out of the county’s housing market, as well as those who already are homeowners but are having difficulties maintaining their properties.
Some Falls Church officials are hoping 2025 will be a year of moving from conversation to concrete decisions in addressing affordable-housing goals.
“It’s the action side of things that has always been the problem — not the aspirational nature of what we want,” City Council member Erin Flynn said during a discussion of how city leaders will move forward on housing issues in the new year.
Two initiatives to meet the needs of at-risk Arlington seniors are facing troubled times.
An end to Covid-era funding is hitting operations of the nonprofit Meals on Wheels program hard, while there remains a backlogged waiting list for those wanting to be a part of the Arlington Department of Human Services’ Adult Day program.
County school leaders, both elected and staff, will be presenting a united front as the fiscal 2026 budget season fast approaches.
In a change from typical practice, the Arlington School Board and superintendent will present a joint budget in mid-March, Board members decided Dec. 12.
By OLIVIA DIAZ Associated Press/Report for America
RICHMOND (AP) — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin proposed a state budget plan on Wednesday to provide tax relief on tips and cars, measures his Republican administration touted as giving money back to middle- and lower-income workers.
County Manager Mark Schwartz has been directed to consider both program cuts and tax increases as he works to fill a fiscal 2026 budget gap currently estimated at $30 million to $40 million.
County Board members on Tuesday night (Dec. 17) voted unanimously to approve budget guidance providing Schwartz the ability to propose tax increases he deems necessary. That could include another increase to the real-estate tax rate.