THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, April 5, 1996 TAG: 9604050012
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A14 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
Blame the schools.
That was the message of the proposed 1996-1997 Virginia Beach city budget presented to City Council on Tuesday.
Taxes are set to go up in the Resort City, and if taxpayers want to blame something, the architects of the budget plan suggest they look to the schools.
``I deeply regret that I must recommend a property-tax increase of 3.2 cents per $100 of assessed value. . . ,'' wrote City Manager James K. Spore in the introduction to the budget document. ``I am forced to this measure by events and circumstances surrounding the School Operating Fund which are beyond my control or that of council.''
Since every penny increase in Virginia Beach real-estate taxes raises $1.8 million in revenue, the city will raise almost $5.8 million with the increase - the same amount of money the school system will lose in federal funding during the coming fiscal year.
In a forward-looking move that is to be commended, Spore has proposed setting aside $1 million in a contingency fund for schools in the event of further education cuts. It is prudent to expect the unexpected, especially when much of the school system's operating fund comes from federal and state sources.
Good schools cost money and Virginia Beach has always demanded excellence in education. But to blame the schools for the tax hike seems disingenuous. Taxes are going up to help cover the full cost of the $897 million budget which includes increases in city salaries and new hires.
Even with the tax hike, which will bring the rate to $1.22 per $100 of assessed value, Virginia Beach will have one of the lowest property-tax rates in the area, and some of the best schools.
Under the plan, the city will bump up salaries of city employees who were lagging behind their Hampton Roads counterparts. The average raise will be between 3 percent and 5 percent next year if the budget is approved, but 699 employees will receive increases of between 6 percent and 26 percent.
The budget has been described by Spore as a ``maintenance of effort'' document - designed to hold the city together without embarking on many new projects.
Under the proposal, the city will hire 111 new employees and the school system will get 69 new hires.
Council has six weeks to study the proposal and hold public hearings before voting on the spending package. Copies of the city budget are available in all Virginia Beach public libraries, and we encourage citizens to give the budget a close look.
Taxes are set to go up, and no one likes that prospect. But there are times when revenue increases are essential to provide the quality of life citizens have come to expect.
But blaming the schools for a tax hike is not a constructive way to engage the public in debate. by CNB