Why Do I Care About Fairfax County's Budget Shortfall?

It's a simple question: Why do I care about Fairfax County's budget shortfall?

Last year, the county faced a similar challenge and I didn't start a blog, attend a community dialogue session, or make any fuss. Last year, the proposed plan sounded reasonable and fair--all agencies were asked to show the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors their self-inflicted, proposed cuts at several levels, with the general belief that all agencies would be asked to cut the same percent across the board.

I thought that was fascinating--and smart. Who else knows the inner workings of each agency better than their own people? It was brilliant of the county supervisors to request these presentations. I eagerly waited for the agencies to post their presentations on the county Web site and poured through them.

Some, admittedly, were better written than others. Some gave very specific cuts. Some were more vague. Some of the programs that were listed to be cut were obviously difficult to put on the chopping block.

But in the end, after all the presentations were finished, some agencies were hit with a 15% cut while others skated through with much smaller cuts. Later I heard grumblings that some agencies knowingly proposed specific programs be cut because they believed--rightly--there was no way the Board of Supervisors would cut those darlings. And while some agencies were lauded for their full cooperation and laying themselves bare, those were the ones with the most taken from their budgets.

Last year, I was a little shocked. I thought it was meant to be reasonable and fair. This year, I am a little less nieve.