Tag Archive

Council ‘disgusted’ by state, feds lack of support for schools

SALEM – Individual council members didn’t know whether to be angry or upset by the shortage of state and federal money for schools. Mostly, they were disgusted. They expressed their dismay at the April 22 Salem City Council meeting after Salem School Board Chairman Sally Southard explained how her board had to slash the... »

Teachers and county employees will get raises

CRAIG COUNTY – When the new $12.5-million budget for fiscal year 2012-2013 goes into effect the first of July, all full-time school employees and county employees will see a 2-percent raise reflected in their paychecks. That is a move that Superintendent of Schools Ron Gordon has fought for ever since work on the school budget... »

Supervisors wind down a busy April

CRAIG COUNTY – April is the Craig County Board of Supervisors’ month for winding down the county budget and getting ready for the new Fiscal Year 2012-13. It is the culmination of many extra meetings and work sessions that began March 6 with a joint work session with the Craig County School Board. The... »

Residents tell supervisors don’t cut services

BOTETOURT – If the Board of Supervisors did not know that citizens love their schools, their libraries, and the parks and recreation programs, they know it now. More than 500 people of all ages turned out at the public input meeting Tuesday night, and the vast majority wanted to save Botetourt County. Students pleaded... »

Botetourt residents asked to weigh in on possibly closing a school, eliminating athletics, cuts to Sheriff’s Dept., libraries, recreation at March 27 meeting

The Botetourt County School Board is considering what they consider some catastrophic cuts, while the Board of Supervisors budget committee is issuing a list of possible cuts it may be making on its side of the ledger because of what is now a projected $3.7 million budget shortfall in the next fiscal year. That’s... »

Possible 29 percent tax hike upsets county residents

By David J. Bisset A crowd of Montgomery County citizens turned out Monday night to weigh in as School Superintendent Brenda Blackburn presented the board of supervisors with a proposed budget that could force the county real estate tax rate to go up dramatically. The 2012-13 budget approved by the school board last week... »

Council cuts target human service efforts

SALEM  – There’s little Goodwill in Salem’s proposed 2011-2012 budget. At a 90-minute work session after the regular Salem City Council meeting May 9, council members decided to axe Goodwill Industries’ request for $10,000 in next year’s proposed $144-million overall budget, and give the agency only $2,000. Goodwill was one of 44 human and... »

Budget has no increase in local tax

NEW CASTLE – Craig County employees will get a small increase next year, but the county’s residents won’t have to pay more taxes. For the upcoming fiscal year 2011-2012 Craig County will operate on a $12,566,599- budget. Members of the Craig County Board of Supervisors passed the budget for the next fiscal year at... »

Botetourt budget committee unanimous in recommending 2% raise

Supervisor Larry Ceola agreed he would support a 2 percent pay raise for Botetourt County employees after a two-hour budget committee meeting Wednesday morning in Fincastle. His decision followed  another lengthy budget discussion, this time with the two other budget committee members, Terry Austin and Steve Clinton. Austin and Clinton are long-time budget committee... »

Supervisors, School Board joint meeting focuses on more money challenges

Botetourt’s two governing bodies got an early primer on a budget year that’s still 10 months away during a Friday morning meeting last week. The Board of Supervisors and School Board watched a tag-team presentation from the county administration and the school administration as the latter tried to prepare the elected officials for what... »