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.
Falls Church homeowners likely will face higher real-estate tax bills in 2025-26 even if city leaders are able to shave a few pennies off the tax rate.
With no rate change, the typical city homeowner would face an estimated median $529 tax increase owing to higher assessments, the result of a still-robust housing market.
Falls Church city leaders are asking the General Assembly to push back the statewide election-poll-opening time from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m., while moving the closing time from 7 to 8 p.m.
A change would benefit those who serve as officers of election at polling places, who must be there about an hour before the opening. It also “would put Virginia in line with most of the surrounding states,” Falls Church Electoral Board members said in a letter to the City Council.
Arlington homeowners may find themselves facing a double-whammy at tax time again in 2025.
County officials say they are anticipating year-over-year tax-revenue growth of 1.7% to 2.5% for the fiscal year that begins next July, but growth in government expenses would be in the 3%-to-4% range.
Members of the Falls Church City Council appear ready to jumpstart plans for the city’s newest park.
As they determine what to do with the city government’s $5.3 million fiscal 2024 surplus, Council members seem enthusiastic to allocate $1.5 million to complete design and move forward with construction on what they call the Fellows site.
Arlington’s two county-government-operated nature centers will see their operating days doubled in two weeks.
The county’s Department of Parks and Recreation has announced plans for Long Branch and Gulf Branch nature centers to be open six days a week for the winter season, starting on Tuesday, Nov. 12.
Arlington Public Schools is proposing to significantly increase its budget next year to support more staffing and a pay raise for personnel.
The proposal, which Superintendent Francisco Durán and the Arlington School Board discussed at a work session yesterday (Tuesday), calls for gradually adding 252 new full-time positions and a 3% cost-of-living increase over the next three years.
Extra emphasis on road safety, environmental resiliency and facilities upgrades is included in the final draft of Arlington’s latest 10-year Capital Improvement Plan.
The Arlington County Board yesterday (Tuesday) approved a $4.5 billion Fiscal Year 2025-2034 CIP, outlining planned investment in county infrastructure and assets. Changes between the original proposal presented in May and the final draft include:
Impassioned discussion surrounded a split Arlington School Board vote on Thursday to approve a $570 million Capital Improvement Plan for the next decade.
At issue in the 3-2 vote on the 2025-2034 CIP were disagreements over Arlington Public Schools debt service as well as a plan to relocate the Montessori Public School of Arlington (MPSA) to the current Career Center building.
The Arlington School Board has unanimously passed an $826 million budget that, in the view of several board members, fails to accomplish key goals.
“This is a budget of status quos,” Chair Cristina Diaz-Torres said prior to a Thursday vote. “I said this the day that [Superintendent Francisco Durán] announced the budget. This is a budget of maintaining the status quo at a bare minimum.”
A proposed $4.5 billion investment plan for Arlington County includes more investment in clean energy, mental health services and emergency preparedness over the next decade.
The proposal, presented by County Manager Mark Schwartz on Tuesday, is nearly $600 million bigger than the previous 10-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) passed in 2022. It involves the county taking on more debt, including $174 million in bond referenda for voters to consider in November.
