Testimony: Charles McAndrew on the County Budget
My wife and I have been homeowners and taxpayers in Fairfax County for more than 50 years. I am here to protest the budget and real estate tax increases.
The FY 2020 General Fund Disbursements are projected to be $4.437 billion, an increase of 3.67% over the FY 2019 Revised Budget Plan and represents $156.95 million.
The County Wants More of Your Money
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors simply cannot and will not live within their means. Of course, their “means” means our taxes. This group of Democrats that never met a tax dollar it didn’t like has done it again. Our real estate taxes have just been raised an average of about 4.2%. Of course, next year, an election year for the entire Board of Supervisors and the School Board, there will be no tax increase. You heard it here first.
With all the new residential and business construction going on all over the County, one might expect…
Time to Scale Back the Fairfax County Retirement System
The Educational Employees’ Supplementary Retirement System of Fairfax County (ERFC) was established July 1, 1973, to provide an independent retirement plan for Fairfax County Public Schools’ personnel as a supplement to the primary benefits they earn and receive separately from the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) and Social Security.
Currently, at age 55 after 30 years of working for FCPS, a retiring employee’s yearly pension amount paid by the VRS comes to about 50% of that person’s average pay based on his/her 5 highest-paid years. Normally, Social Security benefits would equate to around 25% of a person’s income earned during those 30 years of County employment at “full retirement” age, now 67 for new FCPS hires. The ERFC supplement was designed to make up for losing that 25% by retiring prior to age 67. In essence, retiring FCPS employees receive 75% of their pay at age 55. However, the County now…