Montgomery County Board of Supervisors read the signs right: don't increase local taxes. This is prudent for several reasons, including current economic conditions being weathered by county business and citizens. Prudent for those supervisors who intend to seek another term in office, too.
Even when considering supervisors are facing some of same increased costs that individual companies and households are dealing with -- higher utility and energy costs, increased insurance premiums, and contributing to retirement plans -- they could have gone a step further, and cut the real property rates, even though values have dropped since the last assessment. This is suggested as regards use of the county's "reserve" funds, which are significant yet aren't dedicated to anything.
Some people call these "rainy day" funds. Well, it's raining now but what citizens saw was a good deal of money spent on non-essential items this past fiscal year. The exiting administrator said the county worked at a "bare-bones" level, yet apparently entertained many special purchases. Examples include land purchases valued at over $1.5 million and future construction in the $2 million ballpark which were not listed within the current budget nor capital improvement plans.
Relative to the Federal Stimulus, and by Friday, March 6, citizens can visit www.recovery.org to share their thoughts about how these billions should be allocated. Remember, this is over and above public funds being given without any strings attached to Wall Street or loans with highly favorable terms again provided to America's big-three auto makers (since they're coming around a third time for additional money, this may give new meaning to "Big 3").
Virginians can give the same type of input on stimulus dollars the state will receive at http://stimulus.virginia.gov/ -- again, by March 6. If you are going to advocate for a specific project, be ready to provide the general funding requirements and/or project name.
The key thing to remember with the stimulus funding is that much of it is one-time only relief for localities or states. So the money must be leveraged, serving as a bridge to better days while building a stronger foundation for economic development and infrastructure. Otherwise, like the bank bailout, taxpayers won't get a bang for their buck or a return on investment.
This is also why local governments -- county, town or city -- must look at their current programs and projects now, seeking permanent process improvements to do their jobs better. Otherwise, our Board of Supervisors will be back next year telling us why they need to raise personal and real property tax rates, regardless of other economic factors which may include even further diminished property values.