CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors have passed next year's budget without raising property taxes.
A half cent property tax increase would have provided additional funding to place school resource officers in all county elementary schools. There are currently three SROs who provide services for the 11 elementary schools.
Sheriff Hank Partin says he is not surprised by the outcome, but he is glad the board will use $85,000 found in savings that could fund one additional resource officer.
“We have an SRO and their instructor that's locked and loaded and ready to go to the elementary school. We will see how that will go for the first year because we have never had an SRO in the elementary schools before,” Partin said.
Montgomery County Supervisor Sarah Bohn says that despite the decision to not fund the additional resource officers in full, the board feels there is a compromise.
“We want to put together a committee to figure out what are the right next steps but we did put the $85,000 aside contingency to support whatever the committee does come up with,” Bohn said.
Members of the Montgomery County School Board say they are disappointed that funding to provide all schools with SROs is not included in next year's budget.