Supervisors Discuss Evolving FY-26/27 Budget Priorities and Revenue Sources, Including Real Estate Tax Hike & Cigarette Tax

On Friday, March 27, at 5 p.m., the Warren County Board of Supervisors and financial staff continued their increasingly tight schedule for establishing a Fiscal Year-2027 Budget proposal, with a public hearing (April 14) and subsequent vote of approval (April 22). As previously reported, in anticipation of a LARGE crowd of citizens addressing their priorities and non-priorities for the coming fiscal year, the April 14th public hearing will be held at 6 p.m. at the Warren County High School auditorium.

The March 27th Special Meeting/Work Session was scheduled at the end of the board’s March 24th meeting. It faced a two-item agenda. Just two, no problem for the mid-Friday start of the coming weekend, right? Not so fast, weekend fans.

Other than County staff, including a large group from the Fire & Rescue Department behind Sheriff Cline and School Board member George Cline, the public seating section was empty during the late afternoon and early evening hours of Friday’s Special Meeting/Work Session. Royal Examiner Photos Roger Bianchini

First up for discussion was “Fiscal Year 2026-27 Tax Rates,” followed by “FY 2027 Budget Board of Supervisors Mark Up/Mark Down”. That latter discussion was a continuation of the county elected officials setting budget funding priorities up or down.

Early in the Tax Rate discussion, which seemed at times to include overlapping topics pending in Item B, Interim County Administrator Dr. David Martin, sans ref’s shirt and whistle, took the lead in moving the discussion forward. On point, Dr. Martin gave a big nod to the county’s financial staff. He told the supervisors they had been invaluable to him in helping him move forward in a timely manner. Those staffers present included Finance Director Alisa Scott, Commissioner of the Revenue Sherry Sours, Treasurer Janice Shanks, and Deputy County Administrator Jane Meadows.

Dr. Martin, 2nd from right, opened the budget discussion with a positive nod from the financial staff. That staff includes Finance Director Alisa Scott, seated between Supervisors Cullers and Carter at right, and below Commissioner of the Revenue Sherry Sours, Treasurer Janice Shanks, and Deputy County Administrator Jane Meadows listening as Supervisor Hugh Henry makes a point.

The agenda packet description of the two work session topics was brief and to the point:

1. Discussion – FY 26-27 Tax Rates – submitted by Commissioner of the Revenue Sherry Sours

EXPLANATION & SUMMARY: The Board of Supervisors will discuss the Real Estate, Personal Property, Sanitary Districts and other tax rates that need to be established for the 2026 Tax Year; and:

1. Discussion – FY 2027 Budget Board of Supervisors Mark Up / Mark Down

EXPLANATION & SUMMARY: The Board of Supervisors will make any final modifications to the FY 2027 proposed budget before the scheduled public hearing.

Item A adjourned after an hour-and-20-minutes following two motions and votes in the wake of that hour-plus discussion.

No Rappahannock cross-county F&R funding assistance

The first motion was made by Supervisor John Stanmeyer, seconded by Richard Jamieson. It was to adopt Option B. As we understand it, that adoption was made with some financial amendments included in the three options on alterations made by staff since the meeting three days earlier. Perhaps the biggest point of contention in Option B, as presented during the discussion, was the exclusion of cross-county lines funding assistance to Rappahannock County for its response assistance to emergency services calls in the Chester Gap area of southern Warren County.

South River District representative and board Chair Cheryl Cullers told her colleagues that a significant majority of her constituents expressed a desire to retain that cross-county cooperative Fire & Rescue arrangement with Rappahannock County. It might be noted that Rappahannock emergency service responses have been credited with saving lives on calls from the Warren County side of the county line. Included among those is now former WC Public Schools administrative department staffer Alan Fox. At a recent BOS meeting, Fox spoke in favor of the maintained cross-county cooperative arrangement, telling the supervisors that without it, he wouldn’t have been there to address the issue.

But when the vote was called, only Hugh Henry voted with Cullers to maintain the cross-county relationship. Happy Creek Supervisor Tony Carter voted with Stanmeyer and Jamieson, leading to a 3-2 vote to stop the requested funding assistance across county lines. Carter said he felt the money would be better spent on expanding Warren County Fire & Rescue personnel and on other emergency service improvements.

Tony Carter, far end of the table to the right, has staff and board attention as he explains his perspective on funding assistance to Rappahannock County emergency services versus additional funding for extra positions to WC Fire & Rescue.

It should be noted that Budget Option B includes $660,000 for the addition of six Fire & Rescue Operational positions. That compares to $330,000 in Options A and C for three operational positions. It remains to be seen how those additional three positions will impact emergency response times in the southern Chester Gap area of Warren County.

Our understanding is that the other agenda item, Item A: Tax Rate, included a proposed countywide cigarette sales tax in the budget to be presented at the Public Hearing of April 14 at WCHS.

It should also be noted that the proposed budget changes since Tuesday’s discussion, included an increase from .479 to .579 in the Real Estate Tax. If understood correctly from previous discussions, the proposed tax increase would cost owners of a home assessed at the county median of $350,000 $175 every six months, or $350 a year.

Mark Up/Mark Down discussion

After a 7-minute recess, the supervisors and staff moved into the second agenda item, the Mark Up/Mark Down discussion. Finance Director Alisa Scott began that discussion. And somewhat unexpectedly after just over five minutes a motion to adjourn was made. It passed unanimously, and the work session ended at 6:32 p.m. Perhaps our observation that the opening agenda discussion seemed to include some topics that were expected to be a part of that second agenda item on priorities was on the money, or perhaps we should say “On the clock”.

Watch the Warren County Board of Supervisors Budget Worksession of March 27, 2026.