Supervisors pass budget with split vote

Jessie and Williams cast no votes, cite overspending

by Larry Chowning – 

The Middlesex County Board of Supervisors (MCBS) approved a $29 million fiscal year (FY) 2021-2022 budget on a 3-2 vote on Thursday, April 29, at a special called budget adoption meeting.

With the approval came an increase in personal property taxes. The county real estate and mobile home tax rate will not change. 

The board conducted an online public hearing on Thursday, April 22, where there were no comments from the public. However, the Sentinel received an email from William (Tom) Howard of 1735 Canoe House Landing Road that stated, “I complained last week before the meeting to my supervisor, Mr. Wayne Jessie,” he wrote in the email. “Considering COVID-19 I didn’t figure I had to be there in person.” Howard was in favor of “no new taxes of any kind.”

While Saluda District Supervisor Pete Mansfield, Hartfield District Supervisor John Koontz and Pinetop District Supervisor Lud Kimbrough voted for budget approval, Jessie from Jamaica District and Harmony Village Supervisor Reggie Williams voted against the budget.

Their reasons for voting against the budget seemed to stem partially from concerns that the county has for two years dipped heavily into the county’s fund balance to balance the budget and in their opinion is overspending.

Due to COVID-19, the current FY 2020-2021 budget was “bare bones,” but supervisors had to use $567,638 from the county’s rainy day fund to balance the budget. The FY 2021-2022 budget will require about $1.5 million from the fund balance…