2020-05-20 - Budget Public Notice

The Board of Supervisors of King George County will hold a public hearing at the Board Room at 6:00 p.m., Tuesday, June 2, 2020, on the proposed budget as shown below.

The tax rate of $0.70 per $100 of assessed value of real property is extended for the Fiscal Year July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021 pursuant to Section 58.1-3320 of the Code of Virginia.

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2020-05-07 - Public Hearing on Proposed Budget

KING GEORGE COUNTY, VIRGINIA
PUBLIC HEARING – PROPOSED BUDGET
FISCAL YEAR JULY 1, 2020 TO JUNE 30, 2021

The Board of Supervisors of King George County will hold a public hearing in the Board Room at 6:00 p.m., Thursday, May 14, 2020, on the proposed budget as shown below.

The tax rate of $0.70 per $100 of assessed value of real property is extended for the Fiscal Year July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021 pursuant to Section 58.1-3320 of the Code of Virginia.

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OPINION - Finalized CIP Means Smaller Courthouse

by Neil Richard

On October 23rd, the Board of Supervisors met to finalize their Capital Improvement Program (CIP) plan for the coming year. There was bad news and worse news, depending on where you stand with the idea of a new Courthouse.

Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, broke the bad news first. Any future capital projects would need to be funded by borrowing more money. And to cover that new borrowing, tax rates would need to go up. In breaking down his math, Dr. Young explained that future revenue from the landfill has already been leveraged in full. While this has already been discussed at length by the Board for several years, Young went on to explain that by including the annual school bus purchase, annual ambulance purchase, and annual Sheriff's Office radio purchases, the expected funding available from the landfill drops to a paltry $192,000 per year. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Chair of the Landfill Advisory Committee.]

This led to the data showing that any new borrowing would result in an annual debt payment. In other words, borrowing money means a loan payment needs to be made. Using the current King George Middle School Expansion Project as a rough estimate, Young said that for every $10 million borrowed, $500,000 a year in loan payments would need to be made. Although other variables like the market, interest rates, and costs weren't factored into this estimate, it was a solid starting point for wrapping your head around future borrowing.

From here, Dr. Young explained that a one (1) cent tax increase means $270,000 in revenue for the County. Therefore, $500,000 in loan payments equals a two (2) cent tax increase. Which means that if the County wants to borrow $40 million to build a giant warehouse for Beanie Babies, they would need to raise taxes eight (8) cents to cover the cost of the annual loan payment.

Dr. Young then laid out the real bad news of the night. Due to upcoming financial needs, a tax increase is needed. The SAFER Grant expires soon and will need one to two cents to cover the costs. The Virginia Retirement System (VRS) hasn't raised rates and will likely do so in the coming year resulting in a one to two cent tax increase. Another penny increase would be needed to cover the increased cost of healthcare and another penny for the Rappahannock Regional Jail. The school budget would also likely result in another two or three cents. While all of the projections and predictions were not verified and set in stone, they gave the Board a solid gut check in looking at what the future held: the high probability of a tax increase.

With the bad news out of the way, Dr. Young asked the Supervisors to come to a consensus on the Courthouse decision. With the new information in front of them, the Board discussed where they stood. A majority decided that a 50,000 square foot Courthouse was the best option. This would mean no more 13,000 square feet of shared space for the County staff as they discussed at their last CIP meeting on the Courthouse. It also meant that the Courthouse would double in size but still be smaller than what they needed as soon as they move in. Cathy Binder was the lone Supervisor asking for more space and more to preserve the existing Courthouse but to manage everything through a phased approach. The residents on the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee and the rest of the Supervisors agreed that 50,000 square feet seemed adequate and that the existing Courthouse should be preserved in some way. If that meant removing newer portions or remodeling or something else was yet to be decided. However, both Binder and Vic Mason did let the Board know that the mold had returned to the Courthouse despite recent remediation work.

Once that decision was made, the Board then went on to discuss other capital projects and it was decided that a committee of citizens would likely be a good thing to have to help the Supervisors gather more input and new ideas. Part of that discussion was the future needs of the School Board, their offices, and the Pre-School. Some Supervisors seemed to be frustrated that the School Board hadn't taken action on the old King George Elementary School or other projects over the years.

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OPINION - Courthouse Decision

by Neil Richard

The King George County Supervisors and the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee dedicated a single night to discussing the future plans of the County but more specifically the Courthouse. This meeting on October 3rd was their fourth Capital Improvement Program (CIP) meeting of the year but not the first time a plan for the future Courthouse was discussed. You can find an abundance of links in our prior coverage here as well as a details from a tour I took earlier this year and a great article by Sean Gates linking the past and future. While many of the Supervisors referred to the discussion as the "elephant in the room" I felt like it was the horse that died years ago and has been continually beaten.

Thankfully, after this particular meeting, it feels like everyone has agreed to move forward with building a new Courthouse. There was a lot of discussion regarding how much square footage was needed and the impression I got was that all of the Supervisors felt only 50,000 square feet was necessary. One judge and the Commonwealth's Attorney, Keri Gusmann, both spoke to the projected need of 63,000 square feet by 2027 and the fear that not building it to that size now would mean increased costs in the near future. Even though she said it was shortsighted, Gusmann was careful to say she didn't want to "give back" the idea that the Supervisors would at least build 50,000 square feet.

OPINION - Round 3 Of The CIP Budget Work Session

by Neil Richard

The Board of Supervisors held their third work session to discuss the Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Based on their last two meetings where the Supervisors had asked for more information, they were able to better pin down their priorities and funding levels. However, nothing is set in stone just yet.

Jim Lynch spoke briefly during Public Comment to let the Board know he was there as a representative of the Friends of the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail (DRHT) and that he had submitted comments to Dr. Young earlier in the day about the upcoming Trailways Study discussion. Lynch also offered to answer any questions the Board may have. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Treasurer of the Friends of DRHT.]

With a little shuffling, the Board first heard from Nick Minor, the County's new Director of Economic Development and Tourism. Minor gave the Board a quick rundown of the often mentioned gas line fund. The fund was originally created to pay for the expansion of a gas line from Spotsylvania or Stafford into the Industrial Park in King George. Located near the landfill and Birchwood Power Facility, the general idea is the gas line would be an additional utility that would attract more manufacturing and industrial development in the area. Minor said the "name of the game is business ready sites."

OPINION - Another CIP Season Opens

by Neil Richard

The Board of Supervisors held their first Capital Improvement Program (CIP) meeting on September 10th. The meeting started a few minutes later than planned and lasted a good two and a half hours. The Supervisors invited the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee to return and three residents did so; Mark Crnarich, Carrie Cleveland, and Gillian Woodring.

Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, gave the citizens and the Board a short overview of the CIP process and quickly reviewed the amounts available in the different accounts. There's roughly $800,000 left in the current fiscal year operating budget, a few dollars left unspent from previous capital projects, and about $2.6 million in the gas line fund. In total, there is about $3.4 million available to be spent as well as other avenues of funding available such as grants and new borrowing.

2019-04-30 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

by Neil Richard

In an extremely short, eight minute meeting, the Board of Supervisors approved the upcoming budget and tax rates. The Fiscal Year 2019/2020 budget, which was quickly reviewed by Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, did not garner any Public Comment nor any comments from the Supervisors. Having previously attended several budget work sessions already, the Supervisors also held a Public Hearing, advertised the basics of the budget, and heard a longer presentation from Dr. Young.

With the budget approved and no increases to real estate tax rates, the Supervisors then heard a report on the proposed solution for the concerns raised by the latest audit. The auditors noted that the school system did not have appropriate checks and balances in place to ensure fraud could be prevented. No fraud or embezzlement is believed to have taken place but the County still wanted to ensure it made things right by having County staff relinquish control of the Human Resources and Payroll work for the schools. In an effort to make this transition easier, the County will pay the schools $27,750 to fund a part time position through the end of Fiscal Year 2019/2020. The schools will in turn recruit and hire a part time employee to take on the work by June 1, 2019. Going forward, the schools will seek funding to pay for the position in their 2020/2021 budget cycle.

The Supervisors approved of the solution and adjourned their meeting.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)

Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on May 7, 2019 at 6:30 pm in the Board Room.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.

2019-04-23 - FY19/20 Budget Public Hearing

by Neil Richard

The King George County Board of Supervisors held a brief Public Hearing on the County's upcoming budget proposal. Carol Werle asked during the Public Comment period at the beginning of the meeting about the proposed grants for small businesses by the Economic Development Authority (EDA). Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, would later clarify for her that the grant program for small businesses was currently in the planning stages and not finalized yet. He also said that the program had many potential solutions to the high financial burdens placed on small businesses that included micro loans, grants, and other financial aid.

Regarding the County's budget for fiscal year 2019/2020, Dr. Young reiterated what he already covered in the previous regular Board meeting. When the floor was open for Public Comment on the budget, one resident asked if there were copies of the budget to be reviewed. Dr. Young said the budget was posted on the County's website as well as printed in the Free Lance-Star. As the meeting progressed, he also had staff print copies to be on hand for those in the audience. Jim Lynch, a frequent attendee and speaker, also commented on the Supervisors hard work and quoted from George Washington.

With a promise to schedule work sessions for a two-year budget proposal, Dr. Young concluded his presentation. The meeting ended shortly afterwards.

2019-04-16 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

by Neil Richard

Editor's Note: In taking a large departure from our usual format, we would like to hear from our readers what style they prefer when reading about Board meetings. This week's coverage is an example of a more simplistic and shortened version of coverage that focuses on the main points of interest. Compared to our typical, long winded and dry approach, we want to hear from you which of these formats you prefer, or if you would enjoy reading, watching, or listening to the meetings in some other way. Feel free to leave your comments here or send us an email at theprjct94@gmail.com. Thanks!

The Board of Supervisors held their meeting on the floor of the Board Room in order to accommodate the members of the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee later in the evening. Absent from the meeting but participating remotely was Supervisor Jeff Bueche. The Board amended the Agenda by removing the Tourism Advisory Committee's request for funding and moving the discussion item on the Census Complete Count to the start of the meeting.

With a few stumbles here and there, Cathy Binder led the meeting quickly through the approval of the Consent Agenda, no Public Comment, and no report from the County Attorney. Dr. Millsaps, certified pilot and small business expert, then dove into the 2020 Census presentation with his service dog, Luna, at his side. Dr. Millsaps cruised through the presentation quickly but kept his audience's attention with a mix of humor and knowledge. The bottom line of his presentation was that getting a complete and accurate count of residents in King George County was important on many levels and that by under-counting the population by just 50 people would result in a a loss of $1 million in funds. These funds are through Federal and state grants as well as normal contributions. The same theory applies to the student population in schools determining how much Federal and state funds the school system will receive. With Dr. Millsaps' presentation complete, the Board approved a proclamation that May 1, 2019 would be recognized as King George County Census Awareness Day.

Richard Granger reported that he met with Michele Wido about KGI Telecommunications and their relationship with the County. He said the engineering plans required to install their equipment was a big expense. Granger said he hoped the Small Business Development Program would help them. John Jenkins reported that there was discussion at a recent George Washington Regional Commission (GWRC) meeting about affordable housing. He cautioned that higher population density was often needed to make affordable housing work but many people in King George did not want higher density.  Both Ruby Brabo and Cathy Binder participated in the Meet in the Middle and both expressed their happiness in seeing the participants enjoy themselves. Jeff Bueche said he would save his report for a future meeting but did want to appoint Donald "DJ" Watkins to the Planning Commission to replace Doiley Fulcher. The rest of the Board approved.

The Board then held a Public Hearing on the proposed No Wake Zone off Machodoc Creek Marina. It was approved. Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, then invited the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee to the table and presented his proposed budget. Dr. Young's presentation centered on two slides. The first was a choice between tapping the Revenue Stabilization Fund or increase taxes one cent. The second was the basic highlights of what the budget included. Ruby Brabo asked why a half cent tax increase wasn't an option and Dr. Young said the antiquated accounting software was not able to do that. The Board opted to use the Revenue Stabilization Fund to cover the small budget gap.

Use the Stabilization Fund or raise taxes?

County employees, Supervisors, and teachers all get a raise this year.

Ryan Gandy, Director of Economic Development, then presented the Small Business Development Program. As the Board wasn't prepared to make a decision on the three page proposal they had just received, they tabled any decision until later. The general consensus was the program had all the right intentions of targeting small business and making it easier for them to locate in King George, but the Supervisors wanted to make sure they didn't rush to a decision.

Jonathon Weakley, Service Authority General Manager, then asked the Board of Supervisors to fund the Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) that was needed to bring several sewer pump stations into compliance with Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). The Board approved. Additionally, the Board approved funding for the new playground equipment at King George Elementary School, awarded a contract to demolish the old doctor's office next to Big Dog Outfitters, and approved funding for a fiscal impact profile study. The County will recoup the expense of the demolition through a lien and the fiscal impact study will be used to better quantify the impact any new development, commercial or residential, will have on the community.

The Board also approved sending a notice to the Schools that the County would cease providing Human Resources support on June 1st. Dr. Young said in his discussions with Dr. Robert Benson, Superintendent of schools, that the short notice would be a hardship on the schools. Dr. Young said that while he wanted to make progress on the issue by sending the notice, he also told Dr. Benson that an extension may be possible. Brabo said they should be able to handle the work as the schools have two employees in Human Resources. The Board approved sending the notice before going into a short Closed Session.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)

Absent:
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors) attended remotely

Meeting Agenda

Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on April 23, 2019 at 6:30 pm at Company 1.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.

2019-04-17 - Public Hearing on Fiscal Year 2019-2020 Budget

OPINION - A Sea Of Red For Education

by Neil Richard

The Lewis Egerton Smoot Library was in the hot seat during the last Supervisors' budget work session with County leaders looking for answers on why the library needed more than the level funding they got last year. This budget work session turned the tables on the Supervisors and put them in the hot seat with a standing room only crowd challenging their previous statements regarding school funding. With educators, paraprofessionals, volunteers, parents, and School Board members in the audience, many of them wearing "Red for Ed," the Supervisors endured an hour of public comment. About twenty people spoke, some crying from raw emotion, stating their support for funding the school's request for more money this year. Several speakers even said an increase in tax was okay with them.

Another 10 or 20 people arrived after this photo.

With so many members of the public in attendance, some arriving after the School Board meeting, and many in the hallways outside the meeting room, it was difficult to get an accurate count. My best guess is at least 70 people were there. It was also hard to keep count of how many people spoke during public comment as the simple task of making tally marks couldn't compete with the numerous compelling stories from teachers. A few highlights from the public comment session included a teacher saying they were "fed up with the lip service" and wanted the Supervisors to fund the schools. Many repeated that it was not about dollars and cents, a reference to Jeff Bueche's earlier comments from the joint meeting the Supervisors held with the School Board. Some reminded the Supervisors that the budget presented by Dr. Benson, Superintendent, was already cut and that those cuts were needs, not wants. One teacher said she requested additional positions at each school in the district because they were needed. She had data to validate her request yet the needed positions were not included in the budget that was presented to the Supervisors. One speaker summed things up by saying "as a parent and a para, please fund this."

Having caught wind of a large crowd coming to speak, a Sheriff's Deputy was present. In the last two years, even during last year's shouting match, there have never been deputies present at a budget work session to provide security. Thankfully the crowd was largely polite and professional but it showed that many had not attended a public meeting like this before.  With public comment winding down, Jeff Bueche said that the Supervisors had planned to fund both the teacher raises and the requested Special Education positions.

Each Supervisor then commented, starting with Ruby Brabo saying her intent was not to discredit Dr. Benson during his presentation. Cathy Binder commented that she had been in the rooms of many of those that spoke, taught kids from others that spoke, and had done the work of many of them in the room. Richard Granger reminded everyone that the Board of Supervisors has the authority to fund the schools, but does not have the authority to govern how those funds are spent. John Jenkins said his line of questions during Dr. Benson's presentation wasn't intended to be rude but to rather find out the cost of the Special Education positions because he wanted to make sure they were funded. Jeff Bueche encouraged everyone to stay for the rest of the meeting and to attend future meetings to stay involved in the process. None of the Supervisors mentioned that all other County employees received salary raises over the past two years. Although it was included in the handouts during the meeting, it wasn't mentioned by anyone that the Supervisors would also receive a pay raise, going from $10,000 per year to $15,000 per year. School Board members also requested a raise this year in an effort to go from their current base pay $3,000 per year up to $5,000 per year.

After nearly 90 minutes, and a short recess, the Supervisors got back to their Agenda and heard from Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator. Dr. Young said his revenue projections for next year showed the County's predicted income at $85,242,365. When compared to the County's projected expenses of $85,833,237, this left a gap of $590,872 to cover. Dr. Young gave the Board three options; raise taxes three cents, use the Revenue Stabilization Fund, or reduce the local contribution amount to the schools. Even though a one cent real estate tax increase (per $100 of assessed value) equates to roughly $270,000, the need to raise it to three cents would be cover the full amount and note leave the County short. It was also noted that due to the landfill revenue funding capital projects, the tax rate is artificially 27 cents lower. In addition to that, the County has already leveraged roughly 20 years of landfill revenue out of the remaining 26 years of life. Historically, the real estate tax rate ranged between 72 cents and 77 cents from 1996, roughly when the landfill opened, to 2005, shortly before the housing market crashed. Since 2009, when the tax rate was 50 cents, the rates have seen two spikes; 2014 saw a six cent increase and 2016 saw a seven cent raise.

There was some discussion during the budget summary about raising tax rates versus giving teachers raises. When discussion turned to the need for the schools to separate their Human Resources and Finance Officers from the County, Brabo said that previous Supervisors had forced the school to combine with the County. She suggested writing a letter to Dr. Benson to explain that the County would no longer offer these services to the schools and be penalized on their compliance audit and thus, the schools would need to hire the staff needed to complete the work. Several Supervisors said, at this point in the meeting and earlier in the evening, that the County gives the schools money but it's up to the schools to decide how to spend it. While that may be true, it puts the burden on the School Board for deciding between a pay raise for teachers and funding mandated Special Education positions.

In looking at previous meetings and presentations, it was interesting to find that some Supervisors weren't very supportive last year to fund the schools either. The School Resource Officers (SROs) was a big point of contention during at least two different meetings, even though the schools didn't specifically request them and the funding comes out of the Sheriff's budget, not the school budget. Additionally, the schools had a year-over-year reduction in projected expenditures of about $28,000 and they asked for an incredibly small increase in local funding last year of only $303,728.

At the end of the evening, there were a few topics on the Agenda that were pushed to the next Board meeting. The Personal Property Tax Relief Act funding was cut to 30%. But the key point on the Board fully funding the school funding request was left unanswered. A few Supervisors wanted a few more details to be answered before making a final decision.

OPINION - Smoot Libary and Predicted Travel Expenses

by Neil Richard

The Board of Supervisors convened yet another budget work session on March 14, 2019. With the School Board backing out of the meeting earlier in the week to revisit their request for additional funding, the meeting refocused on the Smoot Library needs and the Supervisors' predicted travel expenses.

Once again, the tension between some Supervisors and the Smoot Library arose during the meeting. While Mrs. Carol Sparbel and Mrs. Dixie Lee Washington were representing the Smoot Library Board of Trustees, what wasn't seen by many present was their incredible history with King George County. Mrs. Sparbel has spent decades of her life here in King George giving back to the community, including the Smoot Library. Mrs. Washington has also served the community over the years but she never mentioned that it was her father that built the original library. I think those credentials may have added some weight to their plea for more funding for the library.

Thankfully, Sparbel and Washington presented enough evidence to prove that funding was needed for an Adult Services Librarian at the library. They said the position was created in 2014 but due to the Supervisors level funding the library they have had to leave that position unfilled. In an attempt to fill the gap of the necessary position, three part time workers were hired. When Jeff Bueche asked if Robin Tenney was able to attend the meeting, the Trustees said she was busy hosting a library function. A function that the Adult Services Librarian could have taken charge of had there been funding to hire one.

John Jenkins asked about the security and safety issue that was raised but I felt the intent of the question was lost in the muddle. Having served as a Trustee in the past, I wanted to butt in and answer that without more money to hire more people, the library would have to reduce hours. Staffing the building with one person just isn't safe.

One frightening tidbit of information that arose was that the library is dependent upon multiple sources of revenue. If the County reduces how much it spends on the library, or level funds it again this year, the state will also reduce the amount of aid it gives to Smoot. State aid accounts for roughly 18% of the library's revenue so it would have a big impact.

Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, used some drink containers to explain the question of level funding and staff raises. He said that by level funding the library last year, there was an unintended consequence. Young said that because raises were put into place for the employees, the overall pot of money the library had to spend was actually reduced. Ruby Brabo said they were never made aware of those consequences last year when they decided to level fund their budget.

Jeff Bueche asked if the library had taken on any fund raising efforts since last year. Sparbel said they had and have always done fundraising through various events. Sparbel said that a common point of misunderstanding was that some Supervisors believed the Trustees were specifically charged with fundraising for the library to the point of it being self-sufficient. She said the Trustees had scoured their documents and policies but had not found anything that said that. She asked that if any of the Supervisors could prove that and show it to them, the Trustees would be happy to take that direction from the Supervisors and proceed forward.

In having done research on the issue of merging with Central Rappahannock Regional Library (CRRL) last year, I knew I had accumulated several references and massive amounts of data on the Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. One of those resources was the original County Ordinance from October 1973 that states nothing about the Trustees being required to raise funds for the library. Additionally, the current County Code regarding the library says much the same thing. I am sure it could be argued by an attorney in either direction, but the fact that the County Code states the "trustees may receive assistance in operating the library from the state library system." It further states "All funds to be used by the trustees shall be appropriated by the board of supervisors prior to expenditure." As I see it, this means the Smoot Trustees need the Supervisors and the County for funding.

After more discussion, Sparbel said the Trustees were more than willing to continue to work providing services to the citizens of the County. The Supervisors gave their general consensus to fund the position for the library.

The Supervisors then reviewed the expenditures by category, and called attention to only a few departments that had large increases caused by vehicle or personnel requests. With the librarian position added in, and an unexpected increase in health insurance costs, the proposed increase in expenses was just over $839,000. Dr. Young cautioned that this did not include the School budget. When some of the Supervisors got a little anxious about the increase, Dr. Young assured them that the revenue side, which would be presented at a later work session, looked promising enough to have another year of a low or no tax increase.

With their minds at ease, the Supervisors then presented each of their own proposed travel expenses for the coming budget year. Below are their predicted travel expenses:

• Cathy Binder - $3,550
• Ruby Brabo - $11,775
• Jeff Bueche - $2,750
• Richard Granger - $1,800
• John Jenkins  - $2,750
• Miscellaneous - $2,000

This totaled to $24,625 so they agreed to make the maximum an even $25,000. Brabo did note that the Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) and the National Association of Counties (NACo) would reimburse King George for some of her travel. She also said that she had been asked by both groups to run for office again and asked her peers for their approval to do so. The Supervisors approved. In closing, John Jenkins asked that the Travel Policy and additional information be added to the County's website. While the policy is present, none of the exact figures have appeared yet.

Ruby Brabo's Projected Travel Spending.

Jeff Bueche's Projected Travel Spending (he would later add $250 for a registration fee he forgot about).

Richard Granger's Projected Travel Spending (he would forget to add the same $250 fee as Bueche).

John Jenkins' Projected Travel Spending.

Cathy Binder's Projected Travel Spending.

OPINION - Credit Ratings and Travel Policies

by Neil Richard

In a gloriously short budget work session, the Board of Supervisors heard from Davenport & Company, discussed the landfill's impact, and adopted a new Travel Policy.

Beginning with the presentation from Davenport & Company, Kyle Laux and Griffin Moore presented to the Supervisors and the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee members where the County stood financially. As with previous presentations from Davenport, the County's financial advisor, the news was positive. From 2004 to present, the County has "received five separate upgrades" to their credit rating and currently stand one step below the highest possible rating. This high rating was reaffirmed in 2017 from all three credit agencies, Moody's Standard & Poor's, and Fitch. While each agency gave high marks for a strong budget, good financial policies, and liquidity, they all noted the County's debt and the need for a more diverse tax base or economy.

During the presentation, Laux explained one of the charts that showed the relatively low real estate tax rate of 70 cents per $100 of assessed value. In comparison, the median for the state is above 80 cents and many Northern Virginia and Richmond area counties are over one dollar. Jeff Bueche asked how the landfill revenue factored into this lower tax rate and Ruby Brabo said it made the rate 28 cents lower. Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, pulled up the exact number on his computer and said it was 27.7 cents. The general idea, and concern, behind the question was that the landfill has a finite life and that tax rates may rise drastically in coming decades, especially if the tax base doesn't become more diverse.

Moving back towards the positive side of the presentation, Laux touched on the County's debt. Although $74.3 million in debt principle and $28.1 million in debt interest is not positive, the County's plan to mitigate or reduce the debt early reflected in a savings over time of about $5 million. There was also some discussion of what the County's debt would look like if it included the Service Authority debt although there are no plans by the County to absorb that debt.

The last item on the Agenda was a discussion of the new Travel Policy. It was a short discussion. Jeff Bueche said that, as the Chairman, he took the blame for the last budget work session getting out of hand. He said he spoke to each of his peers individually about the updated policy and asked them to submit edits and comments to Dr. Young to draft the amendment. With that, the Board then voted to approve the amended policy.

The following text was added to the existing Travel Policy:

10. Board of Supervisors

a) Official travel subject to County funding by any member of the Board of Supervisors must be submitted via a spend plan to be approved by a majority of the Board of Supervisors prior to the adoption of the operational budget. Each Supervisor will provide their spend plan to the Board for consideration, to include location, duration, purpose, benefit to the County and an estimated cost for each expected travel occurrence. The spend plans will be discussed for adoption or denial during a budget work session or regular meeting of the Board of Supervisors. This process is to provide full transparency to the public on Supervisor travels for engagement with our local, regional, and national partners.

b) A Supervisor travel budget spending cap must be adopted by the BoS for each fiscal year. Should the cap be exhausted, any future travel subject to County funds must be previously approved by a majority of the Board of Supervisors during a regular meeting of the Board. Justification of said travel shall be provided to the Board in a public forum for full transparency to the public. In the event travel is not pre-approved by the Board of Supervisors, said travel, if conducted, is not subject to reimbursement.

c) The Board of Supervisors will also appoint an elected official to serve as a liaison to the Virginia Association of Counties (VACO) and the National Association of Counties (NACO). This position will require additional travel outside the region and additional costs incurred. While the associated travel with this role may be significantly higher than the travel plans of other Supervisors, the liaison’s travel will remain subject to the spend plan and process as outlined above.

Once the Board approved the additional language, they then voted to appoint Ruby Brabo as the Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) and National Association of Counties (NACo) liaison.

There was a little discussion about the school's pending budget proposal and Bueche suggested that each Supervisor reach out to their respective School Board peer prior to the meeting to discuss the school's budget. The Supervisors intend to hear school's proposal at their next budget work session on March 14th.

2019-02-19 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

by Neil Richard

The Board of Supervisors started their meeting at 7:44pm.

There were no amendments to the Agenda.

Public Comment opened with Renee Parker voicing her thanks and a reminder. She said she has watched meetings of late and the actions of the Board appeared to be antagonistic at times. She said their duties may result in stress but the bond they shared in their first year working together, and the respect they had for each other, was obvious. Parker said each member brings their own strengths and that in the past they reached out to others for help and that set a wonderful example for the young in the community. She thanked the Board for their hard work and reminded them that they have achieved a lot. She said people probably aren't beating down the door to thank them. Parker closed by urging the Board to keep the competitiveness out of their meetings.

Next to speak was Vera Means who wanted to voice her deep concern over the proposed gun range at the former Cameron Hills Golf Course, specifically citing that the application appeared to be a work around for the developers by making it a campground. She then went on to note specific issues with the application, as well as the interviews in a recent newspaper article, including a lack of a signature block, discrepancies in the number of ranges desired, and the confusion of the associated uses. She said an application like this would open the door to allow campgrounds to be developed on farm land and then gun ranges allowed as part of those campgrounds. Means also cited issues where the developer noted that neighboring properties already have a high usage of firearms and said she would like to see that evidence because she doesn't hear it. She also asked to see the evidence that the developer talked to neighboring property owners because they never talked to her.

Jeff Bueche reminded Mrs. Means during a pause that she had exceeded her allotted three minutes. Means apologized and wrapped up her statements saying she also had concerns about the developers claim that they could recycle lead, would perform sound testing, and promote small business. She said this was not an issue of gun rights but rather an issue of wants versus needs.

Next to speak was Kim Dodge. She said that on Thursday she left King George and saw a Sheriff's unit at Port Conway and Route 3 and noted that the traffic on Route 3, Kings Highway, has increased massively. Dodge said that many people complain that they have to stop at the stoplight at Hopyard, Port Conway Road and Kings Highway, but she's thankful for it. She said she noticed the recent installation of the blinking yellow turn signal and felt it was a danger as she was almost hit at the intersection. She warned the Board that Hopyard wasn't even half full yet and that traffic is continuing to get worse in the neighborhood with people speeding and not stopping at stop signs. Dodge said she would like the flashing yellow turn signal to be removed and said they were dangerous.

Linda Petersen then spoke about her opposition to the proposed gun range near her. She thanked the Board for their service, time, and energy. She said they have to take into consideration a lot of issues and it takes them away from their families. Petersen said she grew up in a small town in rural Iowa with a lot of hogs and farms. She said when she first drove into King George, she was reminded of her home town with all of the farmland on both sides of Route 3. She said the rural quality is what makes King George special. As Board members, Peterson said they have seen the growth, the financial responsibilities, and specific concerns of residents. She said when considering the special exception permit for the gun range, she felt it had a new name but was the same business. She said as with any business venture, the most profitable will likely be built first, meaning the gun range. Petersen closed by saying the new application was like a father telling a kid no and then the kid going to their mother to see if they can get what they want.

Billy Clift was the last to speak during Public Comment. He said he has spoken many times before the Board and didn't want to take up too much of their time tonight. Clift said when he saw the application that had campground on it, it felt like a poor attempt to slide one in on the County, maybe even a bold attempt. Clift said there were vague comments and inconsistencies in the application and that residents still don't know what the plan is other than they know it's a gun range.

John Jenkins began his report by thanking everyone for coming out to speak. He said he always appreciates them. Regarding the campground and shooting range, he said the Board would cross that bridge when it came to it. As for the application, Jenkins said the associated uses seem vague and it might be best to forward those concerns to the Community Planning Department. Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, said that Community Development is tracking the concerns and that detailed discussions are taking place.

Jenkins continued that the stoplight at Hopyard was in Granger's district so he wouldn't comment too much on the issue but said Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) would be the one to talk to about the issue. Continuing, Jenkins attended the budget work session on the 13th. He said on the 17th, the King George High School Wrestling Team had the highest placement in the State Tournament in school history taking 8th place. Murrill took 6th place, Murgas took 4th place, and Indseth took 1st place. Jenkins said that Indseth was only the second State Champion in wresting from King George and that it was pretty amazing. Jenkins said they did better than he did but he's not bitter or jealous. He added that sadly, he was informed of the passing of Brian Albertson. Jenkins said he either wrestled or coached somebody in the Albertson family and that Brian had a positive influence on the community. Jenkins said that in talking to the family, they have asked that, in lieu of flowers, for donations to be made to a memorial fund set up by Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, and Chris Clarke, Director of Parks and Recreation. Jenkins said donations can be mailed to the Parks and Recreation Department at PO Box 71, King George, VA and to include Brian Albertson Memorial on the memo line.

Richard Granger opened his report by thanking Mrs. Parker for her comments on civility. He said that things can get heated but thanked her for her comments. Regarding the proposed gun range, Granger said that he apologized for his comments at earlier meetings that the project would require a special exception. He said he had no malicious intent and no intent to mislead anyone. He said the project would need a special exception permit to be approved by the Planning Commission. Regarding the traffic light, he said he would reach out to VDOT. Granger continued by saying he also attended the budget meeting on the 13th. He then clarified that at the last meeting there was a briefing by Ryan Gandy, Director of Economic Development, about the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA). He said there was a misunderstanding in reading the information presented and that the budget amounts listed were set by the localities, not the FRA. In other words, Granger said, the return on investment wasn't quite the same as they originally thought.

Cathy Binder was next to report. She also thanked everyone for their comments and appreciated Mrs. Parker's comments on civility. She said Parker is usually right on when looking at everything. Regarding the gun range, Binder said she understands everyone's feelings. To Dodge, Binder said she was also amazed at how much traffic has increased. Binder continued, saying she was at the Service Authority budget meeting on the 11th and the County budget meeting on the 13th. She said it was wonderful to hear about the good work and education that the Social Services Department contributes to the community. Binder also thanked the Finance staff and other employees for helping the Supervisors make better decisions. Binder said she regretfully had to inform the Board that Nancy Haenlein was resigning from the L. E. Smoot Library Board of Trustees but wanted to nominate Joseph Gaborow to take her place. The Board approved.

Ruby Brabo was next with her report, noting that on the 7th she met with the President of Atlantic Builders, Chip Taylor, and others to discuss affordable housing. On the 8th she met with the Pitts family to discuss Medicaid Waivers. On the 12th, Brabo met with the Annie Cupka, Economic Development Specialist, and Dr. Young at the Total Machine business in the Industrial Park. Brabo said that between King George and Richmond there are 15 shops like this that could hire about ten people right away to work Computer Numeric Control (CNC) machines. She said that Rappahannock Community College (RCC) is already working to train students in this field. Brabo attended the budget meeting on the 13th and participated in a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference call on the 14th. She joined the Friends of Caledon on the 18th to tour the Lake Caledon area to learn more about the property and potential fundraising efforts to aid in Caledon State Park annexing the site. To Mrs. Dodge, Brabo thanked her for the information on the blinking yellow light. Brabo said the Board has no say over that but will allow Granger to look into since he's already doing so. Regarding the proposed gun range, Brabo said she appreciated the diligence of Mrs. Means in looking at the application and noting the discrepancies. Brabo said it was unfortunate that she had to do all of that documentation but complimented her for her dedication. She said that for everyone else that comes to speak before the Board, their feedback is important but many people don't realize it. Brabo said that citizens notice things they are passionate about. She said she herself had raised a concern over the campground area and how much acreage was going to be used for camping compared to the gun range and it didn't measure up. She then moved to appoint Daniel Hughes to the Landfill Advisory Committee and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. The Board approved. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Neil Richard, co-founder of Project94, is also a member of the Landfill Advisory Committee.]

Jeff Bueche was next to give a report. He started by thanking everyone for speaking and taking time away from their evening to do so. He told Mrs. Parker that her words didn't fall on deaf ears. Regarding the gun range, Bueche said people often wait too long to comment and appreciated them for coming out early in the process. To Mrs. Dodge, he thanked her for her comments and had faith that Granger was on top of it. On the 11th, Bueche said he attended the joint meeting with the Chamber of Commerce, the King George Builders Association, and the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Advisory Board. He said the presentation about the apprenticeship program was enlightening and could be beneficial to various stakeholders in the community. He recommended any business that needed a skilled workforce to look into the program at www.doli.virginia.gov or to reach out to the King George County School system.

Bueche continued, saying he attended the Social Services meeting on the 12th, the budget work session on the 13th, and enjoyed a great breakfast at the high school on the 18th to benefit the Student Lunch Fund. Bueche said he will be hosting a Round Table Discussion at Caledon State Park on March 22nd at 6pm. Expected to attend are Mike Bennett from the Service Authority Board of Directors and T. C. Collins from the School Board. Bueche then moved to appoint Shellie Renz to the Smoot Library Board of Trustees. The Board approved. Bueche also asked that if anyone was willing to serve on the Planning Commission, to please email him at Monroe@co.kinggeorge.state.va.us.

The Consent Agenda was approved.

The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.

Next on the Agenda was a request from the Department of Community Development to accept Willow Hill Road into the VDOT Secondary Road system. The Board approved.

Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, then asked for the Board to approve the updated Credit Card Policy. Brabo asked for some clarity around the purchase of gift cards. Ward said that generally only Parks and Recreation and the Sheriff's Department use the County credit card to purchase gift cards. The Board approved the updated policy.

Ward stayed at the podium and asked for the FY19 Budget to be amended to appropriate the Rescue Squad Assistance Fund (RASF) grant for the Emergency Services Department. The Board approved.

There was then some discussion about removing the preliminary plat review process from the Supervisors. Dr. Young said that the Board had already removed the final plat reviews from their work load and was seeking guidance on if the preliminary plat review should also be removed. Early consensus seemed to be that the Board was okay with that but after some discussion the Board decided they would like to keep the process in place. Bueche noted that he didn't want to impede on property rights but summed up the concern of others and himself by saying that he preferred to have the preliminary plats come before the Supervisors even though they can't necessary deny a by-right use. He said he would rather know about a project coming in than be kept in the dark. Brabo agreed and added that the Oakwood Estates development was a prime example where the Planning Commission approved the development but that the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) said septic systems needed at least an acre. She said past Supervisors chose to ignore that and felt that a second set of eyes was beneficial.

Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, had a short report, noting that he would like the Board to consider reappointing Robb Harling to the Economic Development Authority. The Board approved. Young also said that Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) would be hosting a public meeting on March 14th in the Board Room regarding the CROPS, Inc. permit request. Young said he also had a last minute addition to his report with the request from Section Three of Potomac Landing to include their newly completed roads in the VDOT system. Young said they wanted to add Section Three to the golf cart community and that VDOT would need an application for the land use on behalf of the Homeowner's Association. Brabo asked if this would cost any money aside from staff time. Young said no, the application fees are waived. The Board gave consensus to proceed.

The Supervisors then went into Closed Session at 8:44pm and invited Annie Cupka, Ryan Gandy, Dr. Young, and Eric Gregory to attend. Cupka left the meeting at 9:03pm and Gandy left at 9:12pm. The Board returned from Closed Session at 9:38pm.

The meeting adjourned at 9:38pm.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)

Meeting Agenda

Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on February 26, 2019 at 6:30 pm at Company 1.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.

OPINION - Putting Details, Magic, and Drama Into A Budget Session

by Neil Richard

Having just left the second Open House hosted by the Planning Commission, which was more heavily attended than the first one, I once again entered the realm of the budget work sessions held by the King George County Board of Supervisors. I noticed three main topics rise to the surface in this meeting. I'll try to cover each.

Details

Dr. Neiman Young began the meeting by asking the Supervisors for information on how they wanted to proceed with two items. The first was the cost allocation for the Service Authority. He said in past years it was about $60,000 and this year it was dropped further but he felt it would be better suited to drop it even more to $1,000. Based on this meeting, the previous Service Authority Budget Work Session, and prior year discussions, the Service Authority was a wholly independent entity. However, because the Service Authority and the County shared many services, it was felt that there needed to be a line item to charge the Service Authority a fee for the services the County provided. Dr. Young noted that in the past, this amount was never paid by the Service Authority and caused some accounting issues. Ruby Brabo clarified that the Service Authority never paid because the Board of Supervisors voted to not bill them for it. The Supervisors agreed with Dr. Young to drop the amount to $1,000 to serve as a smaller placeholder in the books.

Next, Dr. Young asked for guidance on the Smoot Library's request for additional funding to staff their Adult Services Librarian position. Young said this was an existing position, not a new one, and that the Library opted to remove funding for the job because it was level funded last year. Both Brabo and Bueche asked if the Library had done any fundraisers to help increase their revenue as the Supervisors had asked them last year. Cathy Binder, who is also a member of the L. E. Smoot Memorial Library Board of Trustees, said the Library has events planned for this spring and summer. Bueche said he was disappointed that they hadn't followed through with the fundraising and Brabo suggested that maybe it would serve the County better to join the Central Rappahannock Regional Library (CRRL) system to save $200,000 a year. Being painfully familiar with the proposal of CRRL taking over the Smoot Library, I knew this savings only looked true on paper. King George County contributed $384,858 to the Smoot Library in 2017 according to the library's 2017 Annual Report. This is very close to the drafted proposal from CRRL last year of an annual fee of $374,490. As I learned last year, joining CRRL isn't as beneficial as it may seem. In looking strictly at the potential savings to the budget, it would be just over $10,000, not $200,000.

Jane Yuan, Executive Director of the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board (RACSB), gave a presentation to the Supervisors and the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee. She detailed the services offered to residents, both those in need and those in the community. Of note was the REVIVE! Training they offered (which I wrote about here) and that they treated 1,628 King George County residents in need. Yuan did caution the Supervisors that due to law changes, there would be expected shortfalls in their budget of about $200,000 next year and potentially $600,000 the following year.

Dave Coman, Director of Social Services, also gave some further details on his use of the Thurman Brisben Homeless Shelter. By referring single individuals there, Coman said he saves the County money. He said the Thurman Brisben Shelter can house a person for 90 days as well as feed them and offer them access to public transit at no cost. Otherwise he would have to pay $250 to $300 per week for just a hotel room. Because of his financial responsibility and tenacity, the Supervisors agreed to fully fund the request from Thurman Brisben.

Ryan Gandy, Director of Economic Development, gave a shortened version of his previous presentation on the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA). While there were no new details, it was explained that the budget amounts cited in the original presentation were not clarified enough. As we previously reported, each locality contributes one dollar ($1) per capita. However, the spending budget cited was not the budget of the FRA but rather the budget of the locality. Therefore, our previous return on investment calculations were flawed. Instead, the spending budget for each locality is simply a representation of what each locality is willing to spend on economic development. To put it simply, Fredericksburg spends $971,249 while King George spends $164,081. With this clarity in mind, the Supervisors felt a need to look at the overall percentage of the Economic Development budget compared to the entire County budget when doing future comparison. They felt this would be a better measure of efficiency. During the conversation about bringing businesses to King George County, it was noted that some parcels in the Industrial Park do not have three phase power or broadband internet, both of which are frequently necessary for a manufacturer to do business.

Magic

Dave Coman stayed at the table to then go over his budget in the Department of Social Services (DSS). Much like the school budget, there is money from Federal, State, and local agencies involved, making things complex. To help simplify things, Coman said for every $100 he spends, he gets roughly $85 back from the state. Because of his good working relationship with Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, he's able to get those reimbursement payments processed quickly and easily.

Additionally, Coman said that his DSS team is the only one to partner with the Commonwealth Attorney to use those requiring community service hours as their judicial payment to society. Coman said these individuals are used to make repairs to the elderly residents in the County that are in need. He was careful to note that these were repairs and not improvements. He also said this process, and many others that he has used over his lengthy tenure, have earned our DSS team many awards.

Jeff Bueche said that he was appointed to the Social Services Board last year and fully expected to dig into their budget to root out waste and excess. He said that instead he found a group of hard working people that are very frugal with their money. Although I am not personally familiar with Coman or Social Services, it was very clear that his employees worked hard for very little money because it was the right thing to do. Brabo questioned if they were part of the compensation study done by the County and Wilma Ward and Dr. Young said they were not because they were not technically County employees.

Drama

The meeting ended with a bit of drama. The Supervisors began to review their own department, line by line, and when they got to the topic of giving themselves a raise, Richard Granger said he was okay with taking the raise but if future meetings showed a need to raise tax rates, he felt any raise for the Supervisors should be the first thing to go. The rest of the Supervisors seemed to agree. When they got to the line item for travel expenses, the drama began. Recent social media posts drew attention to Ruby Brabo's travel expenses and when Granger noted overspending in the past and suggested a new method of giving each Supervisor their own travel allowance in addition to another central pot of money, Brabo seemed to take offense. She reminded her peers that they supported her running for office in the National Association of Counties (NACo) two years ago and that she told them then that it would require additional costs.

When Brabo said no reports are given to Supervisors on their travel expenses and that no staff had told her in the past three years that she had overspent, Granger agreed and said that was a great reason for a new policy on how Supervisors handle their travel expenses. He said that because there has been overspending, it needs to be addressed and that a new policy seemed like the best option. According to materials handed out during the meeting, the travel expense budget was exceeded in FY16, FY17, and FY18. FY18 was the worst year with a budget of $7,500 and actual expenses of $18,924.90. No clarity was given on how much of that was reimbursed to the County from other entities such as NACo.

Granger continued with his reasoning behind a new policy by stating that any other department isn't allowed to just "blow past" their budgeted amounts and that it wasn't right that the Supervisors aren't held accountable. Brabo began to say that her involvement in various committees and boards has been a good return on investment when John Jenkins interrupted and said it felt like this was turning into more personal attacks on either a specific Supervisor for their travel or for their ideas. Cutting to the quick, Jenkins cited the recent questions raised on social media about Supervisor travel and said that transparency seemed to be the key to addressing both Brabo's and Granger's concerns and ideas. Jenkins said that he looked at the Essex County policy and liked the idea that they publish their information on their website. Jenkins said he was comfortable with each Supervisor coming to the table with their expected travel needs and was fine if each Supervisor had different amounts.

Jenkins then questioned existing policy by saying it would put Dr. Young in an uncomfortable position if he had to tell his boss, the Board of Supervisors, that they were over budget. Cathy Binder agreed that it would put staff in an awkward position. Jenkins said they also need to keep future Boards in mind. Jeff Bueche suggested that everyone should come with a spending plan that shows a forecast for expected travel and then the Supervisors can vote on it at the beginning of the year. Bueche said that if anything unexpected comes up, it can be addressed during the year by the Board but that the plan up front would be transparent. He also said it would put the burden of following the budget on the Supervisor to ensure they don't overspend.

Brabo did ask the citizens present if they had an opinion on the topic. One citizen noted that she was fine with the travel as long as it benefited King George County. Any travel that was to further an individual's political aspirations beyond their current role wasn't right. Bueche further explained that by putting a plan out there for the public would help Supervisors be held accountable to their constituents. Brabo again reminded everyone that the expenses shown don't factor in the revenue received from reimbursement. She said her expenses for the annual NACo conference in July were covered by NACo. Granger again said that because of overspending, he felt a need to create a fiscally responsible policy for travel expenses. Binder asked where money came from to cover any overspending and Brabo and Dr. Young said it came from savings in other departments.

Brabo again said that no staff member had come to her and told her she overspent. Binder said it didn't seem like a fair argument that an employee would go to their boss to say something like that. Bueche again said it puts Dr. Young in an awkward position.

Brabo made one final parting comment before the meeting ended, saying that none of her peers on the Board had the courtesy or respect to bring the social media posts on her travel to her attention. Jenkins said that was a fair point but that during the conversation this evening, he never mentioned anyone by name. Brabo said she hasn't had that kind of disrespect in four years.

2019-02-05 - Service Authority Meeting Notes

by Neil Richard

The Service Authority Board of Directors opened their February 5th meeting at 6:30pm.

There were no amendments to the Agenda.

Yvonne Richard was the only one to speak during Public Comment. She began by saying thank you to everyone for serving on the Board. Her suggestion was to give customers more than twenty minutes notice when performing maintenance on water lines. She said some people may be negatively impacted if they set a dishwasher to run during the day and service is interrupted [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the spouse of Yvonne Richard.].

Chris Werle began his Board Report by saying he had reviewed and made comments on the draft feasibility study that was being created on the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner and Oakland Park Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs). He said his comments were mostly focused on the upgrades, the costs, and the new ammonia regulations coming in the future. He said the County Engineer, Travis Quesenberry, also gave his comments as well. He reminded the Board that at a previous meeting, they said an update from Draper Aden would be done at an upcoming budget work session but he felt a meeting was necessary before that to wade through the technical comments first. Werle said Jonathan Weakley, General Manager, would schedule that meeting soon. On January 25th, Werle said he met with Weakley to discuss the upcoming budget work sessions.

Richard Granger apologized in his Board Report that he still had not found anyone to serve as his representative on the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee. Granger said Mrs. Richard, who was still in the audience, volunteered even though she did not live in his district. With that, the Board approved Mrs. Richard to serve on the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee for the Service Authority.

Cathy Binder had no Board Report.

Ruby Brabo's Board Report began with an update from a meeting she held on January 29th with Cliff Parker from AQUA. She said he presented some interesting charts and data on the average water and sewer rates across Virginia that may help when the Board looks at rates in the future. Brabo said that, with apologies to Werle and Mike Bennett, Chairman, that going forward Binder, Vice-Chair, should be in as many meetings as possible as this was her training year. Brabo said she understood Werle's role on the Board but felt Binder should be included whenever practically possible.

Bennett said he had a brief discussion before the meeting about that and said they would do everything possible to keep Binder in mind and trained for her to assume the role of Chair next year. Bennett said the Draper Aden report had a fair amount of engineering content so Werle and the County Engineer would understand it better.

Werle said that Binder should be at that meeting but Brabo said that three Board members can't be present as that would constitute a meeting. Brabo said she was just looking to include Binder in meetings when feasible. Bennett said they definitely wanted to get Binder up to speed.

Mike Bennett began his Board Report by thanking Werle for his two years serving as Chairman. He said there was obviously a rocky period of time in the past but thanked him for the incredible amount of time he put into the organization. Bennett said the only person that probably understands how much time Werle has put into this is Mrs. Werle. Bennett again thanked him and said he looked forward to working with Werle in the coming years.

Bennett continued his report by saying he met with Weakley about a variety of issues including staffing, Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) compliance, pump stations, and more. Bennett said he is aware of how a lengthy Service Authority meeting impacts his fellow Board members that serve on the Board of Supervisors as well as those members in the audience waiting for that meeting. Bennett said that he still wants to remain transparent and get the job done but felt that if some things could be accomplished in budget work sessions, they should try to do that. He cautioned that he didn't want to do anything inappropriate but there were certain discussions that were directly tied to the budget that could be handled. His big example was the feasibility of decommissioning the Purkins Corner and Oakland Park WWTP as well as pump stations. He said both issues are complicated and very expensive but he felt it could help save time in future meetings by discussing them in work sessions. The rest of the Board seemed to agree.

Bennett concluded his report by thanking everyone that volunteered for the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee and that Weakley needed their contact info to ensure they were available on the scheduled dates and to be able to share material before the meeting.

The Consent Agenda was approved.

The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.

Jonathon Weakley, General Manager, then began his report by thanking Mrs. Richard for volunteering to serve as well. He also said the KGALERT system was something they're becoming accustomed to and that more advanced notice is certainly best. He gave the recent example of the Walnut Hill connection that went out the night before scheduled work was to begin.

Weakley continued with an update on the water system. He had a meeting with the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) on January 24th, repairs were made at the Arnold's Corner well house, and switches were replaced in Cleydael. He also added that in making their repairs in Cleydael, they tested the Peppermill well to ensure it could maintain pressure in the system. Weakley also said required survey letters were submitted to VDH and that the Walnut Hill water tie-in between St. Paul's/Owens and Dahlgren would be made February 6th.

Deviating from his written report, Weakley said they have scheduled meetings with administration and maintenance at King George High School to investigate reports of intermittent discoloration in the water. He said this was also an ideal time to build rapport with all interested parties as well as ensure there is a owner/agent document in place so all parties know their responsibilities.

Weakley then began to give an update on the sewer system. He said that Fairview Beach and Dahlgren WWTPs have nutrient requirements for the permit as well as the Water Quality Improvement Fund (WQIF) grant each facility received. He said that while Fairview Beach WWTP has the same requirements in both the permit and the grant, Dahlgren has a stricter requirement for the grant than the permit. Weakley said the Total Nitrogen (TN) was limited to 4 mg/l by permit but the WQIF grant required 3 mg/l. He said within the grant language, if limits are exceeded, DEQ can assess a fee but he isn't sure what that fee amount would be.

For historical context, DEQ issued a letter in March 2018 stating that the Dahlgren WWTP exceeded allowed limits for Total Phosphorus (TP). The limit in the grant was 0.30 mg/l and the annual average was 0.44 mg/l. DEQ assessed a rate of $8,500 per 0.1 mg/l overage for a total fee of $11,900. That same month, Fairview Beach WWTP has a similar fee assessed for $3,976.

Bennett asked if he had any thoughts about which took a priority, the grant or the permit. Eric Gregory, County Attorney, said the permit is the legal authority while the grant will only govern funds for a project. Bennett wondered if there was a way to make the limits the same and asked Weakley if he had seen this before. Weakley said he hasn't really seen this much before. Gregory added that often the grant is to fund equipment upgrades to get a certain level or reading above the permit and when it falls below, then the funds could be impacted. Gregory said that has happened before. Werle added the regulations and guidelines say they can collect funds. Weakley said he was happy to see if there's any wiggle room or if they can get them to match. Gregory agreed that it was certainly worth a try.

Weakley continued his report stating new operating procedures and manuals were being completed, a sampler was installed at Purkins Corner WWTP, and an algae evaluation was being completed. He also said pump stations were continuing to be an issue noting that there were two sanitary sewer overflows recently. He said both were reported as required to DEQ but the pump failures and lack of redundancy were an issue. Weakley said he didn't like coming to the Board with reports like this but he was being honest and transparent. He did give more positive news with revenue coming in with connections in Hopyard. Werle added that Ryan Homes built 41 homes last year and were on track to build more than that this year. Werle also said that Hazel Homes is working on the infrastructure in the final three sections for the remaining 450 homes. Weakley said it helps the bottom line.

Weakley also thanked Dr. Young, County Administrator, and Travis Quesenberry for their help with the decommissioning proposal and the utility plan submission. Weakley said two tampering fee letters were sent, hiring wastewater operations staff is ongoing, and meetings on the feasibility study for decommissioning are planned. The meeting for the feasibility study was discussed at length to determine who could and who should attend the meeting. With only two Board of Director members being allowed to attend, the timing of the meeting, and the technical knowledge needed, the Board agreed that Werle would attend the first meeting and that Binder would attend meetings after that. Also invited were Dr. Young and Travis Quesenberry.

Weakley also said that a billing issue related to the encryption codes for water meters was discovered and resolved. He said about 70 meters were not billing correctly and those customers would be put on a payment plan. Weakley said he has already reached out to the Finance Department to develop a new quality control process to ensure this doesn't occur again.

Brabo asked about the water systems being combined and what the benefit would be for combining them under one permit. Weakley explained that it would save money in the end because of the reduction in sampling, lab analysis, and correspondence. Brabo also said that in the past, the General Manager would provide the Board monthly updates on the current revenue and where it tracked with the projected revenue to see if the Service Authority would meet it's budget. Weakley said he would gather the information for a future meeting.

Bennett then discussed the pump issues at some length. He said the issue was complicated and that most pump stations should have two pumps. Weakley agreed that most larger stations have two. Bennett said the problem with ours was that we only had one working pump. Similar to the earlier, and still on-going, issues with having the correct number of wells working or available for use, the pump stations need redundancy. He said DEQ took special notice of this lack of redundancy and may continue to focus on it in the future. Bennett said we don't know what DEQ will require but wanted to give the Board and customers a preview of coming attractions but said "it may be a horror movie." He continued by saying it would cost a lot of money to get them up and running but they're hopeful DEQ will let them phase it in over time so there wouldn't be such a blow to the bottom line.

Bennett said he talked to Weakley over the phone a few weeks ago and asked him how it was going being the General Manager. Bennett said Weakley told him he loved a challenge "but man, this has a lot of challenges." Bennett said that was dead honest and we're here to help. Bennett then spoke to Mrs. Richard, who was still in the audience, that he didn't respond to her public comment because he felt like, with all due respect, it was a no-brainer that more notice should be given.

Bennett made two final points. First, he felt that Weakley should give a State of the Union of sorts for the Service Authority. Bennett said Weakley would have a fresh look on things and it may help. Bennett said he's been impressed so far with Weakley's performance, noting that he recently caught an issue where a vendor had over billed them. Bennett's second point was surrounding Weakley's power to change job descriptions and pay. Bennett wanted to know how much the Board was involved with that. Brabo said the only employee the Board oversees is Weakley. She said it was up to Weakley to run his shop how he saw fit. Regarding pay, Brabo said Weakley would need to put it in his budget and bring it before the Board for approval.

There was no Closed Session.

With that, the meeting adjourned at 7:20pm.

Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)

Meeting Agenda

Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on February 11, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.