Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has delayed action on raising their current annual salary of $75,000 until March 3, leaving the record open for comments. According to the County Executive, the fiscal impact of $205,000, if approved, the annual Board of Supervisors salary will total $95,500 or a 27.33 percent increase. Only supervisors Herrity (R) and Symth (D) opposed considering a Board of Supervisors pay raise.
According to a 2014 Virginia Association of Counties salary survey of 55 Virginia counties, Fairfax County supervisors' salary top all by a substantial amount. For the four top surrounding counties, the supervisors salaries are: Arlington $50,127, Prince William $49,826, Loudoun $41,200 and Henrico $49,826. The chairmen of the boards receive a little more except Fairfax County that receives the same annual salary as supervisors.
Does the Board of Supervisors deserve a salary increase considering the following examples of questionable spending of your hard earned tax payer dollars?
The Board of Supervisors has a long-standing practice of paying substantially above the assessed value of property it purchases compared to the assessed value. If the purchase price paid is correct the underassessment results in undercollection of real estate taxes. And, if the assessment is correct, the purchase price paid is too much. In either case, the taxpayers are the losers.
Fairfax County is the largest landlord in the area that includes subsidized housing in million dollar condo and townhouse communities that have exercise rooms, computer rooms and more. You pay.
The Board of Supervisors in 2014 gave over $10 million in bonuses to employees whose salary averaged $68,000 annually whether they earned it or not.
In 2014, the Board of Supervisors bailed out a bank for a $30 million unsecured loan to a Lorton Arts Fonation.
If you believe that kind of spending of your tax dollars is OK don't do anything. But, if you have problems with raising supervisors salary by $20,500 for a total of $95,000 annually to continue questionable spending, then make your views known before March 3, when the Board of Supervisors is to consider the pay raise.
Call the Clerk to the Board of Supervisors at 703-324-3151 or email the clerk at clerktoBOS@fairfaxcounty.gov or write to: Board of Supervisors, 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax, Va. 22035. If you also want to contact your supervisor email by typing in your district@ FairfaxCounty.gov. For example, mason@fairfaxcounty.gov.
Make your views known and make a difference.
Frank Medico
Mount Vernon