Arlington officials will host a community budget forum Friday at 7 p.m. at the Central Library Auditorium to discuss the county’s likely budget woes in the next fiscal year.
County manager Barbara Donnellan and city officials are inviting the public to submit ideas for how the county can close its anticipated budget gap. In September, Donnellan predicted the county and Arlington County public schools would face a combined budget gap of $25 million to $35 million in fiscal 2012.
With only modest growth in revenue predicted for next year, the County Board has instructed Donnellan to limit growth in county spending to 1.14 percent in the next budget to match the inflation rate, according to officials.
The budget gap is actually an improvement on the county’s situation a year ago, when it faced an $80 million gap.
