Prince William is planning to cut back and outsource some county services and restructure staff as a way to deal with a projected $190 million shortfall in fiscal 2010.
“The pain will be shared across county government,” said Chairman Corey Stewart, R-at large. “Spending cuts are necessary.”
All agencies except for public safety would be subject to 20 percent cuts, he said.
Funding increases to at-risk youth and community services programs would be deferred for one year.
Stewart said the county would outsource some of the services to Youth for Tomorrow, a local service for at-risk youth founded in 1986 by former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs.
The county also is looking to outsource other services to nonprofits or private contractors, Stewart said.
No new staff would be added to nonpublic safety departments in fiscal 2010 under the proposed five-year plan. There would be no pay raises to close salary gaps between county posts and similar positions in other jurisdictions for the duration of the five-year plan.
“It’s going to require some drastic and deep cuts in the county and the school system,” Stewart said.
Several road projects would be suspended, including Minnieville Road from Spriggs to Route 234, and Route 1 from Neabsco Mills to Featherstone.
The Board of Supervisors also asked the county executive to explore the potential of furloughs — or mandatory unpaid days off. Fairfax and Prince George’s counties recently approved furloughs for county employees as a way to trim costs, while Montgomery County is considering such a measure.
Supervisor John Jenkins, D-Neabsco, said the county was looking at charging fees for ambulance services, and said it could save as much as $4 million per year. He stressed nobody would be denied ambulance rides.
“Everything is on the table,” he said.
The board said Tuesday it is directing County Executive Craig Gerhart to prepare a budget with a 16-cent increase in the property tax rate. That would mean residents’ tax bills would drop by an average of 18 percent to accompany a projected 30 percent decline in residential property assessments.
The average resident would see an average $600 reduction in his tax bill in fiscal 2010, Stewart said.
“All of these numbers are going to change, but we need to get started,” Gerhart said.
