The Prince William Board of County Supervisors (BOCS) has adopted its fiscal 2019 budget.
Board members unanimously approved a nearly $1.2 billion spending plan at a meeting on Tuesday.
The budget, which takes effect on July 1, includes about $578.8 million for Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS).
As part of the revenue sharing agreement, the county funds 57 percent of the school system’s budget.
The budget sets aside almost $363 million for public safety, including $48.2 million for the Adult Detention Center.
It also provides funding for the first phase of a Public Safety Retention and Recruitment Study, which aims to recruit and retain career firefighters in Prince William County.
County Executive Chris Matrino explained the significance of the plan to the BOCS in February.
On Tuesday, board members voted in favor of implementing the second phase of the plan.
During the second phase, which will begin in fiscal 2020, personnel could switch to a 56-hour work week.
Several members of career and volunteer fire departments offered input about the the Public Safety Retention and Recruitment Study.
Some individuals spoke from their experiences.
“We work as a team, doesn’t matter if it’s the career staff together or the volunteers, it still gets done,” Dumfries Triangle Volunteer Fire Department Deputy Chief Miles Young said. “The average citizen doesn’t care who shows up, as long as somebody does.”
Young also voiced his support of phase one.
“I know what it’s like to be underpaid for a job that I’m actually supposed to get paid for,” said Young, a former career firefighter. “So, I think phase one is a no-brainer. The career staff need staffing and they need the money … or else they’re going to move on someplace else. But, in turn, I want to make sure the volunteers stay, too. So voting for phase two is probably going to be the elimination of the volunteers.”
Paul Hebert, president of the Prince William Professional Fire Fighters Local 2598, said phase two will not eliminate volunteer fire department personnel.
Phase two does not eliminate the need for volunteers. It does not eliminate the possibilities for volunteers to serve their community,” Hebert said. “What it does eliminate is the number one retention issue that we have in the Department of Fire and Rescue, and that is the operational daytime schedule.”
Board members also voted to set aside $1.5 million from the fiscal 2018 contingency for the Neabsco Creek dredging and capital projects at Harbor Drive Park.
The United States Coast Guard recently replaced navigation signs on Neabsco Creek with danger signs due to the channel’s silting issue.
The U.S. Army Corporation of Engineers is responsible for dredging the federal waterway. However, their lack of funding is making it difficult for the group to do the required maintenance.
Using $750,000 from the fiscal 2018 contingency helps resolve the funding issue.
