Arlington officials increased the county’s projected budget gap by 40 percent Wednesday, calling for a $14 million shortfall instead of the $10 million one estimated earlier this month.
County Budget Manager Ron Carlee ordered a hiring freeze two weeks ago and is now projecting the county will have to downsize staff by about 5 percent in preparation for what is expected to be an even tougher budget environment next year.
Arlington employs 3,738 people.
County department heads have been told to suggest cuts in discretionary spending — an area that includes overtime, travel, food and supplies — and officials will evaluate potential reductions in county services over the next two months.
“I don’t think any [department] will come out on the other end of this not having reductions,” Carlee said, adding that cuts will not jeopardize essential public safety services such as 911.
The county also will look at which of its planned construction projects can be deferred, according to Carlee.
The new, bleaker figures are the result of a closer examination of county revenues and a greater-than-anticipated decline in real estate values, Carlee said.
Arlington’s budget leaders had been projecting property values would stay flat this year, but recently decided to brace for the likelihood that the county’s January property assessments will show a 2 percent price drop. Several surrounding counties are facing much steeper declines, with Prince William County projecting a dramatic 25 percent drop.
“A 2 percent decline, that’ll be good news,” Carlee said. “I’ll be satisfied with that.”
The county is in a stronger position than many of its neighbors, but residents will have to expect a little less from Arlington than they have received in the past, Carlee said.
“It’s going to feel like the glass is half empty when in reality it is 90 to 95 percent full,” he said. “But we’ve just been through eight years where our cup runneth over.”
