Stafford Board of Supervisors Discuss Budget Cuts at Afternoon Work Session
The board meets later this evening to set the tax rate and approve the budget.
By Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
Email Adele
The Stafford Board of Supervisors this afternoon began discussing how to potentially cut millions from the county’s budget in order to keep the tax rate flat this calendar year.
The board held a work session on Tuesday afternoon and will meet again on Tuesday evening to formally vote on the tax rate for calendar year 2025 and approve and appropriate the budget for fiscal year 2026, which begins July 1.
By 4 p.m., the board had come to some agreement about cuts that would amount to a little under two pennies off the proposed 5-cent real estate tax increase. That proposal would include level-funding for the Rappahannock Regional Jail, which would remove about $2 million from the budget; cutting proposed increases to the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance and the Stafford Economic Development Authority; cutting the county Christmas tree lighting ($5,000); reducing department operating funds by 7%; and removing on-going funding for vehicles for the Sheriff’s Office.
There was no agreement about a suggestion made by Crystal Vanuch, the Rock Hill district supervisor, to zero-out funding for partner agencies such as the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank, Micah Ecumenical Industries, the Thurman Brisben Center, Empowerhouse, FailSafe-ERA, and others, which would cut about $500,000.
Vanuch several times chastised other board members for not accepting this and other proposals for keeping the tax rate level over the current calendar year.
“You guys are ridiculous,” she said. “I feel like you don’t want to lower the tax rate.”
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