An internal letter written to department heads in Gloucester, VA government by one of the Board of Supervisors. Used in a news story on Gloucester, Virginia Links and News website. Visit us.

1. Mar
16,
2014
To:
County
Administrator,
Constitutional
Officers,
Department
Heads
From:
John
Meyer,
Supervisor
At-­‐Large
Subject:
Upcoming
Budget
Deliberations
We
are
now
entering
that
critical,
and
somewhat
frenzied
period
of
the
year
where
next
year’s
budget
is
deliberated
and
each
department
has
the
opportunity
to
advocate
for
its
interests.
This
year,
with
the
changeover
of
3
of
the
Board
of
Supervisors
(BOS)
and
with
4
members
having
only
2
years
of
experience,
there
may
be
more
than
the
usual
angst
concerning
what
will
be
occurring
over
the
next
month.
We
thought
it
might
be
helpful
to
outline
our
vision
for
this
deliberative
process,
and
offer
some
suggestions
as
to
how
to
help
us
make
the
best
decisions
possible.
The
first
thing
that
we
ask
you
to
do
is
to
adjust
your
frame
of
reference.
Your
natural
reference
point
is
your
department,
and
you
submit
the
budget
that
best
enables
your
department
to
carry
out
its
mission.
And
you
believe
that
what
is
good
for
your
department
is
good
for
the
County.
However,
the
Board
of
Supervisors
has
a
County-­‐wide
perspective,
one
that
must
weigh
the
priorities
of
your
department
versus
the
priorities
of
other
departments
–
and
assesses
the
cost
versus
benefit
of
all
County
services.
When
we
take
hard-­‐earned
dollars
out
of
the
hands
of
each
of
our
citizens,
we
have
to
make
sure
that
what
we
return
to
them
in
services
is
well
worth
the
expense.
If
you
can,
try
to
step
back
from
your
departmental
frame
of
reference
and
take
on
the
County-­‐wide
perspective.
If
you
do
that,
you’ll
be
better
able
to
better
understand
the
BOS
thinking,
and
align
your
arguments
better
to
support
that
thinking.
Contrary
to
some
perceptions,
we
are
not
intent
on
cutting
the
budget.
However,
the
recent
election
has
made
it
clear
that
the
people
(that
we
work
for)
have
no
appetite
for
increased
taxes
or
additional
borrowing.
Since
revenues
will
still
be
going
up
this
year,
this
means
the
FY15
year
budget
will
be
larger
than
the
FY14
budget.
However,
with
the
increased
benefits
costs
mandated
by
the
State,
and
the
increased
debt
servicing
associated
with
the
new
Page
Middle
School,
you
will
likely
find
that
your
department
has
little
opportunity
for
growth.
Ms.
Garton
has
put
together
a
strong
strawman
budget,
one
that
will
be
similar,
but
not
identical
to
the
final
budget
we
will
be
signing
at
the
end
of
April.
Now
is
the
time
to
roll
up
your
sleeves
and
be
prepared
to
discuss
all
aspects
of
your
budget.
The
first
phase
of
the
deliberative
process
will
be
looking
for
areas
to
cut
spending.
This
investigative
look
will
serve
the
dual
benefit
of
identifying
and
eliminating
excessive
or
unnecessary
spending,
and
of
freeing
funds
up
to
meet
more
critical
needs.
Throughout
this
initial
process,
you
will
feel
pressure
to
explain
in
depth
the
need
for
programs
that
may
seem
intuitive
to
you.
Understand
that
you
are
not
being
singled
out,
that
other
department
heads
will
be
going
through
the
same
process
and
will
feel
the
same
way
you
do.
Also
recognize
that
we
don’t

2. understand
your
department
the
nearly
as
well
as
you
do.
But
we
do
need
to
understand
it
well
enough
to
make
decisions
about
your
funding.
So
how
can
you
help
in
this
process?
1. Make
sure
you
can
articulate
your
department’s
mission
–
all
of
it.
And
your
mission
should
be
expressed
in
terms
of
how
it
benefits
the
people
of
the
County.
If
you
can
quantify
that
benefit,
as
well
as
address
it
in
qualitative
terms,
you
advocacy
will
be
that
much
stronger.
2. Prioritize
your
functions.
What
do
you
do
that
the
County
absolutely
has
to
have
done
–
without
which
the
County
cannot
function?
(Some
departments
may
very
well
not
have
anything
that
fits
in
this
category).
At
the
next
level,
what
functions
are
needed
to
maintain
or
significantly
improve
the
quality
of
life
of
the
citizens?
Are
there
functions
that
you
have
that
won’t
show
immediate
benefit,
but
will
provide
a
key
investment
in
the
County’s
future
and
will
significantly
impact
tomorrow’s
quality
of
life?
And
finally,
do
you
provide
services
that
may
not
be
essential,
but
add
that
little
extra
to
the
“land
of
life
worth
living”
and
really
don’t
cost
that
much?
3. We
can
assume
that
all
of
the
absolutely
critical
functions
are
being
accomplished
already
-­‐
if
one
of
those
is
being
threatened
due
to
a
lack
of
resources,
sing
out.
But,
at
the
next
level
can
you
quantify
the
resources
needed
to
support
the
above
functions?
For
example,
the
Sheriff
is
currently
able
to
maintain
law
and
order
in
this
County,
but
can
we
expect
a
reduction
in
crime
if
the
number
of
deputies
is
increased?
If
so,
how?
And
can
you
estimate
by
how
much?
What
if
the
number
of
deputies
was
reduced,
what
would
you
expect?
Often,
these
answers
cannot
be
quantified
and
all
you
can
do
is
provide
qualitative
assessments,
but
quantifiable,
supported
data
will
make
for
the
best
answers.
4. Don’t
be
defensive
–
we’re
not
after
you
or
your
department,
we’re
after
understanding.
Don’t
be
emotional
–
we
need
to
know
what
the
underlying
facts
are,
not
how
you
feel
about
them.
Please
be
straightforward
and
honest
with
us
-­‐
otherwise
you
could
impact
your
credibility.
If
you
don’t
know
the
answer,
say
so,
and
send
us
an
explanatory
e-­‐mail
when
you
do
find
out
the
answer.
If
you
feel
we
misinterpreted
something,
write
us
and
tell
us.
Finally,
try
to
be
succinct
–
you
don’t
want
to
make
the
error
of
overestimating
a
Supervisor’s
attention
span.
It
may
not
seem
like
we’re
on
your
side
when
we’re
peppering
you
with
questions,
but
we’re
only
trying
to
find
out
as
much
about
your
needs
as
possible,
and
we
don’t
have
much
time.
We
will
approach
your
budget
from
different
directions,
but
you
know
-­‐
and
we
know
-­‐
you
are
trying
to
do
what’s
best
for
our
citizens.
And
we
respect
you
for
that.
Let’s
get
to
work!