BUCKINGHAM — Only two people spoke during the fiscal year 2015-2016 proposed budget public hearing held in Buckingham on Monday, April 13.

The proposed $45.8 million budget includes no tax increases and a three-percent raise for all County and school division employees (See Wednesday, March 25 front page story).

Within the proposed balanced budget, the real estate and public service corporation tax rates will remain at fifty cents per $100 of assessed value, as will the $4.05 personal property tax and all others.

Curdsville resident Marie Flowers, who resides in District Three, asked if the board knew how much revenue the County receives from the existing pipelines that run through Buckingham, citing that she had contacted the Commissioner of the Revenue “to ask how much revenue the County gets from these pipelines. And, she told me that I would have to do a Freedom of Information Act…”

County Administrator Rebecca S. Carter told Flowers that the pipelines are taxed by the State Corporation Commission, and the County gets the revenue through the commission. She noted that the County charges a rate of 50 cents per $100 of assessed value, and the commission assesses the lines.

“Could we set the rate for that?” Flowers inquired, regarding the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) that could be routed through Buckingham.

District Five Supervisor Cassandra Stish indicated that a specific rate couldn’t be set for the ACP project.

“We can’t make an exception for them?” Flowers questioned, concluding her remarks.

Andersonville resident Quinn Robinson, who resides in District Four, said that a new library was “extremely important” and was desperately needed for the county.

Within the proposed budget, the committed local reserves continue to provide a $250,000 allocation for a debt service payment for a library building.

“However…” Robinson continued, “I don’t think anyone foresaw that we would still have a private group basically representing the effort to build this, and I’m talking about the Buckingham County Public Library Board. They’ve been at it for some time. The issue hasn’t evolved…”

Robinson told the board that the planning process had been “contorted,” and questioned who was responsible for the project.

“I would like to see a real plan, with financing, dates, everything. But, now I understand that the ad hoc group that was supposed to assist…is doing the planning,” he stated, referring to the Library Liaison Committee. “Who knows what’s going on? It’s not the way to do business.”

Robinson suggested that the board “take the matter under control.”

Following the hearing, District Six Supervisor Joe N. Chambers Jr. queried Carter about a $4,000 budget request from the Heart of Virginia Free Clinic.

“They are saying over the last three years,” Carter replied, “they have served 304 people in all the counties, and that eight percent of those people, which would be about 24 people…have been from Buckingham…”

Carter said she called other counties, and the only locality that is going to fund the clinic is Prince Edward in the amount of $7,500. “But none of the other counties are going to fund them…”, she said.

The County Administrator noted new funding for the Southside Pregnancy Center in the proposed budget, along with other new requests.

Carter recommended not funding the request “until we know a little bit more about it.” She also cited that other counties weren’t funding the clinic.

District Three Supervisor E.A. “Bill” Talbert questioned whether or not the County would have to pay for new voting machines mandated by the state.

“I hope to have that answer by our meeting on next Monday night,” Carter replied. “…It’s a good possibility we may have to pay up to $100,000,” she said.

Within the County operational and school division budgets, County employees receiving a two percent state-funded pay increase and school personnel receiving a 1.5 percent increase will receive enough to make the raise a full three percent, while those not eligible for the state salary bump will see a full three percent raise.

In addition to the pay increase in the school division, staff could also see a step salary adjustment.

Carter said the recommended budget breaks down to an unrestricted beginning year balance of $4.2 million, a committed economic development beginning year balance of over $681,000, for a total beginning year balance of $4,881,385.

The budget also demonstrates an ending year balance, if all reserves are spent, of $4.2 million, Carter explains, and an ending year balance, before reserves are spent, of over $5.6 million.

“The reserves have a new County capital improvement reserve of $75,000 and a reserve for contingency of $134,784,” she states in a memo.

Carter says the increase in the total recommended budget, as compared to the current 2014-2015 fiscal year budget, is $1.3 million.

According to the budget calendar, on Monday, April 20, at 6 p.m., supervisors are set to formally adopt the budget, along with the unchanged tax rates.