budget | ARLnow.com

Morning Poll: Housing Grants

Published April 11, 2011 at 8:27AM | Updated April 11, 2011 at 9:16AM

That increase includes an extra $630,000 for the county’s housing grant program, which serves just over 1,000 households per year; an extra $467,000 for permanent supportive housing programs, which will serve just over 100 households per year; and an extra $162,000 for ‘general relief’ emergency housing assistance, which will serve 250 households per month.

Arlington County officials place great emphasis on safety net programs, which are serving those in need during tough economic times. But some are questioning whether the increases are sustainable or even appropriate given the county’s tight finances.

News

DEVELOPING STORY — Federal Shutdown Could Have “Severe Impact” on N. Virginia

By ARLnow.com

Published April 6, 2011 at 1:37PM | Updated April 6, 2011 at 1:55PM

If such a shutdown were to happen, Moran says he believes that furloughed federal employees would not be reimbursed for their time off due to Republican opposition to such a move. A shutdown could last several weeks and have a “severe impact” on the local economy, Moran warned.

“This is very, very, serious,” Moran said. “Federal employees need to understand that this is not 1995, when we closed down… and [employees] were fully reimbursed.”

News

Civic Federation Makes Budget Recommendations

By ARLnow.com

Published April 5, 2011 at 3:58PM

The Arlington County Civic Federation will discuss the county and school budgets at its monthly meeting tonight.

At the meeting, the federation’s revenues and expenditures committee will reveal its suggested modifications to the county manager’s budget.

News

Artisphere Visitor Revenue 75 Percent Below Expectations

By ARLnow.com

Published April 1, 2011 at 11:39AM

In a presentation to the county board yesterday, county staff revealed that Artisphere admission and ticket income is projected at $174,202 for the financial year ending on June 30, 75 percent below the $789,912 in revenue that planners expected.

The shortfall was first reported in the Sun Gazette Editor’s Notebook blog.

Schools

Budget on the School Board Agenda Tonight

By ARLnow.com

Published March 24, 2011 at 4:09PM

The Arlington County School Board will hold a vote tonight as part of the on-going FY 2012 budget process.

The board is expected to approve superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy’s proposed budget. The vote will allow the board to move forward with its own changes to the budget before final adoption next month.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published March 23, 2011 at 8:58AM | Updated July 12, 2017 at 2:14PM

Dremo’s Coming to the Pike? — The owner of the late, lamented Dr. Dremo’s Tap Room is in talks with the landlord of the former Ski Chalet store at 2704 Columbia Pike. The building would give Dremo’s a spacious new home in a funky old building, complete with parking, room for outdoor seating, and access to plentiful bus routes. We’re pretty sure an ARLnow.com commenter was the one who first floated the idea. [Pike Wire]

Dozens Testify At Budget Hearing — More than 75 people spoke at last night’s annual County Board budget hearing. Representatives and supporters of various local human services agencies asked the Board to increase funding for their causes. Also present at the hearing were supporters of increased funding for arts organizations, bicycling infrastructure and Arlington Public Libraries. [Sun Gazette]

Opinion

Morning Poll: Libraries vs. Taxes

By ARLnow.com

Published March 22, 2011 at 7:57AM | Updated March 22, 2011 at 8:33AM

Although Arlington will benefit from rising property values this year in the form of higher tax collections, the Board still must make tough choices when it comes to deciding what to fund and how to fund it.

County Manager Barbara Donnellan has recommended keeping real estate taxes steady at 95.8 cents per $100 in assessed value, following a year in which the rate jumped 8.3 cents. The Board gave itself the flexibility of raising that rate slightly by advertising a 96.8 cent rate.

News

County Sees Revenue Loss As State Funds Dry Up

By ARLnow.com

Published March 16, 2011 at 9:56AM | Updated March 16, 2011 at 12:23PM

Arlington has had to make service cuts in each of the past two budgets as taxes and other revenue sources dried up. After 2009, assessed property values suffered their first year-over-year decline since 1995, prompting the county to hike property taxes to make up for what otherwise would have been a dramatic loss of revenue.

When it comes to real estate taxes, the county can always increase the tax rate for an expected revenue shortfall. But one area that’s largely out of the county’s control is the funds it receives from the state. And in the past four years, overall state funding to Arlington County — excluding schools — has dropped $18 million.

News

Arlington Business Booster Recommends Replacing Tourism Funds

By ARLnow.com

Published March 3, 2011 at 3:35PM

“I think we have a great program,” Arlington Economic Development Director Terry Holzheimer said at a board work session this afternoon. “The program has value.”

“This board has been put in a very difficult position,” said board member Jay Fisette, adding that he hope to “come up with some way to share” the cost of tourism promotion with local hotels to save money from the already-stretched county budget.

News

Favola: Tourism Funding Still Up in the Air

By ARLnow.com

Published March 2, 2011 at 12:58PM

Last week a bill that would have renewed the county’s 0.25 percent tax surcharge on hotel rooms — a tax that had the support of the local hotel industry — failed in the House of Delegates. The defeat was attributed to Republicans retaliating against Arlington’s HOT lanes lawsuit.

The tax surcharge brings in nearly $1 million each year, which is used to promote Arlington’s $1 billion tourism industry. The surcharge will expire at the end of the year.

News

Proposed School Budget Includes Pay Raise for Teachers

By ARLnow.com

Published February 24, 2011 at 3:58PM | Updated February 25, 2011 at 9:20AM

The proposed FY 2012 budget includes a step increase for teachers and other school employees that was not granted last year amid a serious budget crunch. It does not, however, include a cost of living (COLA) increase. COLA increases used to be granted nearly every year until Arlington’s budget difficulties began two years ago.

Senior employees and employees at the top of the pay scale — who together make up about 33 percent of the work force — are not eligible for a step increase. Dr. Murphy is proposing a one-time payment of $1,000 to those employees. The total cost of all pay raises is estimated at ~~$16.4~~ $7.9 million. (The original $16.4 million figure included benefit and retirement increases.)

News

County Board Advertises Small Tax Rate Increase

By ARLnow.com

Published February 16, 2011 at 8:00AM

The board will now be able to set the FY 2012 property tax rate at or below 96.8 cents per $100 in assessed value. The current rate — the rate that Donnellan recommended in her proposed budget — is 95.8 cents per $100.

Last year, when the board set the property tax rate at 1.6 cents above Donnellan’s recommended figure, the advertised rate was 96.5 cents.