OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Albemarle County Board of Supervisors FY2027 Budget Work Session #1 – March 9, 2026

Board of Supervisors — Monday, March 9, 2026
BodyAlbemarle County, Virginia
SessionBoard of Supervisors
DateMonday, March 9, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:48:41

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Good afternoon, everyone.

0:01

I am going to call to order the Board of Supervisors for this March 9th, 2026, 5 p.m.

0:08

budget work session here in room 241.

0:12

All board members are present.

0:15

We also have Mr.

0:16

Jeff Richardson with us today, our county attorney, Mr.

0:19

Andy Herrick, our board clerk, Ms.

0:21

Pludette Morgerson.

0:22

We have a multitude of staff with us today.

0:25

I want to thank officers Dillon Shiplet and Enzo Hirazari for being with us this afternoon.

0:31

Thank you, gentlemen, for being here.

0:33

And I do want to recognize that we have our Commonwealth Attorney, Mr.

0:36

Hinchley with us, as well as our Sergeant Clark Clerk, Mr.

0:40

Zug, as we're dealing with their report uh portions today.

0:44

If we have questions, they are available to us as well.

0:47

Um yeah, ready to kick off our work session number one and see how it goes.

0:51

So, Mr.

0:52

Richardson, am I going to you or am I going right to Andy?

0:55

Right to Mr.

0:55

Boomer, sir.

0:57

All right.

0:58

Good evening.

0:59

Uh good evening to the chair of the board.

1:01

Uh my name is Andy Bowman, Assistant Chief Financial Officer.

1:04

I'll be kicking off the presentation today.

1:06

Others will be uh introducing themselves as they uh step up to the mic, as we'll be sharing uh a series of topics today.

1:14

Like to start every work session.

1:16

Where have we been?

1:17

Where are we going?

1:18

So to date, uh, this is work session number one.

1:20

The county executive presented a budget on February 25th.

1:24

The board held a public hearing on that on March 4th.

1:27

No action is requested by the Board of Supervisors today.

1:30

That's going to be true in the work session number two.

1:33

And oh, thank you.

1:35

Well, hold on.

1:36

Do we need to speak directly into these or does it pick up?

1:38

Yeah, you didn't.

1:39

This isn't like your traditional mic, and I should have caught that at the beginning.

1:43

So we speak in here like we normally would, but just like when they were in there, I'm just gonna say make sure you amplify and project and enunciate well.

1:51

And uh I'm gonna call out Mr.

1:52

Grant and tell him to give us a review because this is a new sound system.

1:56

And I know if he's not listening live, then he will be paying attention later.

2:00

So uh please send your feedback in on how this new sound system's working.

2:05

But don't feel the need to pull it, you don't have to do that.

2:09

Thank you.

2:10

Sorry, Andy.

2:11

No, thank you.

2:12

Thank you for the subtle hint as well.

2:14

So no action is going to be requested by the board today or the work session number two or number three.

2:21

That will change work session number four, where the board is going to be asked to take action to propose a tax rate and propose a budget for public hearing.

2:28

At that point, the budget becomes the from it moves from becoming the county executive's recommended budget to the board of supervisors proposed budget that will then be adopted on April 22nd.

2:39

This date is very important because when the board advertises a tax rate, the board can only adopt a real estate tax rate at that amount or less.

2:47

And so if the board at that time is willing to uh entertain a higher tax rate, uh that that 18th uh work session is going to be pretty key.

2:56

Uh after that proposed budget is set, there will be a continued series of town halls.

3:01

Uh there's a work session in April if it's needed, and uh we'll conclude with public hearings and the adoption in April.

3:10

Before we dive into content today, I want to uh spend a moment on just the process of the work session in terms of what has worked well in the past.

3:17

Uh staff is going to present a level of detail in between what the county executive presented in his initial budget and the full 350 page document.

3:25

And so I guess you could think of this as a mini-series adaptation of a 350 page novel.

3:30

Uh so we'll uh do our best to give as much time as we can for board discussion, presenting information in small chunks.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Safety█████████████████████████████29%
Fiscal Sustainability███████████████████████23%
Personnel Matters█████████████████████21%
Public Transportation████████8%
Budget Equity Analysis██████6%
Procedural████4%
Economic Development██2%
Technology and Innovation██2%
Judicial System██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Albemarle County Board of Supervisors FY2027 Budget Work Session #1 – March 9, 2026

The Board of Supervisors held its first budget work session for the Fiscal Year 2027 operating and capital budget on March 9, 2026, from 5:00 PM to approximately 8:45 PM in Room 241. Staff presented an overview of the total county budget, general fund revenues, compensation and public safety expenditures, and judicial chapter. The board asked clarifying questions and provided initial feedback but took no formal action. The next work session is scheduled for March 11, 2026, at 5:00 PM.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were taken during this work session.

Discussion Items

Total Budget Overview

  • The total FY2027 recommended budget increases by $86 million (13.5%) to approximately $724 million. The three primary drivers are: (1) a 7.6% increase in general fund local revenues (primarily tax revenue), (2) nearly $13 million in new state revenue support for public schools, and (3) the $40.8 million Boulders Road capital project (with $20 million from the state, $12 million from AstraZeneca, and the remainder from county land and previously appropriated funds).
  • The general fund ($512 million) is the focus, as it contains all unrestricted tax revenue and offers the most policy discretion.

General Fund Revenues

  • Tax revenue diversification challenges were highlighted: between 2015 and 2025, the residential share of the real estate tax base grew from 65% to nearly 74%, while commercial/industrial fell from 15% to 11.3%. Residential properties cost more to serve (due to schools) than they generate in taxes, while commercial/industrial are revenue positive.
  • Real estate revenue is projected to increase 7.6% ($20.5 million) due to a 6.2% reassessment in calendar year 2026 plus new construction. The recommended tax rate remains 89.4 cents per $100 of assessed value. The “lower tax rate” (offsetting assessment increases) would be 84.2 cents; each penny of the rate is worth $3.3 million.
  • Personal property tax revenue is projected to increase 17% (nearly $7 million) due to improved collection rates, a higher number of vehicles being identified, refined assessment data (VIN-based), and supply chain effects on used car values. The rate remains $4.28 per $100 of assessed value; a penny change is worth $113,000.
  • Other local taxes (sales, food & beverage, transient occupancy, business licenses) show modest growth. All except transient occupancy are at the state cap. The transient occupancy tax (currently 9%) is not capped; staff will provide comparative data to other metro areas.
  • State and federal revenues make up only 8% of the general fund. State revenues are essentially flat; federal revenues (mostly Social Services) are up 9% but are subject to uncertainty (e.g., SNAP administration).
  • Fund balance: $98.3 million total. The unassigned fund balance (10%, or about $51.4 million) is reserved for emergencies. A 2% budget stabilization reserve (about $12 million) is being proposed for use. The plan uses $3 million in FY27 and $3 million in FY28 (0.5% each year), leaving 1% untouched. The reserve would be replenished with any future surplus before funding other one-time priorities.

General Fund Expenditures – Compensation

  • The largest expenditure category is the transfer to schools (52% of every tax dollar), followed by public safety (14%), community development (10% including Boulders Road), and county government operations (10%).
  • Compensation: The budget includes $2.9 million for a market-based adjustment for classified staff (based on the 2022 pay philosophy targeting the market average of 23 comparator agencies), a 2% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), and a one-time bonus (mirroring the state’s proposal). For public safety, the recommended budget provides 11% pay scale movement (step increases) costing $0.7 million plus market adjustments. The health self-funded fund increases 8% ($2.1 million). The Virginia Retirement System rate decreased by 1.33 percentage points, saving the county $1 million (and $3 million for schools).

Public Safety

  • Staffing Studies (ESCI): The board received the public safety staffing studies in October 2025. Implementation is phased. Tier 1 priorities: add and maintain staffing. FY27 includes 3 new police officers and a plan to pursue a FEMA SAFER grant for 6 firefighters. Compensation and retention are the immediate focus. The long-range recommendation is 39 additional police officers and 35 additional firefighters, phased into the five-year plan.
  • Police Department (Chief Reeves): Current sworn strength is 149 of 171 authorized positions; only 138 are deployable. Calls for service rose 23% from the prior year to nearly 93,000 (62% officer-initiated). Part 1 crimes decreased for the second straight year; gun violence dropped 30% in 2025. Response times: urban ring priority calls average under 10 minutes; rural areas take longer. Recruitment is very challenging (applicant pool shallow, many disqualified). The proposed 3 new officers are for patrol.
  • Fire Rescue (Chief Puckett): recent investments (FY25) added an ambulance to the Seminole area and 24/7 career staffing at North Garden Volunteer Fire Company. Positive early data: Seminole ambulance reliability increased to 80%, response times down nearly 1 minute; North Garden ambulance availability up 84%, response times down 2 minutes on nights/weekends. Current staffing: 77% of FTEs are operational; 24 in training; 8 vacancies. Service reductions (stations reduced from 3 to 2 firefighters) peaked in 2023 and are declining; 6 additional firefighters (via FEMA SAFER) are needed to phase out service reductions entirely. Attrition was 11.5% in 2025 (largely due to recruit school and retirements; core attrition 3.7%).
  • Office of Emergency Management: Established as a separate office (budget neutral) by pulling 2 FTEs from fire rescue, reporting to the county executive.
  • Regional Partner Agencies: Several agencies (e.g., Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail) have budget requests; some may be adjusted downward before adoption.

Judicial Chapter

  • The judicial chapter (2% of general fund, $10.2 million) includes the Sheriff’s Office (53%). The budget recommends 3 new sheriff’s deputies for courthouse security, inmate transport, and civil processing, driven by the opening of renovated/expanded court facilities. Commonwealth’s Attorney, Clerk of Circuit Court, and Public Defender requests are funded at their requested levels with modest increases for COLA.

Other Items

  • MicroCAT transit service: staff proposes a $2 per ride charge (with discounts) to begin mid-year, now that grant funds are exhausted. This will be discussed further on March 11.
  • Community Development fees: staff seeks authorization for a public hearing on April 15 to update fee benchmarks, with discussion on March 18.

Key Outcomes

  • No formal votes were taken. The board provided initial direction and asked for follow-up information on: transient occupancy tax rates in peer jurisdictions, a breakdown of investment income sources, service charge details (PILOT), and the impact of insurance ratings on fire service reductions.
  • Staff will compile questions and “the list” of potential budget adjustments for the board’s consideration at work session #4 (March 18), where the board will be asked to propose a tax rate and budget for public hearing.
  • The next work session (March 11) will cover non-departmental expenditures, health and welfare, transit, and community development. The final adoption of the FY2027 budget is scheduled for April 22, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good afternoon, everyone. I am going to call to order the Board of Supervisors for this March 9th, 2026, 5 p.m. budget work session here in room 241. All board members are present. We also have Mr. Jeff Richardson with us today, our county attorney, Mr. Andy Herrick, our board clerk, Ms. Pludette Morgerson. We have a multitude of staff with us today. I want to thank officers Dillon Shiplet and Enzo Hirazari for being with us this afternoon. Thank you, gentlemen, for being here. And I do want to recognize that we have our Commonwealth Attorney, Mr. Hinchley with us, as well as our Sergeant Clark Clerk, Mr. Zug, as we're dealing with their report uh portions today. If we have questions, they are available to us as well. Um yeah, ready to kick off our work session number one and see how it goes. So, Mr. Richardson, am I going to you or am I going right to Andy? Right to Mr. Boomer, sir. All right. Good evening. Uh good evening to the chair of the board. Uh my name is Andy Bowman, Assistant Chief Financial Officer. I'll be kicking off the presentation today. Others will be uh introducing themselves as they uh step up to the mic, as we'll be sharing uh a series of topics today. Like to start every work session. Where have we been? Where are we going? So to date, uh, this is work session number one. The county executive presented a budget on February 25th. The board held a public hearing on that on March 4th. No action is requested by the Board of Supervisors today. That's going to be true in the work session number two. And oh, thank you. Well, hold on. Do we need to speak directly into these or does it pick up? Yeah, you didn't. This isn't like your traditional mic, and I should have caught that at the beginning. So we speak in here like we normally would, but just like when they were in there, I'm just gonna say make sure you amplify and project and enunciate well. And uh I'm gonna call out Mr. Grant and tell him to give us a review because this is a new sound system. And I know if he's not listening live, then he will be paying attention later. So uh please send your feedback in on how this new sound system's working. But don't feel the need to pull it, you don't have to do that. Thank you. Sorry, Andy. No, thank you. Thank you for the subtle hint as well. So no action is going to be requested by the board today or the work session number two or number three.

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