OPINION - Citizen Budget Advisory Committee - Part 6

Our second consecutive evening of meeting as the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee opened with a joint meeting between the Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission. This March 27, 2018 meeting between the two groups was to discuss the Mixed Use Development (MUD) areas in King George County and the ordinances and rules that would govern them. The Planning Commission has been working with the Berkley Group for several months to hash out a draft ordinance and this draft is what they brought to the Board of Supervisors. Overall, both groups felt like there was a solid start but there were still some minor details to work out and some feedback to gather from other groups in the County. After an hour or so of discussion, the Planning Commission adjourned and we took a short break.

After our break, we the citizens were able to get off the bench and join the Board at the table for a continuation of our budget work session. We dove headlong into the School Resource Officer (SRO) discussion from the previous meeting by hearing from Sheriff Dempsey and his opinions on the topic. He started by saying he was already looking to fill two vacancies for Deputies and that since the school shooting a month and a half ago in Florida, he has stepped up patrols at the elementary schools. He said when Deputies are not responding to a call, he has instructed them to patrol each elementary school four times a day, inside and out. In addition to this, he said he has instructed Deputies to do their paperwork in the school parking lot when possible just to have a visible presence.

Most interesting though was the time involved in actually getting an SRO position filled at an elementary school. He said it generally takes a year or two to hire a Deputy and train them to the point of operating on their own. He said once this happens, then a veteran Deputy would be take a two week training course to become an SRO. In other words, he said it would be Fall of 2019 at the earliest before an SRO could function at the elementary school.

There was also some discussion about the current SROs at King George Middle School (KGMS) and King George High School (KGHS). The Sheriff said those two positions were paid for out of his budget, not the School Board budget. This was brought up again because Ruby Brabo and Jeff Bueche both said that the School Board never mentioned SROs as a priority the previous night, even when asked. While Brabo and Bueche clearly had no hard feelings from their heated discussion from the previous evening, I personally had to call them out on their questions from that night. While they, and others, asked Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, and the School Board if the budget presented was their priority and if they had any other priorities they needed, there was no mention of SROs. What I had to point out was that while questions were asked about priorities, at no time did anyone specifically ask the School Board or Dr. Benson if they wanted an SRO at the elementary schools. I tied this point to the fact that the school system doesn't pay for the SRO so asking for it in their budget wouldn't be correct. Brabo however did make a valid point that the previous SROs were asked for by the school system. I felt confident that we could have spent an entire evening talking about what the School Board cut from their budget and what they would want versus what they would need and all the money involved. Thankfully we all moved beyond that sticking point and continued the SRO discussion.

The Board also asked Sheriff Dempsey his opinion on using contracted or private security to provide armed resource officers at the elementary schools and he advised against this. He said it would be better to use a veteran officer from the existing staff of Deputies in the County as they would have a better opportunity to build a working relationship with students and staff and would be allowed to carry weapons on campus. According to Virginia State Law, Title 18.2, Chapter 7, only active and retired law enforcement are allowed to carry a gun on school grounds out in the open. There are exceptions for unloaded weapons in a vehicle and those with a concealed weapons permit in a vehicle, but otherwise, no guns are allowed. A bill was proposed last year to allow for armed security guards but it was never passed.

Dempsey also said that the two current SROs are frequently as busy as a regular patrol officer working cases in the schools. He also added that in the summer months and when school is out, they conduct patrols just like any other officer. As an example, he said that during the frequent storms, the SROs were responding to emergencies while school was not in session.

In the end, the Board advised the Sheriff to plan on having two SROs at Sealston Elementary School (SES) and Potomac Elementary School (PES) to fill with the new budget. While all parties involved agreed that a third SRO at King George Elementary School (KGES) would be ideal, the general feeling was that it was close enough to the Sheriff's Office to make it easier to have an increased presence. There was also some hope that a grant would help pay for one or more of the SROs, making it easier to add a third in the future.

Next to be discussed was the proposed zoning and building fee increases. After tabling the decision multiple times to gather more information, Ryan Gandy, Director of Economic Development, reported that he felt that the increased fees would not pose any undue burden on small businesses as they would likely not be looking to develop large parcels or multiple lots. He also said that a separate category could not be created for small businesses however a reimbursement or waiving of fees was always available on a case by case basis. Neiman Young, County Administrator, added that Orange County was looking at increasing their fees in the near future. With all of the new information and old data, the Board was comfortable moving forward with the increased rates.

With the two new SROs being added to the budget, the school getting the money they asked for, and the County added three new positions, the County's financial planner, Davenport & Company, had a smaller number to work with for debt mitigation and debt reduction. Even though the SROs were added just moments before he gave his presentation, he still had smaller numbers than before. As a whole though, we all agreed that any debt reduction payments made, regardless of how large or small, would be better than nothing. The previous presentation was in the range of a $9 million lump sum payment while the current figure was $7 million. On top of this, there was the a more refined timeline of making the payments in three batches. So instead of a big payment in four or five years, it would instead be three smaller payments made in 2019, 2021, and 2023. By making a smaller payment, it would free up cash and allow the County to have a surplus.

To bring back my previous home mortgage analogy, I saw this as a much better idea. So instead of paying everything available in the bank to pay down the debt and leaving us with very little money, we could still pay down the debt in large chunks but still keep money on hand in case a big bill came due unexpectedly. For example, if you make a large payment to pay off your credit card debt but then don't have money to pay for a new roof that was damaged in a storm, you end up back in debt by borrowing money. By paying smaller amounts when it's safer to do so allows you to have money to pay for that new roof but still leaves you a little bit extra to pay off some of your credit card debt.

At the end of the evening, I felt like we had made some serious progress in the budget process. While I still feel that the Smoot Library should have been fully funded instead of level funded, I think that so far the budget is fairly sound and that everyone else has gotten a fair shake. Our next meeting should be our last and hopefully I'll be able to give a concise summary of where we stand as a County.

OPINION - Citizen Budget Advisory Committee - Part 5

After a little bit of a break from our last meeting, the Board of Supervisors and the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee will have two meetings on two consecutive evenings. Our first was last night on March 26, 2018 and it promised to be a long one with the introduction and review of the King George County School (KGCS) Board's proposed budget. With the tension and guilt I had from the last meeting having melted away, I went into this meeting with an open mind and clear conscience.

The meeting began with a public comment from an unnamed resident of the County who spoke out against the pending protest, or assembly, by local high school students that is planned for April 20, 2018. The students are holding their protest on April 20th in honor of the anniversary of the Columbine school shooting that occurred on April 20, 1999. The gentlemen asked that the protesters not be allowed to hold their assembly and that if it was allowed, that the school host a similar assembly the day before as a "day of gun violence" that led to our nation's independence. His choice to recognize April 19th was in reference to "the shot heard round the world" on April 19, 1775 where the first battles of the American Revolution were fought in Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts.

After no other members of the public came forward to speak, Angela Foroughi returned with more information as was requested at a previous meeting. In her updated presentation, she included three new counties, Westmoreland, Orange, and Culpeper, to show where they ranked along side King George and other area counties in regards to planning and zoning fees. There was some discussion about the validity of using Caroline as a template for the proposed increases in rates but in looking at population alone, it is the closest. The overall consensus was that the rates needed to at least allow the County to break even on the work being completed but there was concern over the impact increased fees may play on any future development. In the end, it was agreed to push the decision back one night, tot he next budget work session, in order to gain feedback from Ryan Gandy, Director of Economic Development.

Next on the Agenda was the KGCS budget presentation [PowerPoint file]. Having attended most of the School's budget work sessions, what struck me the most was how little they were asking for that was above what was approved last year. Even in reading the most recent article in The Free Lance-Star, I was surprised at how much was trimmed in just the past few days. In the end, the school is only asking for $303,724 in additional funds from the County over last year's request. What the school system had working for it was an increased Average Daily Membership (ADM) which allows it to get more support from the Federal and State governments. There was also a significant savings from the school system participating in an energy savings program that actually showed a negative increase, or a decrease for those of us not working in finance, in the Operations and Maintenance expense category. And that nearly one percent decrease also factored in the Cost Of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase for the employees in that department.

After the presentation, and a short break, everyone returned to the meeting with questions for the School Board and Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools. The questions were fairly precise and only a few needed to be researched for later. There was some concern, but I felt it was more likely confusion, over the Preschool Nurse position. Everyone was hesitant to speak to anything very specific because of privacy issues but generally speaking, there was a need to have the current nurse transition to a full-time teacher at the high school because the nursing program was doing so well. This meant that the half of her time she spent at the Preschool would be unmet and there was a student that did need a nurse on hand, thus the need to have an additional position. In other words, because the nurse splits time between two locations, a move to either location full-time would mean a gap in coverage at the other school.

The School Board excused themselves to another meeting room to conduct the rest of their time sensitive agenda in closed session, however T. C. Collins remained behind. There was a little stumbling as it appeared some of those present were hesitant to discuss the School budget with Collins present but Richard Granger reminded everyone that this was a public meeting and Collins was welcome to stay if he wanted to.

There were a few questions asked and answered and then the fireworks began. I don't recall the exact question posed but Jeff Bueche or Richard Granger asked Neiman Young, County Administrator, something along the lines of funding School Resource Officers (SROs). Ruby Brabo began yelling at Bueche and Granger for making "unilateral" decisions for the Board of Supervisors (BOS) and that the question wasn't right to ask.

Thus commenced several incredibly tense minutes as Brabo continued to yell at Bueche or Granger or both and several of the citizens, myself included, slowly pushed back from the table to avoid Brabo's ire. At various points Dr. Young, Granger, and John Jenkins tried to calm the argument. As things slowly cooled down, it became apparent that there was no intent to make decisions on behalf of the Board by any single Supervisor. Bueche said that he has made it plain, and public, that he ran for election with Security being one of his major platforms. To that point, he has mentioned several times in Board meetings and via his social media that he wants SROs in all schools, which would mean adding three officers, one per elementary school. Both Brabo and Renee Parker, fellow Citizen Budget Advisory Committee member, felt that his request to Dr. Young for information was an attempt to force the SROs into the budget without any public discussion.

Bueche, with Granger and Young echoing the same thing, said he was only asking for information on potential financial scenarios on four main points. Those being the three SROs in question, three County employee positions, the debt mitigation plan, and fully funding the school's request. The discussion boiled down to what I called the "best worst case scenario" of having everything funded. With the three SROs, three County employees, and a fully funded School, only $55,000 would be left for debt mitigation. This would be a massive decrease from the proposed $750,000 yearly debt mitigation. All of this is of course assuming that tax rates don't increase and the KGCS and County budgets don't change drastically with a yet-to-be-approved State budget.

So while no single scenario or combination of scenarios is mutually exclusive, fully funding everything would certainly reduce the amount of money left over to help reduce debt. But as Brabo said, any contribution made to reduce debt is more than what has been done in the past.

At the end of the evening, nearly four hours after we began, the BOS had calmed down and apologized for any outbursts. Ruby said her experiences in the past with previous Board members making unilateral decisions and putting stuff back into the budget without discussion left her sensitive to it happening again. Bueche said this was his first budget session and that he had no intention of doing anything like that and was instead looking for more information for himself to better make an educated decision. Young said he was sorry for presenting the answer in a way that made it appear he had been directed to make changes versus giving details on various scenarios. As a witness to the verbal fireworks, I was taken aback by the vehement and heated discussion but by the end of the night I felt comfortable that nobody was leaving with hurt feelings.

Also by the end of the night, the BOS agreed to fund the school's request but did ask to have Sheriff Dempsey attend the next meeting in order to discuss his thoughts on School Resource Officers in the elementary schools and potentially the Preschool.

One last interesting takeaway I had during the meeting was from my own question to everyone in the room. Of those present, only myself, John Jenkins, and Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, are products of King George County Schools. To repeat what I told Dr. Benson last night, for me personally, I've seen a great improvement in the school system over that long period of time and I'm proud to be an alumni.

2018-03-28 - Planning Commission Public Notice

2018-03-20 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

After a longer than expected Service Authority Meeting, the King George County Board of Supervisors began their very short meeting on March 20, 2018at 7:44pm.

Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, asked to amend the Agenda to remove the Department of Finance presentation on the "Acceptance of Award for Installation of Security Access Systems and Security Video at Potomac Elementary School from the 2017 Virginia School Security Equipment Grant Program." Once this was approved, the Board opened the floor for public comment.

First to speak was Don Shelton offering his suggestion to have the Pamunkey Indian Tribe build the casino they want here in King George County. He said it would attract tourism and provide jobs and be something special for the county.

Next was Gene Hamber who spoke about the leveling of the Smoot Library budget. He said he feels it is a bad idea. He gave many facts and figures, most of which sounded like they came from our previous Opinion article on the potential merger. In addition to facts and figures from our article, he also said that the state average for cost per capita for libraries is $20.86. He said in comparison, Smoot costs $15.57 per capita while Central Rappahannock Regional Library (CRRL) costs $46.38 per capita. He also said he looked at a popular and newly released title at CRRL and there were 53 holds on it while Smoot only had two holds on the same title. In the end, he said "leveling the budget is a bad idea."

Next to speak was Pete who graduated form King George High School in 1975. He said he was also a veteran, former White House Employee, and elevator inspector. He said as a life-long resident of the County, he has seen the library grow and shrink over time. He said when growing up here, other counties wanted to be like King George when it came to the Smoot Library. He equated a CRRL take-over as a big-box store taking over and would provide less personal service and attention. He said he has seen inconsistent numbers on social media and wants to see real numbers given to residents so residents can decide. He closed by saying he would like to keep Smoot in the County.

Ed Veazey was next to talk and he noted recent displays of Indian artifacts. He said he recently read about the Pamunkey Indians and their desire to build a casino and suggested the area off Route 301 that is owned by Cleydael Partnership. He said there is over 500 acres, a water tank, and a fiber line from AT&T. He also said it would be an ideal spot for the Indians to have a museum, similar to the future Ralph Bunche museum and Dahlgren Heritage Museum [EDITOR'S NOTE: Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is an employee of the Dahlgren Heritage Museum]. He closed by saying it was a little corny but wanted the Board to "ask not what a casino could do for you or to you but rather what would a casino do for County finances."

The last public speaker identified herself as Kathy Phillips although she said she also goes by "hey you." She said she was a happy resident of King George and wanted to speak about the Library. She said she came here about 18 years ago and has been part of the Smoot library since then as a user, volunteer, and participant. Phillips said the library is unique in that it responds to patron needs. She said her concern with joining CRRL was how the resources would be handled. She was also worried about what would happen if there was a trial period but we decided not to be part of CRRL, especially after material was acquired or money obtained. She closed by saying she spoke to some of the library staff and they were against the move, even though they would get better pay and benefits.

John Jenkins then began his report. He thanked everyone for their comments, thoughts, and concerns. He said as far as the comments about the library, it felt like deja vu. He said the level funding isn't related to a failed CRRL acquisition. He said the Board was just researching and looking into things and that the Board was still at square one. He appeared to be a little frustrated by all the comments about the library and said it sort of felt like beating a dead horse. He then moved on to say he attended a YMCA Board meeting and budget work session on March 15th and a GWRC meeting on the 19th.

Jeff Bueche began his report by thanking everyone for their comments. He said, regarding the library, he wasn't sure how the discussion got to this point. He said his goal was to look for every financial advantage for taxpayers. The Board was presented a proposal but nothing has happened. Bueche also said level funding isn't a cut and that the County has made investments in the past. He also said that the library endowment fund has been brought up and said the Board of Trustees may need to do more work. He said he would go on the record as far as looking at CRRL that he needs to see a significant financial gain for the constituents. Changing topics, he said he thinks the casino idea is great and had already sent the County Administrator the article. He said there is a need to bring more revenue to the County. He said he attended the budget meeting on the 15th and also met with various officials on the 20th. This meeting was with Dr. Benson, Superintendent of King George County Schools, Dashan Turner, Director of Administrative Services, Dr. Young, and various staff from the King George County Sheriff's Office. He said the meeting was not in response to the school shooting that day in St. Mary's County, but rather something that had previously been planned. He did say the meeting was in regards to school security. He then read a letter from Jim Lynch who resigned his position as the County's delegate on the Northern Neck Tourism Council [likely he meant the Northern Neck Tourism Commission as no "Council" appears to exist] effective April 29th. After a brief discussion, Ryan Gandy was appointed to fill the vacancy.

Ruby Brabo then began her report by saying she attended a Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce event  on the 8th and met with the County Administrator and a prospective business owner on the 14th. She also attended the budget work session on the 15th as well as the GWRC meeting. She then reminded the Board that FAMPO is still awaiting three citizens from King George to be appointed to their advisory committee and she still had two nominees. Seeing as the rest of the Board had no additions, and no comments on her two nominees, the Board approved Dr. Rob Gates and Lesley Jordan to serve on the committee. She then noted that the Caroline County Board of Supervisors just voted to dissolve their library board and were seeking a proposal from CRRL. She said the Landfill Advisory Committee was struggling and was unsure of its role. Brabo said she still gets complaints and would like the Board's permission to have Dr. Young call a meeting to discuss the issues. She said regarding the casino, if there is a desire in the community, then so be it. She cautioned that it shouldn't necessarily be looked at for a solution for the County budget. She also said only certain land can be used for the tribal casino and she wasn't sure if any lands were present in King George.

Cathy Binder reported that she also attended the budget meeting on the 15th. She said that same day she attended a meeting with Carol Sparbel, Smoot Library Board of Trustees Chair, Richard Granger, and Carol Arnott, Library Assistant. She said the goal was to solve the communication issue and find a way to make things better. She said in light of the discussion, she wanted to appoint herself to the Library's Board of Trustees to represent the Shiloh District. The Board approved the motion. She closed by thanking everyone that spoke about the library and the casino.

Richard Granger was next to give his report and thanked everyone for their comments about the casino and said investigation is always a good idea. Regarding the library, he said he appreciates the comments. He said they had a good conversation during the meeting on the 15th, though things may have gotten a little heated. He said the perception that the Board is trying to push something through is not the case and as Jeff Bueche said, the Board is just investigating and looking for the best value for the citizens. He said he heard a number quoted during public comment about the CRRL proposal that the cost to the County was $460,000 but that included a one-time cost if the proposal was accepted and that the annual cost would be $374,000. He moved on to say he also attended the budget meeting on the 15th. In closing, he said he received an email from Mrs. Sparbel earlier in the day about the Library's role in meeting the needs of Governor's School students. He said that while Questia might not fit the needs, a new solution, Find It VA, should be able to work for the students. He finished by reminding citizens that if they need certain resources at the library, they just need to ask.

The Consent Agenda was passed without comment.

The County Attorney had no report.

Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, took over the podium and presented several items that were tabled from a previous meeting. These items were:

• KGCS Energy Performance Contract Change Order Request
• Authorization to re-appropriate funds from Instruction to Facilities
• Award of Contract for Site Work Associated with the Installation of Modular Classrooms
• Virginia State Security Equipment Grant Job award for $94,420 with a local match of $23,605

The Board approved each item without comment.

Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, then presented the next item on the Agenda about the Professional Services Associated with the Utilities Master Plan, specifically Phase II. Young recommended approval and the Board did so without comment.

Young then went into his report and gave an update from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT). He said VDOT is notifying the Board of a public meeting for the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) on May 8, 2018 at 4 pm at the Germanna Community College campus in Fredericksburg. The meeting will give citizens the opportunity to comment on the CTB's Six-Year Improvement Program.

Young also received a notice from the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO) about their 30 day public comment period for their draft 2045 Long Range Transportation Plan. He said the public comment period will close on April 11, 2018. Brabo asked about the Smart Scale project applications and progress being made. Young said he wanted to make sure the submissions were complete before giving an update. Brabo asked if there was any feeling that Route 301 projects could be submitted and Young said he didn't think it would be an issue. Brabo suggested including projects that would benefit base traffic in the Dahlgren area and recommended Young and Ryan Gandy speak to Captain O'Leary about his thoughts.

Young then concluded his report with a reminder to the Board that the Board would have a joint meeting with the Planning Commission on March 27, 2018 at Company 1 at 6:30 pm. The meeting would be to discuss the mixed use development ordinance progress and concerns.

The meeting adjourned at 8:27 pm without a Closed Session.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Chairman, 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 April 3, 2018 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

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

2018-03-20 - Service Authority Meeting Notes

The King George County Service Authority Board of Directors started their March 20, 2018 meeting promptly at 6:30pm. There was no public comment.

Mike Bennett began his report by stating that he met with Chris Thomas, General Manager, Christopher Werle, Chairman, and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) in Richmond on March 8th. Bennett said the meeting was in regard to the Fairview Beach Erosion and Stabilization Project. He said it was a "great meeting" from his perspective and that Phase I was already approved for funding. He said the money for Phase II, roughly $2 million, has already been set aside and said this is a good indicator. He said a number of people from King George County were present for the meeting, including Neiman Young, County Administrator, Fire and EMS personnel, and several engineers. He reiterated that the Phase I portion of the project is being funded largely by outside agencies with Federal funds covering 75% of the cost and Virginia state funds covering 20% of the cost. He said the remaining 5%, about $115,000, is to be paid by local funds but he said that this last portion could be satisfied by in-kind measures. In other words, work done by County employees could be used towards this amount as an in-kind contribution. Bennett felt it would be very easy to meet the amount of in-kind funds needed. He also said that even though he is "not a mathematician," the County is essentially getting a $2.3 million project for nothing. But he cautioned that maybe that shouldn't be advertised too much. He closed his report by saying that he attended the budget meeting on the 13th.

Richard Granger, Ruby Brabo, and Cathy Binder all gave short and similar reports where they said they attended the same budget work session on the 13th and appreciated all of the details given and felt that progress was being made.

Christopher Werle's report was also short. He attended the VDEM meeting on the 8th, the budget meeting on the 13th, and on the 14th reviewed a draft Request For Proposal (RFP) for the Fairview Beach Project.

The Consent Agenda was approved without comment.

The County Attorney had nothing to report.

Chris Thomas, General Manager, gave a short report on the progress of the Canterbury water system. He said that the project is close to being finished with only three major parts remaining to complete. He said the exterior housing for the chlorine feed tanks needs to be completed, the structure and tanks still need to be painted, and the Verizon phone line to the structure has yet to be installed.

Brabo asked if Thomas and the department were ready for the pending snow storm. Thomas said that the plows were already checked and salt was ready to go. Brabo asked about plans for expected power outages. Thomas said the generators are ready to go and that the on-call person would determine if he needed to start early on the morning of the storm to prepare the facilities.

There was some sidebar discussion about going into Closed Session as it wasn't listed on the Agenda but there was a need to go into Closed Session and there were no amendments to the Agenda at the start of the meeting. In the end, they went into Closed Session at 6:41 pm to discuss the acquisition or sale of real property and invited John Jenkins and Jeff Bueche to attend.

Closed Session ended an hour later at 7:41 pm and the meeting adjourned shortly after that.

Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Chairman, Board of Directors)
Christopher Thomas (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (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 April 3, 2018 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.

2018-03-20 - Public Notice - Joint Meeting Between Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission

OPINION - Citizen Budget Advisory Committee - Part 4

The March 15, 2018 Budget Work Session began on a positive note but by the time I left the meeting, I felt guilty that I may have almost cost the Smoot Library $50,000.

The meeting began with the same relaxed feeling and with no public comment. Angela Foroughi started things off with a comparative analysis of the current fee structure in King George County and it was not pretty. Based on her presentation and comments from Brad Hudson, Director of Community Development, the fees had last been updated in 2003 and 2016, with the changes in 2016 being minor. In other words, the County was overdue for increasing fees and adjusting some of the language. Foroughi's analysis showed that in many cases, the County lost money in reviewing site plans. In the two examples she gave, a site plan review and a subdivision construction plan review, the County lost over $1,200 in each case.

Foroughi then gave some comparative examples of surrounding counties and how their fee schedules compared to King George. Caroline, Spotsylvania, and Stafford Counties all had higher rates and even though populations, development trends, and housing markets may be slightly different, it gave an eye-opening view into how far behind we were. For example a Site Plan started at $850 in King George and $1,750 in Caroline and then grew exponentially in Stafford and Spotsylvania with rates of $10,000 and $5,080 respectively. She also gave examples of certain fees that other counties charged for but we did not.

In the end, her recommendation was to adopt rates that mirrored Caroline County. Foroughi said these changes would have amounted to an increase of nearly $60,000 in revenue based on last year's applications. Ruby Brabo suggested to table any decision until further comparisons could be made with Orange County because she felt they were a better comparison to King George than Caroline County. Another Supervisor suggested adding Westmoreland to the analysis as well just to get a better view of the region.

I think most of the Board felt comfortable raising the rates and it was a pleasure to see somebody come to the table with all the information necessary to answer questions. Mrs. Foroughi clearly had her ducks in a row.

Brad Hudson then jumped into the hot seat with his recommendations on changes to the building fee schedules and language. He suggested creating a few new fees that would make things a little easier for homeowners. For example instead of charging a $100 permit fee, he suggested creating a new fee of just $50 for replacing only exterior egress steps. He felt that charging the larger fee wasn't right and the lower cost was more fitting. On the other hand, his suggestion to create a new fee for large decks would cost homeowners more. He suggested that the current fee of $75 would stay for decks of 300 square feet or smaller but that decks larger than 300 square feet would require a $125 fee because they require more inspections.

Hudson also went into some of the language of existing fee schedules and recommended some clarity and change in a few areas. One area to change was the carport and shed items where he felt some people were skirting the permit process by claiming certain carports were prefabricated when they were not. Other language he suggested changing would combine certain permits into one permit, making the process easier. For example, instead of needing two permits for a generator, it would be combined into one permit. The Board approved Hudson's changes and they will be part of the overall budget presentation later that will be open for public comment.

Next on the Agenda was the Board's approval of the supplemental income for four Combined Courts employees.

Neiman Young, County Administrator, then presented the overall Expenditures in the budget. He said each department head was given ample time to present their initial budget amount and all were on board with the numbers presented tonight. He also said that while he made some cuts and challenged some numbers, all department heads had the opportunity to give a rebuttal to any reductions he may have made. And with that, we dove into each category.

Under the Legislative category, nothing was questioned as we had already reviewed the Board of Supervisors budget by line in a previous work session. Under the General Administration category, a few lines were questioned and explained to everyone's satisfaction. The only item that was left open was the County Attorney's budget amount that was larger than expected. Brabo called into question if the amount shown included fees or dues outside of his role as County Attorney and if so, they should not be. Because the County Attorney is on a set contract, it was odd to see a larger than normal amount compared to last year's figures. Dr. Young said he would review the figures and come back with a response later. Under the Judicial Administration category and Public Safety, everything seemed to be in order. Only a few items were question but were clarified. One item of note was that a grant is currently funding just under $500,000 in pay for fire fighters and that the County would need to pay that amount once the grant ran out in a couple more years.

The Health and Welfare, Social Services, and Parks and Recreation categories passed in much the same fashion where only a few questions were raised and easily answered. Community Development, Public Works, and Economic Development followed suit and were quickly behind us.

Then came the Nondepartmental category and my guilt. Dr. Young mentioned that the Smoot Library was listed but he would like guidance from the Board on what to do with it. The Board seemed to agree to leave it there as there has been no decision made on the potential Central Rappahannock Regional Library (CRRL) takeover. Ruby Brabo then suggested that because Smoot made $60,000 last year in passport processing fees, the Board should reduce their funding request by $50,000. She said that if the Board's pressure on Smoot last year forced them to look to alternatives in finding funding, maybe more pressure would provide more results. Jeff Bueche and Richard Granger were hesitant to drop funding and both agreed to, at the very least, level fund it to last year's budget amount.

This is where my guilt set in as I began to fear my previous opinion article on the Smoot Library, which was published just hours before the meeting, may have struck a nerve with the Board. I sat there in stunned silence as nobody else spoke up and questioned why the library was the only line-item to get this treatment. I was too afraid to speak up for fear that the Board would further cut the funding for a service I feel is necessary for citizens.

I was still in a bit of a haze as the meeting closed with the projected shortfall of nearly $2 million. As Dr. Young began reviewing our upcoming schedule of meetings, he said the school's budget would be presented at our next meeting on March 26th. Renee Parker spoke up to say she wanted to make sure that nobody walked into the meeting with the expectation that the schools would need to cover the shortfall and that we should keep an open mind to their request. Brabo then reminded everyone that the Board had been generous to the schools over the past couple of years and that this year they needed to understand that the focus was more on the County and County employees.

With only a few more meetings on the books, we're hoping to have a finalized budget ready to present to the public by April.

OPINION - On The Potential Merger Of Smoot Library With CRRL

As with any editorial, this article will be strictly my opinion. I will do my best to be as objective as possible but this is an emotional subject for me. I don't use the library as much as others, but I actually lost sleep for several nights after the news broke about a potential merger. But let me start at the beginning. [2018-03-15 - EDITED - Additional information was received from Smoot to correct original counts and give additional information.]

Smoot History

Smoot Library, or more officially The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library, was built in the late 1960s by Mrs. Ann Smoot. She ran the library for a few years before gifting it to the County on November 1, 1973. According to the Deed of Gift, "That the improvements on the aforesaid property be used in perpetuity by the Board of Supervisors of King George County, Virginia, and their successors, solely as a free public library for the citizens of King George County, Virginia." The same document says "That the present name of the library, to-wit: "The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library," be retained in perpetuity as the name of the library."

According to the Ordinance adopted by the Board of Supervisors on October 18, 1973, a Board of Trustees was created to operate the library. These seven people (increased to ten in the 1980s) were charged with setting the pay scale for employees, purchasing supplies and equipment, and maintaining the grounds. The Ordinance also states "The Trustees may receive assistance in operating the Library from the Virginia State Library System."

In Mrs. Smoot's Instrument of Gift, a Certificate of Deposit for $700,000 was included. This endowment fund was restricted "...so that only the income from such fund and any appreciation thereof may be expended for library purposes, and the principal amount of $700,000.00 shall always remain intact and held for investment by the Board of Supervisors."

My History At Smoot

Fast forward a few decades into the early 1990s and Smoot Library becomes my first job. Little did I know how much of an impact it would have on my work ethic and my love of books. For those of you that are younger, Smoot had no computers back then. Library cards had a metal piece on them that was used to stamp a card that went into the back of your book. If you needed to find a book, you used the Card Catalog. If you were really smart, you memorized the Dewey Decimal System and knew where to look without look through the Card Catalog.

The work atmosphere was great. I didn't know it at the time, but my co-workers were really nice people. Rita Schepmoes, who would retire as the Library Directory in September 2008, was my boss and was nice enough to hire me. I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure I was one of the only male employees at the time. I know there were some before me and some after, but when I worked there, I remember being one of the only ones that could go into the Men's Restroom to check on things. Working alongside me was Carol Sparbel, the current Board of Trustees Chair, who was kind enough to teach me it was okay to expand my reading preferences into other areas. Linda Addair was also a fixture at the library. As if to prove King George is a small town, I ended up working with her son for 15 years at another job.

The books at the time were well used, especially in the children's section. Fiction was almost always well-stocked and the reference books were fairly well populated with things that a resident may need. My dad was notorious for dragging me to the library when I was younger so he could read national newspapers or magazines. Worse was when he would check out a home improvement book or car maintenance manual because that meant I would be helping with a project soon.

Over time, I moved away and moved back to King George County. There's something about this place that pulled me back into the fold. As I put down roots and began to grow my family, I was approached to join the Smoot Board of Trustees. At first, I was skeptical. I felt like I had nothing to contribute. Sure, I had worked there, sure I had checked out books, but I didn't feel like I was in a place to help. After talking things over with my wife, I finally agreed to join the Board. I was appointed to the Board in 2012 and quickly learned that I had plenty to offer, just like everyone else at the table with me. Being on the Board was also a learning experience for me. I rapidly learned how board meetings were run and eventually rose to the rank of Finance Officer.

It was during my time on the Board, both as a member and as a Finance Officer, that I learned the Board of Supervisors were never keen to support the Library financially. At the time I assumed it was largely because of the expansion and the huge chunk of money that was spent on that. But as I've done more research these past few weeks, I've found it's more of an overall trend, not an exception during my short time on the Board. I say short time because in October 2015 I resigned from the Board. I felt that I had contributed as much as I could at the time and was not in a good place mentally. My full-time job was becoming more and more stressful and I felt that I would be a burden to the Board and the Library if I continued.

Smoot Today

As with most rumors, I first heard about the potential merger with Central Rappahannock Regional Library (CRRL) on Facebook. It had been discussed during my time on the Smoot Board of Trustees but never this seriously. Oddly, I heard the rumor shortly after I finished writing my report on the Board of Supervisors meeting from a few days before where I saw Mrs. Sparbel and Robin Tenney, the current Smoot Library Director, go into closed session. At the time I assumed it was to give a report on the library's budget. I would learn later that it was regarding the potential merger with CRRL.

I was shocked, baffled, and upset. Like I said before, I lost sleep over this potential deal. The more I heard, the more I read, the more I realized I needed to find out for myself if this was a good deal or not. So I began to research everything I could about Smoot, CRRL, and the potential merger between them.

The first thing is that according to the draft proposal from CRRL, it wouldn't be a merger. It would be a takeover. Their draft proposal states that "... libraries within a political jurisdiction are not county departments, but are governed by the regional library board." That would mean the "Smoot Library staff would become employees of the regional library..." and "... materials are owned by the CRRL in perpetuity, and shared system wide." It would also mean serious technology changes for Smoot. CRRL and Smoot run on different circulation systems and CRRL primarily uses Chromeboxes versus Smoot's Windows computers.

There are a few important parts to point out about the CRRL draft proposal. The first being that it's just a draft. This isn't the final deal or even the final offer. Second, the original proposal is dated November 27, 2017. That means this has been discussed prior to that despite there not being any record of it in the Meeting Minutes of the Board of Supervisors. Third, the original cost of the draft proposal was $552,388 with an amended cost of $460,888. This amended cost, dated January 31, 2018, shows a sharp reduction in the one-time start-up costs in the Technology category, presumably by using Chromeboxes instead of upgrading the existing Windows computers.

By The Numbers

In my mind, the deal to have CRRL take over Smoot began to fall apart when I began my research. But in an effort to give a balanced opinion, I'm going to include things that CRRL does well and similarities between the two libraries. By no means is my list conclusive. Some parts are also subjective but I will try to keep things as objective as possible.

CRRL as a whole has more money, more staff, more branches, and a larger collection. They also have a mutual relationship with library systems in northern Virginia (Caroline, Culpeper, Fauquier, Orange, and Prince William Counties). It serves Stafford, Spotsylvania, and Westmoreland Counties as well as the City of Fredericksburg. Residents of King George can join for only $30 a year. There are no late fees for "Other Materials" and children's books, magazines, and paper backs can be checked out indefinitely. CRRL also has longer operating hours at some branches and an extensive collection of 482,000 print items and a large number of programs to offer to the community.

That's about where the list ends. Yes, I've heard from several people about the staff at Smoot being unpleasant. Personally, I've experienced nothing but pleasant employees and volunteers. In fact, the staff at the CRRL branch in Fredericksburg has frequently ignored me when I've tried to get help researching something. I think this is something that can be improved upon across the board, not just at libraries. It's also very subjective in how everyone defines "great customer service."

I've also heard the arguments about how students in the local Governor's Schools need a membership to CRRL to get their homework done. I've also heard the arguments about how students in the local Governor's Schools DON'T need a membership to CRRL to get their homework done. In the end, I don't know who to believe. The one statement that did seem to be the same across the board was that all Governor's School students are given a CRRL membership so that they can have access to the same library.

Smoot excels in a few areas, namely the convenience of a local library being within 12 miles of any point in King George County. Smoot also has a longer check-out time at 21 days (CRRL is only 14 days). And while many may claim CRRL has longer hours of operation, if you look closely, that's not exactly true. Yes, four branches in the CRRL system are open 69.5 hours per week, but Smoot is open 61 hours per week. Those other three branches of CRRL are only open 32 hours per week, which is less than Smoot's summer hour of 58 hours per week. And when you average all the branches, CRRL is open on average 54.9 hours per week. Still not a compelling argument.

Branch	Hours Per Week
Fredericksburg	69.5
Howell	69.5
Porter	69.5
Salem Church	69.5
Snow	65
Smoot (Winter)	61
Smoot (Summer)	58
CRRL AVG	54.9
Cooper	32
Montross	32
Newton	32

I've said it before, but I'll repeat it again; I'm a spreadsheet nerd. So when it came time to crunch the actual numbers, a spreadsheet was necessary. In looking at the draft proposal from CRRL, the base annual operating cost is going to be $374,490 plus some extra money based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI). They've based this on their agreement with Westmoreland County. In looking at Westmoreland County's budget, they spent $431,241 on CRRL for 2017. King George spent $523,989. Over the last three years, Westmoreland spent $106,528 less than King George on their respective libraries.

While $106,528 sounds like a considerable amount of money for the County to save. Until you dig deeper. Westmoreland spends 1.5% of their expenses on their libraries. King George only spends 0.7% of expenses on Smoot. This is less than the 0.82% from ten years ago. If we were base our spending percentage on Westmoreland's percentage, we would need to spend twice as much to match their levels. You could argue that Westmoreland has three CRRL branches but remember, they aren't open for as many hours as Smoot.

	Westmoreland	King George
Year	2017	2017
Total Expenses	$28,840,226	$75,009,567
Library Expenses	$431,241	$523,989
% of Expenses	1.50%	0.70%

And the money is really where I think it boils down to the decision makers. Over the last ten years of budget documents, Smoot has seen a funding increase of 4.27%. Departments of similar size have seen larger increases (General Properties is up 68% and E-911 is up 24.9%). Larger departments have also seen an increase in spending over the last ten years, such as the Department of Emergency Services with a 67% increase. This isn't to say that one department is better or worse than the other or more important than another, but as a whole, Smoot has seen a smaller share of the pie over the last ten years. In total, the County has increased spending by 21.73% over the last ten years and 23.82 percent in the last five years. But again, Smoot has only grown 4%. So while revenue and expenditures have seen a large growth, Smoot has not.

Expenditure Increases Over Last 10 Years

And the budget is a key point of consternation for me. Having sat on the Board of Trustees and been the Financial Officer, I know what the budgeting process is like for the library. Every budget cycle I was a part of the library was told to reduce spending and remove positions. Every year it was the same story where the Library Director would present the request for money in the budget cycle and get sent packing with a list of things to cut. As a member of the current Citizens Budget Advisory Committee, I can see the other side of that coin. The Board of Supervisors is constantly looking for ways to save money. And I'm perfectly okay with that. But to save money by cutting services isn't always a good deal. On top of that, cutting the second largest educational service in the County seems to fly in the face of the present Board of Supervisors desire to promote professional education for County employees. At a recent budget work session, the Supervisors appeared to encourage the County Department heads to increase their spending on professional education.

My biggest concern in this budget is the claim made by a member of the Board of Supervisors. I hesitate to call them out as I'm waiting for them to give more details to their claim and to cite their sources. But the claim was that "... just in the last two years, the budget has gone up almost two-hundred thousand dollars [$200,000]..." But in doing the homework I was advised to do, this is not true. In fact, in the last ten years, the budget has only gone up $22,242. Even if you look at the least funded year in the past decade, 2012, the increase was less than $49,000. Where the $200,000 increase claim comes from, I have no idea but I can only see it as a grievous math error, a serious lack of knowledge on the issue, or an effort to make the CRRL take-over more appealing.

The Hole Deepens

From here, the research continued to prove that a CRRL take-over would not be in the best interest of King George County residents. So in no particular order, here are a few data points to prove that point.

• CRRL computer policy hasn't been updated in seven years. Smoot's policy is no more than three years old.
• CRRL uses Chromeboxes which are quickly becoming obsolete (Chromebooks on the other hand are becoming more popular).
• CRRL requires 85% of funding to come from localities. Based on the current Smoot budget of 70%, we would need to pay more.
• CRRL branches in Westmoreland increased their operating hours last year.
• CRRL libraries have been underfunded in the past by certain localities causing them to receive fewer services.
• Spotsylvania County almost left the CRRL system 15 years ago. According to the county's Finance Department, they would save about $400,000 per year by running their own library.
• Smoot originally provided services to Caroline and Westmoreland Counties.
• Smoot almost took over operations of the library on the Navy base in Dahlgren.
• Staff at Smoot could be moved to other libraries at will.
• If another county opens another branch of CRRL, King George helps pay.
• CRRL uses an outdated bar code system to check-out books while Smoot uses an RFID chip.
• CRRL has 19 meeting rooms available in their system. Smoot has more than any two CRRL branches combined with nine rooms.
• Smoot will forfeit your meeting room reservation if you don't show up. CRRL will not, therefore disallowing anyone from using the room for that time period.
• CRRL limits computer terminal usage to one hour while Smoot allows you to use it for three hours.
• Smoot houses one of the only STEM Resource Hubs in the state.
• Spotsylvania, and presumably all member-localities, pay part of the debt service for libraries in the CRRL system.
• The claim that "The library is no longer efficiently serving the community and is fast becoming a tremendous fiscal burden in its current form of management" is false as the pro rata share of expenses has dropped over the last ten years.
• CRRL has 482,000 print items for use while Smoot has 67,000 79,000. Based on population estimates, this works out to 1.5 books per person in the CRRL system versus 2.63 3.1 books per person in the Smoot system. [2018-03-15 - EDITED - Additional information was received from Smoot to correct original counts.]
• CRRL has "over 200 computers." Assuming this is a number between 201 and 299, at most that means over 1,000 people (in the population they serve) per computer compared to Smoot's ratio of 654 people per computer.

More Spreadsheets

Number of Meeting Rooms (any meeting room that could be divided into multiple rooms was counted as the largest number possible - for example, a single large room that could be divided into two rooms was counted as two rooms)

Branch	Meeting Rooms
Howell	9
Smoot	9
Salem Church	7
Fredericksburg	3
Porter	3
Snow	2
Cooper	1
Newton	1
Montross	0

Number of Computers and Books Per Capita (based on 2015 population estimates; CRRL computers estimated based on "over 200" quote)

	CRRL Per Capita	Smoot Per Capita
201 Computers per 10k	6.29	15.29
299 Computers per 10k	9.35	15.29
Print Books	1.51	3.10 2.63
E-Books	0.37	3.33

[2018-03-15 - EDITED - Additional information was received from Smoot to correct original counts.]

Loan Periods

Item	CRRL	Smoot
Books	14 days	21 days
DVDs	7 days	7 days
Magazines	14 days	7 days
Other materials	14 days	21 days

Late Fees

Item	CRRL	Smoot
Books	$0.20	$0.15
DVDs	$1.00	$1.00
Magazines	$0.20	$0.15
Other materials	none	$0.15

Light At The End Of The Tunnel

If you've made it this far, congratulations. There is light at the end of the tunnel. My bottom line on this topic is that a CRRL take-over of Smoot would be a bad idea. As a resident of King George County I feel I would pay more and get less. But I do feel there are some areas for improvement with Smoot and how it can be an even better resource for those in King George.

Funding
I think more funding would solve a lot of problems. More employees means more hours and more activities. More resources means more services for users.

Work With CRRL
I think that instead of working against a CRRL take-over, we should work towards a partnership with CRRL. Better inter-library loan programs means more access to more material. Leveraging strengths from both systems could only help both parties. Best example I can think of is using a mobile app like CRRL to make the check-out process easier.

Work With KGCS
Just like working with CRRL, Smoot can work with the local school system to coordinate efforts on collections, activities, and connectivity. Spotsylvania opens their high school libraries to the public to allow a free internet connection to library patrons.

Dahlgren Branch
This is a hot topic and garnered me a voicemail, text, emails, and plenty of messages on Facebook but I truly think that Dahlgren is going to become a major population hub in King George County. It only seems fitting that we should start planning now for a future branch in Dahlgren. Partnering with University of Mary Washington may increase our leverage.

Work With Food Banks
Not my idea but certainly one worth sharing. Work with a local food bank to help collect food donations in exchange for forgiving fines. Smoot will "...typically conduct a “Food for Fines Week” (for Food Bank donations) in September which is National Library Card Sign-Up Month and we have a “Fine Free Week” (for long overdue items) which corresponds with National Library Week in April." [2018-03-15 - EDITED - Additional information was received from Smoot to clarify this idea.]

More Than Just Books
Smoot can offer more than just books. Several libraries across the globe are offering seeds and tools. If we truly want to preserve our rural character, why not look at ways to further that by helping farmers and residents grow crops by lending seeds. We can also lend tools as a way to help residents save money while improving their homes.

Book Donations
Any new book that's donated to the library should be added to the collection. I think this would be a wonderful way to add to the collection without any costs to the library or the County.

Volunteer Training
If staffing is an issue, train a volunteer to train more volunteers. Shelving books and reading shelves is not a very difficult task and it should be easy to train volunteers of any age.

Work With Local Makers
Smoot can work with local artists to showcase their work on a rotating schedule. Smoot can also work to create a maker space to promote STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math).

Bring Back Bookmobile
A bookmobile was actually partially funded for a time but the Capital Improvement Project was eventually killed. Bringing it back would be a great way to bridge the gap between now and when a new branch opens. It would also make access to under-served communities much easier and could even partner with local churches that feed needy families

Sources

I gathered information from numerous sources over the past two weeks. Everything is cited below, including scans of the original gift documents through the recent CRRL proposal to take over Smoot. The only documents I reviewed that were not included in my sources below are the Smoot Board of Trustees Meeting minutes. I did not include the information I found in my article above because it was based on rumor and not fact. While the meeting minutes were informative and could help prove the rumor, it was not enough information to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt and was therefore excluded.

Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Branches and Hours: [http://www.librarypoint.org/branches]
Central Rappahannock Regional Library. The CRRL Budget: [http://www.librarypoint.org/crrl_budget]
Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Library 2010-2011 Budget Update: [http://www.librarypoint.org/2010_budget_update]
Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Library Policies and Frequently Asked Questions: [http://www.librarypoint.org/library_policies#question9]
Central Rappahannock Regional Library. February 22, 2017. News Release. Beginning March 1, new library hours in Westmoreland County offer service 6 days a week: [http://myemail.constantcontact.com/News-Release--Beginning-March-1--new-library-hours-in-Westmoreland-County-offer-service-6-days-a-week.html?soid=1101578795609&aid=i350Fa4wjGs]
Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Proposal.
Central Rappahannock Regional Library. Use of Computer Resources [http://www.librarypoint.org/use_computer_resources]
The Free Lance-Star. March 3, 2018. King George Ponders Joining Regional Library System: [www.fredericksburg.com/news/local/king_george/king-george-ponders-joining-regional-library-system/article_c50a4a44-73a5-54c4-8493-3535c449fc55.html]
King George County. Annual Budget 2008/2009: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/111]
King George County. Annual Budget 2009/2010: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/110]
King George County. Annual Budget 2010/2011: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/109]
King George County. Annual Budget 2011/2012: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/117]
King George County. Annual Budget 2011/2012 version 2: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/118]
King George County. Annual Budget 2012/2013: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/116]
King George County. Annual Budget 2013/2014: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/113]
King George County. Annual Budget 2014/2015: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/115]
King George County. Annual Budget 2015/2016: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/114]
King George County. Annual Budget 2016/2017: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/112]
King George County. Annual Budget 2017/2018: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/245]
King George County. Board of Supervisors Ordinance.
King George County. Comprehensive Financial Report. 2017: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/260]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Annual Reports 2014: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/143]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Annual Reports 2015: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/242]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Annual Reports 2016: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/243]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Annual Reports 2017: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/263]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Board of Trustees By-Laws: [Page 1 and Page 2]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Board of Trustees Meeting Minutes.
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Computer Use Policy: [https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/DocumentCenter/View/422]
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Deed of Gift.
The Lewis Egerton Smoot Memorial Library. Instrument of Gift.
Spotsylvania County. Partner Agency Application for Funding - 2015: [http://www.spotsylvania.va.us/filestorage/21027/21029/23134/27346/25566/25988/CRRL.pdf]
Spotsylvania County. May 28, 2002. Board of Supervisors Meeting Minutes: [http://www.spotsylvania.va.us/filestorage/21027/29250/4652/4656/4688/4840/05282002.pdf]
Stafford County. December 19, 2017. Board of Supervisors Agenda: [http://bos.stafford.va.us/2017/12192017/6.pdf]
Stafford County. Budget. 2012: [https://staffordcountyva.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1165]
Virginia Public Libraries Extranet. Library Development and Networking. [http://vpl.virginia.gov/youth-services/stem-resource-hubs/]