Prince William considers budget cuts

By Cheryl Chumley

Published: November 4, 2008

For Prince William libraries, a 10 percent cut in fiscal 2010 funding would mean those requesting certain records may have to wait an extra day or two.

But for police, that 10 percent cut means the abolition of Neighborhood Watch, crime prevention education and the entire bike patrol team.

Basic police response service drops even more at 20 percent, and all but the most essential of training and develop-ment are eliminated at 30 percent.

The scenarios were part and parcel of Friday's daylong meeting of supervisors, staffers and departmental officials to discuss the county's economic outlook and take preliminary steps toward offsetting a projected fiscal 2010 shortfall of $82 million. The schools, meanwhile, face a $108 million gap for this same budget year.

"We are not facing deficits in the current fiscal year," said Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart, R-at-large. "We are facing how to plan for the next fiscal year."

One obvious way is to consider cuts. As such, department heads were asked to present supervisors with the out-comes of budget cuts in various ranges. At worst, police could see stopping all "quality control of case inves-tigations for prosecution" and the subsequent compromise in the ability to obtain court convictions; the elimi-nation of proactive patrols and criminal suppression programs; and a diminished emergency response system as officers are forced to respond only "to those calls that appear to be the most serious," according to briefing documents.

A 33 percent cut in funding for the Adult Detention Center, meanwhile, translates into significant cuts in staffing: 31 from the ADC, 47 from the modular jail and 21 from the work release and electronic monitoring program, according to presented statistics.

Other departments presenting best-guesses for various funding cuts: Finance, which claimed a 33 percent budget drop, could leave the office vulnerable at audit time; the Human Rights Commission, which reported that 10 percent budget decreases would immediately cut funding for an administrative staffer, while a 33 percent budget drop would only leave enough money for a part-time investigator; and the Registrar, which reported the potential to lose five full-time employees if the budget was cut by 33 percent.

A 20 percent at the Registrar's Office would still result in the elimination of an assistant's position, according to financial projections from the department.

These were but a few of the scenarios painted; several other departments reported similar

outcomes.

But county staff and supervisors have yet to make any decisions—the information was for discussion purposes only and will be fine-tuned by December, when the board is due to receive actual budget guidance from executive staff.

The county administrator's proposed budget won't come out until February.

Staff writer Cheryl Chumley can be reached at 703-670-1907.