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Our View
Deputies’ pay
Can we afford a living wage for
county employees?
At this week's Board of Supervisors Budget Work
Session, Sheriff Larry Sherertz proposed that
the board okay a supplement to the sheriffs deputies' pay schedule that would bring them only in range of other local areas. The base pay for a deputy, set by the State Compensation Board, is $22,595 and the Sheriffs proposal would add some $2000 per year to that.
His objective is to provide a "living wage" to his troops in an attempt to stem the tide of "economic flight" the same tide that School Superintendent Dr. Gangel referred to when making his plea for better educator salaries.
Rappahannock is a county of some apparent wealth, yet it is not without a fair percentage of residents who struggle to make a living too.
Certainly most residents would like to see their fine educators and law enforcement officers remain in the county, and many would do whatever it takes to see that they do. Unfortunately, "whatever it takes" generally equates to raising property taxes, and one wonders how much that can be done before the property that gives Rappahannock the character that we all love is threatened.
What to do? Reassess property to ensure that those higher-end homes are properly valued and taxed? Ensure that those receiving the full benefit of land use taxation are in fact qualified to receive that benefit? Officially promote tourism and other relatively benign endeavors that will contribute to the tax rolls?
Perhaps it is time to take a more detailed look at Rappahannock and its future, and find some way to ensure that our county's employees, and residents, can live and work in this glorious place without too much struggle.
96.7%