►
Description
On the latest episode of Chesterfield Behind the Mic, Deputy County Administrator Matt Harris and Budget Director Gerard Durkin go in depth on the proposed FY2024 county budget, what is included, how the county was able to do so much while also providing comprehensive tax relief, and much more. For more information, go to Chesterfield.gov/budget.
Credits:
Director: Martin Stith
Executive Producer: Teresa Bonifas
Producer/Writer/Host: Brad Franklin
Director of Photography/Editor: Matt Boyce
Producer/Camera Operator: Martin Stith and Matt Neese
Graphics: Debbie Wrenn
Promotions and Media: J. Elias O’Neal, Elizabeth Hart, and Jackie Wilkens
Music:
Hip Hop This by Seven Pounds
Inspiring Electronic Rock by Alex Grohl
Guest:
Matt Harris, Chairman, Deputy County Administrator for Finance and Administration
Gerard Durkin, Director of Budget and Management
Recorded in-house by Communications and Media
Chesterfield.gov/podcast
Follow us on social media! On Facebook, like our page: Chesterfield Behind the Mic. On Twitter, you can find us at @ChesterfieldVa and on Instagram it’s @ChesterfieldVirginia. And you can also watch the podcast on WCCT TV Thursday through Sunday at 7 p.m. as well as on weekends at noon on Comcast Channel 98 and Verizon Channel 28.
A
A
Obviously
lots
of
public
input
coming
over
the
next
few
weeks,
various
opportunities
for
folks
to
come
out
and
have
their
voices
heard
your
presentation
from
staff
on
the
budget.
If
you
have
any
questions,
please
go
to
chesterfield.gov
budget,
the
ever
all
the
materials
are
there.
There
are
opportunities
for
you
to
provide
your
feedback
there.
A
As
well,
if
you're
watching
the
show
you're
going
to
see
various
charts
and
graphs
and
things
that
that
budget
is
prepared
as
part
of
that
presentation,
that
will
be
kind
of
used
as
a
as
a
visual
guide
for
this,
if
you're
somebody
who's
listening
to
the
show
feel
free,
like
I,
said
chesterfield.gov
budget
for
more
information
Matt.
Let's
start
here,
big
picture,
1.94
billion
dollar
9.4
increase
from
23..
You
did
a
great
job,
I
thought
the
other
day
of
sort
of
framing
this
as
the
power
of
and
and
I
thought.
A
A
As
as
you
guys
put
this
thing
together,
we
talked
a
little
bit
about
this
in
budget
101.
But
as
this
specific
budget
got
put
together,
there
was
obviously
a
lot
that
went
into
it
and
I'm
just
curious
that
level
of
and
how
unique
is
that
to
this
specific
budget
or
is,
or
is
this
just
sort
of
the
culmination
of
a
continued
process
that
you
guys
have
been
on
for
years
now?.
B
Well,
first
bro
I
should
point
out
that
charts
and
graphs-
and
things
is
also
the
title
of
Gerard's
autobiography
so
it's
available
on
Kindle,
but
only
Kindle,
apparently
only
on
Kindle.
It's
not
not
selling
well,
but
no
you're
right,
I
mean
I.
Think
that
absolutely
is
our
theme
for
for
this
plan,
because
I
think
it's
you
know,
there's
a
perception
that
you
can't
have
both
of
you
know
of
those
things
you
can't
have
tax
relief.
You
can't
be
cognizant
of
the
of
the
ratepayer
and
you
can't
make
big
broad
Strokes
on
you
know.
B
County
initiatives
in
this
plan,
more
so
probably
than
any
of
its
predecessors
does
both
those
and
I
think
it's
it's
a
it's
a
point
of
pride
and
it's
something
that
the
you
know
the
board
is
has
really
set
that
tone
and
staff
is
just
following
through,
and
you
know
laying
out
this.
This
budget
proposal
that
was
put
forth
yesterday.
A
Gerard
in
terms
of
being
able
to
put
something
like
this
together
that
has
so
much
involved
right.
There's
a
lot
of
pieces
moving
at
the
same
time
a
process
I'm
guessing
that
that
took
several
years.
How
proud
are
you
guys
of
what
you
were
able
to
sort
of
put
in
front
of
the
borders
advisors?
Yesterday,
I.
C
Mean
extremely
Pride
I
was
a
law
of
effort,
you'll
see
as
Dr
Casey
said,
trans
men
later,
there's
a
lot
of
hands
and
conversations
that
have
went
into
the
budget
that
was
proposed
before
the
board.
Yesterday.
It
takes
a
lot
of
effort
both
internally
with
us,
as
a
staff
working
with
County
leadership.
Other
departments-
and
you
know
it's-
you
know
we
have.
We
talked
about
that
Five-Year
Plan
yesterday,
it's
like
and
the
power
of
and.
A
B
And
I
would
I
would
say:
Brad
I
would
add
that
there's
probably
10
things
in
this
plan
that
would
make.
For
you
know,
I
mean
this
is
my
15th
one
of
these
animals
and
there's
there's
10
things
in
and
of
himself
would
be
like
a
nice
headline
for
a
budget
and
I
think
this
plan
has
you
know
eight
or
ten
of
those
in
here
all
combined
and
I.
Think
that's
that's
the
prime
factor,
but
it
is
you're
right.
C
A
B
But
this
year
you
know,
really
marks
the
again
wrapping
up
a
lot
of
these
multi-year
initiatives
and
it,
you
know,
really
makes
for
a
a
well-rounded
plan
and
I
think
one
that's
very
in
tune
with
the
public
I
mean
this
is
what
we
have
heard
from
them
over
the
last
three
or
four
years
and
we're
making
you
know
big
big
strides
on
in
these
key
areas
and
I.
Think
another
thing:
it's
a
very
focused
plan
right.
B
You
know
it's
not
we're
not
getting
into
all
of
these
other
ancillary
lines
of
business
and
adding
departments
and
head
count,
and
you
know
in
other
areas
we're
going
to
stay
in
our
lane.
We
are
going
to
be.
You
know
the
best
at
what
we
do
right
and
why
we're
here
and
what
the
people
expect.
You
know
when
they
write
those
checks,
and
you
know
I,
think
we're
doubling
down
on
those
core
areas
right
and
providing
them.
You
know
so
much
needed
tax
relief
in
spots.
A
Now,
speaking
of
process,
obviously
for
any
school
budget
you
know,
regardless
of
the
year,
there's
a
long
process
that
goes
as
a
part
of
that
there's
there's
a
lot
of
different.
You
know
those
those
sort
of
like
markers
in
the
sand,
so
to
speak
right
you
you
get
to
hear
and
you
get
to
there
and
it
was
one
of
those.
You
know
one
of
those
parts
of
the
budget
I
think
that
you
can
tell
from
the
amount
of
the
the
size
of
or
the
I'm
I'm.
A
Thinking
of
that
that
one
chart
that
you
have.
That
shows
the
blocks
you
know
of
the
pieces
of
the
budget
and
there's
one
that's
you
know.
Obviously
the
school
budget
is
more
than
50
of
the
of
the
entire
County
budget
and
that
there
has
to
be
a
lot
that
goes
into
that,
and
the
investment
in
education
in
this
budget
is
robust
by
any
stretch
of
the
imagination
it
accounts
for,
like
I,
said
50
of
the
entire
budget.
A
The
base
transfer
from
the
general
fund
to
the
schools
increases
by
20
million
dollars,
which
is
a
three
million
dollars
more.
That
was
projected
in
the
school
board's,
approved
budget
and
then
I
guess
by
allocating
not
just
that
three,
but
then
the
additional
five
that
helps
to
basically
have
the
school's
deficit.
A
Before
we
start
talking
about
what
the
state
is
able
to
give
us
Matt
talk
to
me
a
little
bit
about
sort
of
the
process
by
which
you
guys
are
able
to
to
come
up
with
the
the
numbers
here
and
make
it
all
work
and
put
the
county
in
such
a
position
to
to
invest
this,
like
I,
said
in
such
a
robust
way
in
education.
Well,.
A
B
B
Care
of
their
business,
so
you
know
we
move
forward.
We
again,
we
we
put
our
marker
down
yesterday.
Our
simple
message
to
the
state
is,
you
know,
meet
us
meet
us
in
the
middle
meet
us
halfway,
so
the
board
supervisors.
You
know
in
consultation
with
them
and
Dr
Casey.
You
know
we
deferred
some
initiatives
in
this
plan
not
to
another
year
necessarily
but
just
to
a
delayed
implementation,
something
that
you
know
we
kind
of
calling
the
the
wave
one
and
wave
two
right
approach.
B
B
Home,
but
you
know
I
said
so-
that
created
some
capacity
to
further
invest
in
schools,
because
we,
you
know
clearly
50
percent
of
every
dollar
in
this
budget
going
into
the
school
Division
and
that's
an
important
statistic:
I'm
glad
you.
You
mentioned
that
and
then
putting
some
one-time
monies
in
place.
We've
been
able
to
cut
16
in
half
to
eight.
You
know
we
think,
there's
a
very
reasonable
path.
The
state
comes
through
for
all
of
the
eight
or
maybe
more.
If
it's
more
then
the
one-time
one
is
the
one-time.
B
Investments
can
be
paired
back,
save
those
dollars
for
another
rainy
day
right.
If
it's
less
than
eight,
you
know
we
will
figure
that
out,
but
you
know
we're
developing
contingency
plans,
but
I
think
you
know,
hopefully,
at
the
end
of
the
day
and
there's
there's
a
full
scale:
push
County
board
supervisor
school
board
and
really
folks
throughout
the
state
to
put
pressure
on
the
Commonwealth
to
take
care
of
their
responsibilities.
You
know
in
the
education
front,
I.
C
A
That
would
be
a
topic
for
another
day,
we'll
see
what
comes
from
that
Gerard
in
terms
of
the
investment
in
public
safety.
One
of
the
parts
that
really
stood
out
to
me
was
the
36
additional
positions
to
achieve
the
firing
EMS
minimum
Staffing
goal
that
that
is
something
that
I
can
imagine
from
you
know
it's
one
thing
like
you
mentioned.
Matt
said
you
know,
the
one-time
money
is
36
additional
positions
year
after
year
after
year
is
a
you
know
that
ongoing
cost
has
to
be.
A
You
know
something
where
you
know
something
that
demands
like
a
lot
of
attention.
I
would
imagine
when
you're
budgeting,
you
know
it's
one
thing
to
spend
a
little
money
here.
It's
another
thing
to
say:
you're
going
to
do
it
forever
in
perpetuity
in
terms
of
being
able
to
make
that
investment
in
public
safety
other
pieces
of
that
you
know,
I,
there's
a
lot
more.
That
goes
along
with
that,
but
that
one
seems
to
be
the
big
part
of
here.
How
much
of
an
emphasis
did
was
that
in
the
process
and
and
how?
C
B
C
A
C
A
C
B
A
C
B
Over
time
you're
forced
you
know
folks
to
come
back
and
take
shifts
and
some
of
it's
voluntary,
but
at
a
certain
point
you
can
only
do
that
for
so
long
right.
It
has
a
wear
and
tear
on
the
workforce.
So
you
know
we're
able
to
finalize
what's
been
again
a
multi-year
initiative
and
you
know
I
think
it's
one
of
the
the
signature
pieces
in
this
budget.
A
Absolutely
speaking
of
signature
pieces,
obviously
for
the
workforce
component
of
things
we,
you
know-
you
mentioned
this
in
the
Press
briefing
the
other
day,
but
the
idea
that
you
know
as
everything
else
gets
expensive.
You
know,
because
of
inflationary
pressures
and
that
kind
of
stuff
there's
a
lot
that
goes
into
running
the
business
of
the
county,
right
being
able
to
find
the
people
to
run
the
business
of
the
county
and
to
do
the
jobs,
and
this
investment
in
in
terms
of
the
workforce
is
obviously
a
big
part
of
that
phase.
A
It
stands
to
to
reason
that,
because
of
their
there
are
so
many
pressures
on
all
businesses,
be
they
private
or
public
right
anybody
who's
trying
to
employ
people.
These
days
seems
to
me
that
everybody
has
a
shortage
of
everything
right.
You
can't
find
enough
this.
You
can't
find
enough
that
this
seems
to
be
something,
especially
with
that
rage,
minimum
wage
increase.
That
was
a
necessity,
and
it
goes
along
with
that
sort
of
pragmatic
process,
oriented
approach
that
County
took
to
do
this.
B
Yeah
I
mean
it's,
there's,
there's
absolutely
a
shortage
of
workers.
You
know
in
every
industry.
Ours
is
no
different,
but
we
have
you
know
through
the
board.
Supervisors
been
proactive
in
this
space
and
really
going
back
to
fiscal
21.
This
has
been
a
full,
four-year
ride
to
get
all
of
these
pieces
in
place,
but
I
think
what
we've
been
able
to
build
with
the
workforce
here
and
and
I.
B
Think
with
folks
that
you
know
onlookers
that
thinking
about
coming
to
the
county
is
you
know,
there's
a
trust
that
we're
going
to
first
and
foremost
before
we
do
anything
else.
Take
care
of
the
workforce.
I
mean
our
talent
in
all
departments
is
what
makes
us
special
I.
Think
we've
been
we've
done,
an
extremely
good
job
of
recruiting.
We've
got
you
know,
Public
Safety
is
always
going
to
be
under
a
little
bit
of
strain.
C
B
Think
that's
that's
an
even
more
restricted
pool
than
some
other
areas,
but
they
have
made
unprecedented
investments
in
the
workforce.
In
the
last
couple
years,
we've
made
that
job
number
one
and
this
budget
just
continues.
Those
pieces
I
think
one
one
different
thing
for
us
is
you
know
ours
is
Market
based.
C
B
Right
we
didn't
say
everybody
gets
right,
this
percentage
or
everybody's
treated.
This
way
you
know
we
actually
went
out.
We
did
a
market
study.
We've
responded
to
that.
The
minimum
wage
is
responsive
to
market
conditions.
The
public
safety
plan
meets
their
needs.
The
phase
two
for
Junk
arm
meets
their
needs.
There's
also
a
seven
percent
increase
for
teachers
right
as
proposed,
so
we
maintain
that
competitiveness
and
within
you
know,
against
our
closest
competition.
You
know
we
are
the
paid
leader
for
these
key
jobs.
A
Yeah
and
if
all
of
that
wasn't
enough,
if
all
of
the
you
know,
investments
in
education
and
Public,
Safety
and
in
terms
of
the
workforce
was
enough,
there's
also
the
investment
in
infrastructure
with
you
know
the
not
just
the
the
stuff
coming
out.
The
bond
referendum,
which
is
obviously
a
huge
overwhelmingly
supported,
vote
last
fall,
but
then
there's
also
the
construction
funding
for
the
phase.
One
of
the
powhype
parkway
extension
Gerard
I
would
imagine
that
that's
not
necessarily
something
that
a
lot
of
budget
folks
do
right.
A
There's
an
I,
don't
I
I
mean
all
my
years
of
media
I,
don't
think
I
remember,
seeing
a
local
government
being
able
to
start
a
process
like
this
for
something
that
impactful?
What
does
that
say
to
you
not
just
about
the
the
sort
of
the
the
sort
of
focus
of
the
board
survivors,
another
County,
but
also
too
from
a
budgeting
standpoint.
How
difficult
of
a
of
a
task
was
that
in
this
budget.
C
It's
been,
you
know,
set
in
the
latter
and
we've
put
on
bulk
posts
before
you
know.
It's
been
kind
of
this
dotted
line
since
the
late
1980s
right
and
so
being
able
to
take
that
from
that
Dotty
line
on
a
map
to
something
that
eventually
will
be
like
a
concrete
reality
is
a
big
thing,
especially
for
localities.
In
general,
I
mean
usually
these
things
come
with
a
kind
of
blend
of
local
state
and
federal
dollars.
A
C
B
A
B
You
know
concerns
we
talked
about
it
at
public
safety,
education,
infrastructure
and
then
the
support
Workforce.
That
makes
all
that
happen,
and
you
can't
do
it
without
that.
That's
what
that
phase
two
is
about
it's
it's,
the
finance
folks,
the
I.T,
the
elite.
All
the
you
know,
don't
see
them.
You
know
on
the
on
the
front
lines,
somebody
dresses
up
like
them
for
Halloween,
but
they
they
do
make
all
this
happen,
and
so
you
know
we
stay
very,
very
focused
in
this
plan.
B
A
Yeah
last
thing
on
infrastructure:
Matt
I
just
want
to
get
your
point
of
view
on
this
that
pow
height
extension.
It
feels
like
one
of
those
pieces
where
that
is
such
a
significant
project
that
that
getting
that
level
of
work
done
is
going
to
make
it
even
more
of
a
realistic.
You
know
path,
as
Gerard
mentioned,
how.
How
does
that
change
the
calculus
a
little
bit
for
whatever
happens
with
upper
mag,
but
in
terms
of
just
being
able
that
part
to
basically
get
that
project
to
completion?
B
C
B
C
B
A
big
check
in
our
lap
we're
putting
our
money
where
our
mouth
is
and
and
hopefully
at
the
end,
there's
170
million
dollars.
You
know
plus
or
minus.
On
this
phase.
You
know
we
can
find
supporters
to
come
with
us
on
phase
one
phase
two,
but
I
think
we
are
just
you
know
coming
out
front
and
saying
hey:
this
is
a
product
we've
been
talking
about
it.
Now
we're
going
to
put
some
money
behind
it.
B
A
Right
and
if
all
of
that
wasn't
enough
and
again,
this
goes
back
to
what
Matt
said
the
other
day
at
the
at
the
Paris
briefing,
the
idea
of
and
because
you're
able
to
do
all
of
these
things
which
speak
to
services
and
and
what
not,
that
the
County
residents
have
come
to
expect
from
from
its
from
their
locality.
But
then
the
comprehensive
tax
relief
portion
of
this,
which
I
think
is,
if
you
think
about
it
from
just
the
the
you
know,
the
term
comprehensive,
doesn't
really
do
it.
A
Those
two
measures
alone
would
result
in
125
dollars
for
an
average
homeowner.
But
if
that,
if
that's
not
it,
you
get
the
B
pole
piece.
You've
got
the
the
personal
property
tax
piece.
You've
also
got
the
folks
for
relief
for
seniors
and
the
disabled,
so
I'm
just
curious
Matt
as
you
as
you
put
this
entire
package
together
for
for
comprehensive
tax
relief.
Is
there
anything
else
that
that
any
other
swipes
you
can
even
take
at
the
Apple
I
mean
this
seems
when
again,
the
term
comprehensive
doesn't
seem
to
do
it?
B
You
know
bro
the
reality
is
we
have
a
diverse
tapestry
of
of
taxpayers
here
in
Chesterfield
County
and
just
going
to
the
real
estate
rate,
doesn't
touch
all
right
going
to
personal
property
if
you're
a
you're,
renting
you're
living
in
a
nice
apartment,
your
real
estate
tax
rate
cut.
Maybe
you
see
that,
maybe
you
don't
you
do
personal
property,
they
see
it
small
businesses,
you
know
we
want
to
make
sure
we
some
targeted
things
for
them.
That's
with
the
B
poll
that
just
means
business
license
taxes
right.
B
A
B
A
B
Annual
basis-
and
we
think
it's
fundamentally
unfair-
to
have
a
change
in
their
economic
situation
due
just
to
some
inflationary
Factor.
That's
you
know
they
didn't
go
out
and
earn
more
money
to
do
anything
different
and
it's
just
the
the
Market's
moving
around
them
and
then
they
lose
eligibility
for
that
key
benefit.
So
that's
you
know,
that's
a
big
piece
of
this.
The
personal
property.
That's
been,
you
know
a
market
condition,
but
how
do
you
you
know
this
is
another
key
part
of
this
and
not
not
to
get.
B
You
know
too
too
nerdy
too
deep
on
this,
but
we've
designed
a
tax
relief
package
that
is
comprehensive
is
diverse,
like
you
say,
but
it
also
is
is
responsive
to
the
fact
that
we
do
have
all
of
these
other
needs.
So
a
lot
of
these
things
that
we're
doing
puts
money
back
in
the
pockets
of
Chesterfield
taxpayers,
but
it
doesn't
Dent
our
rate
structure.
A
B
To
do
these
things
and
you
know
more
novel
ways
where
we
can
provide
the
relief
when
it's
needed
in
meaningful
dollar
amounts,
but
not
have
to
change
the
rate
structure
so
that
our
ability
to
raise
revenue
if
the
economy
does
turn
next
year
somewhere
down
the
line.
It
doesn't
prevent
further
further
future
rate
Cuts,
but
it
does
allow
that
option.
So
I
think
there's
a
lot
of
a
Nuance
to
the
way
that
that
this
is
provided
with
a
mix
of
some
rate,
but
some
one
time
and
taking
advantage
of
of
those
types
of
programs.
A
Right
I
guess
I
want
to
just
open
it
up
for
both
of
you
any
any
final
thoughts.
Obviously
there's
a
lot
that
goes
between
now
and
when
the,
when
the
board
actually
takes
it
vote
on
the
actual
proposed
budget,
a
lot
of
different
opportunities
for
folks
to
to
come
out
to
these
Community
meetings
to
go
whether
it's
the
ones
you
attend
in
person-
or
maybe
you
do
the
one
on
Facebook
live,
submit
your
feedback
get
the
information.
A
A
B
About
anything
from
you,
yeah
no
I
mean
I.
Think
it's
you
touched
on.
The
rest
of
the
March
is
really
the
you
know.
We
turn
the
mics
over
to
to
the
citizens.
You
know
what
do
you
think
about
the
proposal?
The
board
is,
is
all
ears
all
the
way
up
until
April
5
and
then
realistically
with
the
state
you
know
on
their
timeline,
whatever
that
might
be
April
5
is
not
even
really
the
end
of
the
process
from
you
know
a
formal
adoption
perspective.
B
We
will
probably
have
to
come
back
and
and
make
amendments,
but
you
know
our
advice.
Always
is
you
know,
there's
two
or
three
months
where
there
is
intense.
You
know
budget
Focus,
but
we
are
doing
things
year
round
and
as
such,
the
community's
ability
to
have
input
to
give
feedback
if
the
priorities
are
getting
off
track.
If
there's
a
new
priority,
whatever
the
case
might
be,
you
don't
have
to
wait
till
next
January,
you
haven't
missed
your
chance.
B
You
know
we
are
working
on
this
litter
and
that's
a
big
part
of
the
preseason
we
went
through
yesterday.
You
know
we'll
be
out
tonight
with
our
first
road
show.
You
know
we're
hammering
that
home.
You
know
we
are
here
365
days
a
year.
We
want
to
have
that
conversation,
and
this
board
in
particular,
has
been
very
active
to
use
all
12
months
to
improve
upon
or
take
advantage
of
opportunities
that
arise
to
to
make
this
community
stronger,
and
you
know
I
think
you'll
continue
to
see
that
well.
A
I
want
to
thank
Matt
I
want
to
thank
Gerard
for
coming
on
the
podcast
once
again
and
talking
to
us
about
the
24
budget.
Thanks
guys
really
appreciate
it
all
right
make
sure
you
check
us
out
on
social
media
on
Twitter,
it's
chesterfieldva
on
Instagram,
Chester
Virginia
one
word
and
on
Facebook
you
can
check
out
our
podcast
Pages
search
for
Mike.
Make
sure
you
like
that.
Patreon
keep
this
as
you
go
forward
now.
Let
me
tell
you
about
all
the
ways
you
can
check
us
out.
A
You
can
watch
us
on
our
YouTube
channels,
whereas
on
our
website,
chessfield.gov,
podcast
and
audio,
only
version
of
the
show
is
available
there,
as
well
as
on
Apple
podcast,
Spotify,
Google,
podcast,
overcast
and
a
whole
host
of
other
services.
You
can
also
watch
the
show
on
wcct
Thursday
through
Sunday,
at
7,
on
the
weekends
at
noon.
That's
Comcast,
channel,
98
and
Verizon
Channel
28
and,
lastly,
you
can
check
out
chesterfield.gov
connect
with
us
for
more
ways
for
you
to
get
in
touch
with
us
and
for
us
to
get
in
touch
with
you.
A
It's
my
thanks
to
my
director,
Martin
stiths,
our
executive
producer,
Teresa
Boniface
and
all
the
folks
from
Communications
media.
Thank
you
very
much
for
all
that
you
do
and
yeah
thank
you
out
there
for
sporting
show
and
giving
us
a
listen
so
from
all
of
us
here
in
Chesterfield
County,
thanks
again
for
making
us
part
of
your
day.
We'll
see
you
again
real
soon
take
good
care.