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By LOU HATTER
Rappahannock Ncw« Staff Writer
Ronald Frazier, who is seeking election to the Board of Supervisors representing Jackson District, said that he sees one of the county’s largest problems as its budget, and the struggle each year to find the necessary money to keep the county going.
“Instead of increasing the tax rate each year,” Mr. Frazier suggested, “maybe the county needs a long-term plan - which I feel at this time has been lacking.” With that, he suggested, perhaps the county “can overcome the escalating tax rate each year. Maybe we cannot stop the increase, but it could be cut down” with the implementation of a capital improvements program, Mr. Frazier said.
Though the county has a comparatively low tax rate, he added, “there are still some residents of the county who are not going to be able to cope with their tax bills. (County government) must take into account all its residents.”
Although there is a cushion of several hundred thousand dollars built into the county’s general fund, Mr. Frazier named the landfill and the RCHS improvement project as two expenditures which are eating into that “cushion” this year. “The supervisors have shown foresight in allowing that to develop, but it has not been specifically earmarked to things.”
Pursuing his suggestion of a capital improvements plan, Mr. Frazier likened the situation to that of a consumer with a new car. “You know that sooner or later things are going to happen . . . sooner or later you’re going to have to spend money (for the schools) on a roof, a boiler. It shouldn’t be necessary to raise the budget each year to cover those things - the county ought to be looking ahead toward maintenance programs.”
On the issue of development in the county, “that’s a policy to be set by a majority vote of the Board of Supervisors.” The county’s restrictive growth policy over the past 14 years, he said, “while it has had benefits, kept the tax rate down, it has also had bad effects - it has driven young people out of the county.”
“There is going to be growth, no matter what the zoning. I would like to see the current residents remain
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