Second vote set for Monday, April 22
Heather Bell
RADFORD – The Radford City Council passed its budget and tax rates on first reading following a public hearing Tuesday, April16, but questions from council members regarding the school division’s budget may put the final required vote, which is set to occur this Monday, April 22, in flux.
The Radford City Public Schools budget includes a seven percent raise for all school division employees, with the state supplying the funds for three percent of the increase. However, due to an overall increase in revenue from state funding to the schools, the school division is using some of that increased funding to increase raises to seven percent for all employees.
Council members Jessie Foster and Kellie Atrip vocalized concerns over the amount of the raises, as city employees will not be getting any increase in salaries or wages in the upcoming budget year.
“We’re holding on raises and we are making cuts here, cuts there,” said Foster. “It feels like you’re getting all the raise, and I just have to be honest, I’m struggling with that.”
“We gave our employees nothing this year,” said Artrip.
RCPS Superintendent Dr. Adam Joyce said the city’s funding to the schools, which is $5,839,528, is close to the “minimal required [local] funding,” so it cannot be decreased in an amount that would provide enough funding to be used for city employee raises. The school division is getting $31,354,400 in state funding, which is an increase over previous years mainly due to two factors. First, RCPS’s enrollment now includes 1,485 virtual students in addition to the 1,525 students who attend RCPS in person. Second, Radford local composite index (LCI) or the calculation of a locality’s ability to fund education, has “plunged,” according to Joyce, which means the state is required to fund the school division more fully.
“This is good in terms of state funding, but bad in terms of our local economy,” he said.
The city council passed the city’s budget, which includes the school division’s budget on first reading. The second reading is set for Monday’s regularly scheduled city council meeting. If additional work is needed, city council may need to hold a special meting to get the second required vote in by an April 26 deadline.
The 2024-2025 city budget is $79,043,310, including a general fund of $35,411,361. Enterprise funds include:
Streets maintenance fund: $2,829,359
Transit: $2,860,488
Water/wastewater fund: $6,320,498
Electric fund: $28,854,443
Solid waste fund: $1,688,841
The budget includes increases to the electric rate and the wastewater rates. A public hearing will be held Monday, April 22 at 7 p.m. regarding utility rates. Wastewater rates will increase from $14.24 to $16.24 for 2,000 gallons. Electric base rates (energy + customer charge) will increase from $104.65 to $107.97 for 1,000 kwh customer.
Also voted on during Tuesday’s meeting were the tax rates, which operate on the calendar year instead of the fiscal year. They are:
Real property tax levy at $0.69 per one $100.00 of assessed value.
Machinery and tools tax levy will remain at $1.76 per $100.00 of assessed value.
Tangible personal property will remain at $2.44 per $100.00 of assessed value.
