Prince William supervisors' chairman: Cuts will be 'deep' and 'painful'

We’re all in this together — that’s the gist of the message Prince William Board of Supervisors’ Chairman Corey Stewart, R-at-large, wanted to get across to constituents during his annual remarks on the state of the county at Tuesday’s meeting.

“Around the family kitchen tables in your homes, a conversation is taking place … and [families] are trying to make ends meet,” Stewart said, describing this conversation as centered around jobs and finances. “The county must do the same. We must meet around our own kitchen table — this board, our staff, our many boards and commissions and you — and make the tough decisions.”

Board members also elected a new vice chair on Tuesday, voting 7-0 with one abstention. The current holder of this title, John Stirrup, R-Gainesville, motioned for the selection of Supervisor Wally Covington, R-Brentsville.

“Thank you,” Covington said, echoing Stewart’s push for collaboration and nonpartisan teamwork. “Budget issues are very significant for the nation and Prince William County, but we will get through it if we work together.”

As part of his “state of the county address,” Stewart talked of Prince William’s unusual circumstances in comparison with surrounding jurisdictions.

“Last year, when other major localities in the region hoped for the best, we prepared for the worst,” he said.

And as a result, Prince William differs from other communities in that budget shortfalls were not felt in this current fiscal year, and taxes are not planned to increase in the coming fiscal year. Still, he said, challenges are coming.

“[Our] work has just begun,” Stewart said, “[and] 2009 will present the toughest fiscal challenge this board or this county has ever faced. Declining home values and
shrinking sales tax and other revenues means a projected shortfall in the next fiscal year of $190 million. This problem is compounded by the substantial cuts expected from the General Assembly.”

The work for the upcoming budget season will focus mainly on cuts: “The cuts will be deep. The cuts will be painful. But the cuts mean that … this board shall deliver a tax cut to all of you at home,” he said.

Stewart touted some of the county’s perceived successes of the past year — deporting more than 1,300 illegal aliens; implementing an illegal immigration policy that’s being copied by other communities; building roads in the face of transportation budget shortfalls and cuts; creating a housing assistance program for government employees that “helps reduce the oversupply of unsold homes” and foreclosures.

“Finally,” he said, “we’ve addressed economic development … and despite a slowing economy … 28 new and expanding companies announced intentions to invest $326 million and hire 520 new high-wage workers [this year].”

Quoting Martin Luther King’s definition of character — the true measure of which is revealed during times of crisis and hardship — Stewart finished with a promise for nonpartisanship, a call for teamwork and a reminder of the county’s strength.

“The obstacles we face are monumental, but they are not insurmountable,” he said. “This county is a national leader and we do not wait for others to fix problems. We blaze our own trail. We control our own destiny.”