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--- site_news:site_news [2026/03/17 15:16] – editor
+++ site_news:site_news [2026/03/30 00:02] (current) – [02/24/2026 BOS Meeting : The "Proposed" 2026/2027 Budget is Presented] editor
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+====== 03/19/2026 Highland County School Board Meeting : Proposed Budget  ======
+Ref Agenda Page -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/doku.php?id=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:03_19-special_hcsb_meeting|03-19-2026 - Highland School Board Budget Meeting]]  (Files may be viewed or downloaded from this page, **to include the HC school division's proposed budget**.)\\
+This budget presentation, for all intents and purposes, was nearly identical to the meeting on March 12th.  The ask, essentially 12%, was the same.  The only difference is that this presentation was delivered by the superintendent.  He kept insisting that this budget was "required", hinting that it was minimum or bare bones.  This was nonsensical of course.  Otherwise, how did last year transpire without the requested 12%?
+To properly characterize what the superintendent and the school board is asking, look at -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:speaking_notes_3-19-26.pdf|my notes]] for their 3 minute public comment session.  In the bottom line, the school division created a financial mess last year that was finally resolved by the County sending a massive **__$687,617.50__** check to Richmond.  Now, as it that wasn't enough, they're asking for 12%..??
+====== 03/18/2026 Board of Supervisors: Budget Session  ======
+Ref Agenda Page -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/doku.php?id=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:03_18|03-18-2026 - Budget Session]]\\
+This session seemed to be more about how much would need to be transferred from the general fund, to prevent a tax increase.  While I'm for that generally speaking (a large slush fund invites the Board to spend it), there was no mention of two key issues:
+  * There was no side-by-side comparison between this year's proposed budget, versus last years passed budget, to see the relative increase.
+  * There was no mention of NOT giving out the requested (ridiculous) increases which are multiples of last year's inflation.
+\\
+We have to remember, the County is not growing meaning that the administrative job is staying the same.  Therefore, why would any budget be given more than an inflation increase of 3%?\\
+\\
 ====== 03/12/2026 Highland County School Board Meeting : Proposed Budget  ======
-Ref Agenda Page -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/doku.php?id=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:03_12-special_hcsb_meeting|03-12-2026 - Special Highland School Board Meeting]] (Files may be viewed or downloaded from this page.)\\
+Ref Agenda Page -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/doku.php?id=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:03_12-special_hcsb_meeting|03-12-2026 - Special Highland School Board Meeting]]  (Files may be viewed or downloaded from this page, **to include the HC school division's proposed budget**.)\\
 In consideration of the scheduled initial 2026 budget proposal being on this meeting's agenda, I attended out of morbid curiosity.  I had hopes that the budget request would be realistic, but expected something outlandish. I wasn't disappointed.  First I delivered my -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:speaking_notes_3-13-26.pdf|personal speaking notes]] before seeing their proposed budget, in a severely abbreviated form (only 3 minutes are allowed).
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 I presented some of the latest data from the -> [[https://www.doe.virginia.gov/data-policy-funding/data-reports/statistics-reports/superintendent-s-annual-report|Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) Superintendents report]].  The most notable stat's from what I reviewed was tables 15 and 17 for Highland County - which are [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:final-fy24-table-15.pdf|Per Pupil Expenditure]] and [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:table17-fy24.pdf|Student to Teacher Ratio]].  I wouldn't be surprised to find that (1) the superintendent to not present this information to the School Board and (2) that the School Board did not, independently, look it up.
-In accordance table 15, Highland is 4th from the highest in the state of Virginia and supplied $24,507 per student in year 2024.  (Note this is not the actual full cost.  That number is found by taking the final budget amount, divided by the number of students.  That actual cost is around $30,000 per student.)
+In accordance with [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:final-fy24-table-15.pdf|table 15]], Highland is 4th from the highest in the state of Virginia and supplied $24,507 per student in fiscal year 2024/2025.  (Note this is not the actual full cost.  That number is found by taking the finalized budget amount, divided by the number of students.  That actual cost is around $30,000 per student.)\\
+In accordance with [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:table17-fy24.pdf|table 17]] (where lower is considered to be better) Highland County has the lowest Student to Teacher ratio in the State of Virginia, BAR NONE.  For a quick summation of this, see my [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:speaking_notes_3-13-26.pdf|speaking notes]]given during the 03/12/2025 school board meeting.
-Given what I've seen, and noting that I've been closer the budget processes than any Highland citizen that is NOT on the County's payroll; I can see the set up for another ridiculously high tax increase.  Is it needed?  No.  Highland County is a case study in steadiness and regularity.  There are no population surges to speak of, no crime waves, and no swelling of students registering in the school system.  So why are the citizens of Highland be pelted with tax and fee increases?
+Given what I've seen, and noting that I've been closer to County budget processes than any Highland citizen that is NOT on the County's payroll; I can see the set up for another ridiculously high tax increase on the horizon.  Is it needed?  No.  Highland County is a case study in steadiness and regularity.  There are no population surges to speak of, no crime waves, and no swelling of students registering in the school system.  So why are the citizens of Highland be pelted with tax and fee increases?
 From personal observation, there appear to few primary reasons:\\
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 ====== 02/24/2026 BOS Meeting : The "Proposed" 2026/2027 Budget is Presented ======
-Ref Agenda Page -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/doku.php?id=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:02_24|02-24-2026]]\\
+Ref Agenda Page -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/doku.php?id=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:02_24|02-24-2026]] <- Files may be viewed or downloaded from this page.\\
-In another exhaustingly long presentation—the better part of six hours—the proposed budget included several increases. The presentation referenced a 115-page document and was conveniently scheduled during County staff’s standard working day, ensuring that the vast majority of taxpayers couldn’t attend.
+In another exhaustingly long presentation—the better part of six hours—the proposed budget included several increases. The presentation referenced a 115-page document and was conveniently scheduled during County staff’s standard working day, ensuring that the vast majority of taxpayers couldn’t attend.  The budget document is available -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:fiscal_year_2027report_for_board.pdf|here]].
 I understand exactly why it’s presented in such an extended, protracted fashion. It’s an indoctrination process that achieves Board “buy-in,” co-opting a part-time BOS as they listen to the “difficulties” staff face, the “great work that’s being done,” and statements like “this is an expensive business,” along with “we have no choice,” etc., etc. I really don’t understand why the Board sits through these sessions year after year. The BOS is unlikely to follow up on any of the budgetary information, nor will they examine online data to see the obvious trend—that the cost of local government is already out of control. With that said, the process is effective. The Board seems willing to rubber-stamp the increases requested, with little to no pushback, despite citizens objecting to them.
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 This is the issue with the BOS listening to all of this during a “work session,” where the public can not speak.  The public has no voice during the process and, as time wears on, the BOS falls into a mode where they simply want it to “go away.” The easiest way to do that is to rubber-stamp the request, regardless of the effects on taxpayers.
-During this meeting, a spreadsheet was shared with the Board—but not with the public—regarding the “cents per hundred” tax rates (I’m guessing, based on years past). In the comments, I heard references to “higher” rates in the past. What must be kept in mind is that the “rate” multiplied by the “value” equals the effective tax (which, in the case of Highland County, has been rising for years). The rate, without the assessed value, means next to nothing. Just to better understand why something like this would be presented to the Board, I requested the document.
+During this meeting, a spreadsheet was shared with the Board—but not with the public—regarding the “cents per hundred” tax rates (I’m guessing, based on years past). In the comments, I heard references to “higher” rates in the past. What must be kept in mind is that the “rate” multiplied by the “value” equals the effective tax (which, in the case of Highland County, has been rising for years). The rate, without the assessed value, means next to nothing. Just to better understand why something like this would be presented to the Board, I requested the document.  This document is now available -> [[https://www.hcspotlight.org/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=board_of_supervisors:meeting_agendas:2026:past_tax_rates.xls|here]].
 \\