Buoyed by impassioned pleas from teachers and parents to consider a step increase for county educators, the Prince William County Board of Education did not approve the proposed FY 2013 budget of $1,201,938,057, which would have included a two percent cost of living adjustment for school division employees.
At the Wednesday, Mar. 21 board meeting, school board members voted four in favor and four against approving the FY13 Budget/CIP.
Those who voted for the budget were Milton C. Johns (Chairman At-Large), Grant Lattin (Occoquan), Michael I. Otagibe (Coles) and Denita S. Ramirez (Woodbridge).
The remaining board members: Gilbert A. Trenum (Brentsville), Alyson A. Satterwhite (Gainesville), Betty D. Covington (Potomac) and Lisa E. Bell (Neabsco) could not support the proposal.
Despite the motion to include a "friendly amendment," a pledge to direct Superintendent Steven L. Walts to apply any and all additional state and county funds to employee compensation as well as a last minute proposal for additional cuts by Brentsville District Representative Gil Trenum, the board could not agree on a FY13 budget.
Trenum and several other board members voiced their desires to go back and look for more money to provide step increases for teachers.
"I am not confident that we worked as hard as we could...I would like to see us go back and get some more," he said.
Occoquan District Representative Grant Lattin, who was singled out during the public hearing time, defended the proposal to offer the two percent raise by pointing out that not all employees would get the same pay increase under a step increase.
"I am concerned about the inequity of the step system," he said.
Chairman AT-Large Milton Johns moved to reconvene the discussion to a public meeting next Wednesday to work towards approving a school budget, which is due to be presented to the Board of County Supervisors by April 1, 2012.
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