Media reports about Montgomery County's elections for Board of Supervisors and School Board have been very sparse.
Some candidates seemed to have missed the memo about an elected School Board being responsible for pubic education.
Sure, the county's overall budget appears to lean toward K-12 educational funding. Much of that money, however, is "dedicated" for specific programs or uses. If not applied per State or federal requirements, it won't be funded. Poof. That money (and those services) are gone.
This shouldn't be confused with educational funding at the local level.
It might be better for voters to ask Board of Supervisor candidates about other allocations and tax levels. While the county budget appears to be dominated by dollars for K-12 education, sources and the purpose of these funds needs to be grasped. Sure, the Supervisors hold the purse strings (but at what cost, such as deficient facilities and unplanned debt)?
And the Supervisor's scope is supposedly far more broad than just K-12 education (which is complex and why there is another group of elected officials to specialize on this topic).
As examples: the county funds public library, jail and court systems, and supplements the costs of operating constitutional offices (treasurer, commissioner of revenue, sheriff's office, voter registrar). Some of these services are "mandated" by the State, yet the monies flowing from Richmond fall short of actual expenses.
Then there are a lot of "revenue sharing" expenses, including fire and rescue, sanitation, the health department and social service agencies. Comprehensive Services for youth and the disabled is staggering and problematic. Again, State funds don't cover the actual costs. And economic development (funded regionally by other counties, cities, towns and State/federal taxes) cannot be ignored.
Informed voters will look for candidates who understand the needs, and the mandated service costs.
Don't worry about the districts where there are no races - those candidates will win simply by voting for themselves.
A joint forum showcasing challenged candidates will be held Monday, Oct. 17 in the Blacksburg Municipal Building at 7 pm. Plan on attending, or try to watch a video of the forum before the November 8th elections.
And ask more questions about the Board of Supervisors' current budget and debt service, and past spending (more on that, next).