Seems Every Segment of Arlington County Government Costs More
Each year in Virginia, the State Auditor of Public Accounts accumulates financial information from every county, city, and town in the Commonwealth to produce the Comparative Report of Local Government Revenues and Expenditures. This report provides a “valuable analytical tool to review local government fiscal activities," and which can help "the public and General Assembly to better understand the sources and uses of public funds."
Below are just a few numbers from the State Auditor’s Fiscal Year 2005 report (opens into an Excel -- .xls – spreadsheet) comparing Arlington County’s per capita expenditures with comparable spending in Fairfax County and Prince William County.
----------/Public/% State/Health &/% State/Parks/% State
County/Safety/Average/Welfare/Average/& Rec/Average
Arlington/$659.62/200%/$640.40/241%/$244.67/329%
Fairfax/$449.52/136%/$396.73/149%/$113.19/151%
Prince William/437.19/132%/$170.71/64%/$96.30/%129
The numbers above compare the financial spending of three categories in each jurisdiction as well as showing the percentage of each jurisdiction's percentage of state average spending in each category. They do not show, for example, the level of services provided. Arlington County officials would be correct to point out there are many more high-rise buildings per capita in the county which probably requires a more expensive set of staff and fire apparatus, and thus the higher per capita spending. Nevertheless, the State Auditor’s comparative report is a helpful first step for citizens concerned with the cost of their government. Makes you wonder where the County Board has hidden their copy.