For a while Tuesday night, it looked like the King George County Board of Supervisors might lower the proposed real estate tax rate increase by a penny as board members favored reducing the local money given to schools.
But in the end, the fear of economic uncertainty propelled the board to move forward with a 3-cent increase, which would bring the real estate tax rate to 73 cents per $100 of assessed value. The rate is the lowest in the Fredericksburg area, and the supervisors are scheduled to approve itâand the countyâs $97.4 million budgetâon May 4.
Developing a county spending plan is difficult at the best of times, but King George faced several obstacles in addition to the biggest concern: the impact from the COVID-19 pandemic. County Administrator Neiman Young left in February, and Travis Quesenberry, who had served in that post before 2016 when he went back to being county engineer, stepped in to fill the void until a new county administrator is found. King Georgeâs finance director, Donna Hahn, also faced her first budget cycle this year.