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There is no shame Stafford NAACP in having a visits Richmond purebread dog on Lobby Day
Mountainview football takes it one day at a time VOL. 28 | NUM. 45
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JANUARY 20, 2017 | NORTHERN VIRGINIA MEDIA SERVICES
Benson recommends $ 13 million increase Superintendent presents $ 282.2M budget request TRACY BELL
tbell@insidenova.com
S
tafford County Public Schools’ Superintendent Bruce Benson recommended an increase of just over $13 million when he presented his fiscal 2018 funding request to the school board Tuesday. The fiscal 2017 adopted budget was just over $269.1 million and the fiscal 2018 recommended budget is more than $282.2 million, representing a boost of 4.86 percent. The budget assumes a 5 percent increase in health insurance PROPOSED costs, Benson said. BUDGET NUMBERS: The recommended budget, based By the Numbers: on budget goals the Superintendent’s FY18 school board adopted Funding Request from its priorities, inAdopted FY17 budget: cludes an increase in $269.1M 68 full-time employRecommended FY18 ees. budget: $282.2M That’s comprised of 38.5 teacher posiIncrease: $13M or tions; 17 paraprofes4.86 percent sionals; five educaHealth insurance: tional diagnosticians; projected 5 percent 2.5 counselors; an applied behavior analyFull-time positions: 68 sis therapist, a family Funding gap: $5.9M service professional, two math specialists, Students: 700+ a computer techniprojected next fiscal year cian trainer, two Increases: 1 percent Head Start custodito all employees; ans, an accountabilmaintain an additional ity specialist, a world 1 percent for teachers language/culture facilitator, a VBS specialist, a demographics planner and an Enterprise Resource Planning systems analyst. Some positions were added after the fiscal 2017 adoption. BUDGET Benson said that waiting on fedPAGE 13 eral money and legislature leaves
King makes another bid for Second District seat ALEX KOMA
akoma@insidenova.com
D
emocrat Josh King is launching another bid for the Second District seat in Virginia’s House of Delegates, aiming to represent parts of Prince William and Stafford counties now that Del. Mark Dudenhefer isn’t planning to seek reelection. King announced that he would be making his second run for the seat on Jan. 16. The Iraq veteran lost to Dudenhefer in 2015 by just 125 votes. “I am incredibly excited JOSH KING to start talking with voters across Prince William and Stafford County,” King said in a statement. “I plan to spend the next several months talking about improving our schools, shortening our commutes and most importantly creating jobs. We need to ensure that every child in Virginia has access to a world class education, that we invest in transit and new technology industries, and that we ease our over reliance on the federal government.” Dudenhefer will represent the district through this year’s General Assembly session, but he announced Jan. 6 that he wouldn’t run for reelection this November. He represented the district in Richmond for two nonconsecutive terms, first winning the seat in 2011, then losing it to Democrat Michael Futrell in 2013 and narrowly besting King in 2015. Now, King’s campaign is calling the soonto-be open seat “the best opportunity in Virginia for Democrats to pick up a seat in the House of Delegates,” a chamber that currently favors Republicans by a 65-34 margin. Since announcing his bid, SECOND several prominent DemoPAGE 13 crats have endorsed King’s
STAFFORD COUNTY SUN
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