West Nova News

Loudoun County Board of Supervisors issued the following announcement on Apr. 6.

The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors has approved a budget  totaling approximately $3.3 billion in total appropriations for the  general county government and school system for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022.  The adopted budget includes a real property tax rate of $0.980 per $100  in assessed value, 5.5 cents lower than the current tax rate.  

The FY 2022 adopted budget includes: 

• An  increase over FY 2021 of approximately $68 million in local tax funding  to Loudoun County Public Schools (7.2% increase over last year).
• $9.5  million in base budget adjustments the county’s budget to continue  providing current services, including increases in contracts and ongoing  maintenance agreements, lease and utility increases and inflationary  impacts. 
• An increase of $12.4 million for employee  compensation, which includes a 3% merit increase and a step increase for  public safety employees.
• The addition of 168 positions in 20  different county departments to open new facilities, maintain or enhance  current service levels, support the county’s Capital Improvement  Program and position the organization to pursue the Board’s strategic  priorities.
• An increase of $45.3 million to fund debt service and capital needs of the county government and LCPS.

The  FY 2022 adopted budget also includes funding for several Board of  Supervisors strategic initiatives including the expansion of the adult  drug court, body-worn cameras for the law enforcement, collective  bargaining, and expansion of the Youth After School program. In  addition, the adopted budget includes Loudoun County’s operating and  capital subsidy payments to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit  Authority due to the anticipated start of Metrorail’s Silver Line  revenue service in Loudoun County during FY 2022. 

Capital Improvement Program

The  Board also adopted the Amended FY 2021-2026 Capital Improvement Program  (CIP) that totals $3.1 billion for the six-year planning period and  includes county and school projects. The category with the largest  expenditure percentage is transportation projects at 37%, followed by  school projects at 26%, which incorporates the School Board’s adopted  capital plan and accommodates all requested school projects. 

New  projects include the Arcola Quarters for the Enslaved, which will  restore an existing historic site in Arcola to a create a passive  recreation and educational facility, and the local match for the FEMA  grant to mitigate flooding issues in Selma Estates.

The CIP also  calls for accelerating critical Board priorities, including the Western  Loudoun Recreation Center and the Remote Site Connectivity project,  which expands broadband to five county sites, also in western Loudoun.

Fiscal Year 2022

The  FY 2022 budget will go into effect July 1, 2021, while the new tax  rates are effective as of January 1, 2021, and will be used for the  spring tax collection. 

The complete adopted budget document will  be posted on the county’s website in the coming weeks. More information  about the budget process is online at loudoun.gov/budget. 

Original source can be found here.