AT THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS HELD ON THE 25th DAY OF APRIL, TWO THOUSAND AND ELEVEN AT SEVEN O'CLOCK P.M. AT THE RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY HIGH

SCHOOL GYNASIUM

Present	Present	Absent
Roger A Welch, Chairman S. Bryant Lee, V-Chairman Ronald L. Frazier I. Christopher Parrish Michael J. Biniek	John McCarthy, Co. Adm. Margaret Ralph, Clerk	None

The Chairman, Mr. Welch, called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. and opened the public hearing on the FY2012 Budget.

Mr. McCarthy set forth the procedures that would be followed for the meeting. He also explained that Statute requires that the Board of Supervisors hold a public hearing on the proposed school budget 7 days prior to the adoption of that Budget. The Board is planning to adopt the School Budget on Monday, May 2, 2011, at its regular 2 PM meeting at the Courthouse in Washington, Virginia. The County Budget will be adopted at a later meeting. No action will be taken tonight on either budget.

Mr. Welch opened the Public Hearing inviting anyone who wished to speak to do so at this time.

School Board Chairman, Wesley Mills, addressed the Board and encouraged them to support the School Board's level funding request. He gave a brief synopsis of the proposed budget highlighting the following: that there will be no request for raises or step increases for the teachers, there will be coverage for health benefit increase, and that the Board is also planning a January bonus that will be covered by both federal and local funds. He added that this year's budget has IT improvements that will help improve our instructor training and our connectivity to data sources and families. The energy improvements that are planned are the results of joint cooperation between the School Board and the Board of Supervisors and will greatly improve the safety and efficiency of our schools. There will also be curriculum improvements. The School Board appreciates the Board's support and thanked them for all the joint efforts.

Rosa Crocker, School Board Member, spoke about "the kids". She spoke about Paul Nichols who served on the School Board for three decades. Mr. Nichols would say, "let's pay the bills"…. also "our wealth is in our children". She spoke briefly about this year's budget: the importance of student support and the role of our teachers to help students navigate through the steps and difficulties of life and to get along with others. Ms. Crocker urged the Board to adopt the budget as presented.

School Board Member, Aline Johnson, said that the Board did the best they could to keep this a level-spending budget and asked that the Board support it as presented.

Monira Rifaat thanked the Board for presenting a budget that keeps our taxes at the present level. She posed the question: How long can this last? We have one of the lowest tax rates in all our neighboring counties. The numbers have been managed very well to keep the bottom line constant. She posed another question: What lies ahead in the coming year – not with just the school budget but the county budget. Mr. Lee and Mr. Welch responded touching on the decrease in school enrollment and the salary issues. Ms. Rifaat also asked about current and past enrollment figures and commented on the demographics of the county now and in the future.

Mr. McCarthy responded to the question concerning Budget item 4305 – School & Facility Renovation. This category will take care of the repairs to the schools, including asbestos abatement, windows, boiler replacement, lighting and other electric enhancements. Ms Rifaat asked why this wasn't in the School Budget and would the money eventually come from school budgets. Mr. McCarthy replied that this money is funded in the school budget long term and is money put aside in debt services at $150,000.00 per year and it will fund the School & Facility Renovation over a term of 10 years. Mr. Lee and Mr. Parrish also commented.

Tom Junk commented that everything about and in Rappahannock is wonderful and he thinks that the Board has done a very good job in keeping the tax rate down. The school budget is the most realistic that we have ever had, but enrollment has been going down. We have had an increase in population, but it mostly due to the influx of older people, not kids. If you don't have a growing population, in fifty years, Rappahannock will look like a park. There are a few changes that can be made to save money in the budget: including rental of office space; use what we have, i.e. at the Tourist Center. Tourist Center can be at the Library. He spoke about Deferred Compensation in both budgets. The Board needs to look at the budgets this year to offset future increases. The Board needs to reward people who are doing a good job and get rid of those who are not. Although the School Budget has not gone up for two years, the County Budget has taken on more and more, i.e. HVAC maintenance. Items that are part of the school system should stay in the school budget. Likewise, county responsibilities should remain in the county budget. There should be no shifting back and forth. Make it simple.

Since there were no further comments from the public, Mr. Welch closed the Public Hearing and asked for any Board comments.

Mr. Lee commented that he felt that the Superintendent and the School Board have done an excellent job with this budget. Unlike money from the state and federal sources, money from the county is generally stabilized. These are hard economic times, but everyone is doing a good job.

John McCarthy responded to the public's comments. With regard to the HVAC, the County did agree to take over this expense during the next budget year. This was the result of a prior agreement of the School Board to fund a year ahead of time the 10 years of debt service for the energy improvements at the schools. The bottom line is that both boards have worked very diligently to achieve the implementation of the energy saving and improvement projects at the schools, including asbestos abatement, lighting, windows, additional electrical service and a number of smaller projects. All of these will yield energy efficiency and other savings from the moment they are installed. These savings may be helpful in implementing salary increases in the future. He stressed that prior problems with the school repairs have been addressed and the Board is committed not to have these types of problem occur again.

He continued. We need to invest in our personnel. The School Board has done the responsible thing and found a way with the money they had to give bonuses for the past two years. The county is trying, this year, to restart the longevity program for employees. It may be initiated. Maybe something else will be done. It's not been decided yet. There have been some employee cuts and there may be more. But that doesn't mean that cutting some will mean no reward for others. It is an on-going debate. The economy has not rebounded yet and responsible decision need to be made.

Mr. Welch commented on the age of both school buildings: the high school was built about 60 years ago, the elementary school about 40. All the improvements were necessary and will add to the efficiency of both buildings.

There being no further business, Mr. Welch called for a motion to adjourn. On motion of Mr. Lee, seconded by Mr.Parrish, and agreed upon by all board members, the meeting was adjourned.

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Roger A. Welch, Chairman