[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6528750,"mediaKeyId","5379437-59db7fffce818fed67a2bc6b15da46b3","parentId",5379437,"title","Residents warn cuts to Chester Gap Fire Department would raise response times; county grapples with cost and revenue limits","audioSeconds",1865,"startMs",1423424,"endMs",3288475,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5379437-59db7fffce818fed67a2bc6b15da46b3&start=1423&end=3288","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5379437-59db7fffce818fed67a2bc6b15da46b3/thumbnail_1423424.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6528750/Warren-County/Virginia/Residents-warn-cuts-to-Chester-Gap-Fire-Department-would-raise-response-times-county-grapples-with-cost-and-revenue-limits","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6528750-c25183214e6037f2bcc28526aa4b7220/orig.mp4?Expires=1771167485&Signature=k58QuF4Qo19usezUAzqoze6u7MJuCVgp5YIkBGaIFycPni8rFbW1g4E9y2y5hEJwxITvxlXBTusK6whUqBDLuoVoi8OLLDCAdxkJEoeQ5aRzrKtH3A25LbC4BlMkjunQUJOUW1gTxmPZ7RUDbTm-geoq5-Dfre4TKjUmFJIu-Noi6jIajBTPs89ahQRtvxGXVDUH1MP-EYUut7iWoEjUr6FmwVmLLYlx8psacL2ojoxLQrmKgscAN3ORbyi09cHG-i~MyvMczk17f5MSrKe0Z-DmqOhpI7L0bxQg8pwcFRlOGDREjQuHWPtg8M5XbJEjIaCExYrv-uJO7iMLSv3d3g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Warren County, VA","date","2025-06-10T00:00:00Z","article","At a Warren County budget public hearing, several residents and volunteer responders urged supervisors to maintain county funding for the Chester Gap Volunteer Fire Department and its cost-share emergency medical services, warning that cuts would increase response times in rural communities.

Sean Rowe, who identified himself as president of Chester Gap Volunteer Fire Department and a South River District resident, told the board the department's cost-sharing arrangement with Rappahannock County currently allows Warren County to receive \"one firefighter EMT and one firefighter paramedic for a fraction of the cost of one firefighter medic at company 1,\" and that 60% of Chester Gap's runs are into Warren County. Rowe warned that losing the paid staff would mean longer response times when crews must travel from Front Royal.

Lieutenant Chris Fulton, speaking for Chester Gap, said the county currently provides $178,204 a year to Chester Gap and that replacing the volunteer-plus-paid model with a fully staffed career station would cost \"nearly $1,000,000 per year\". Fulton described volunteers and paid staff as saving the county hundreds of thousands annually, and said the plan to replace Chester Gap with three paramedics spread across shifts would yield only one additional person per shift at an estimated cost of $295,200.

Multiple residents recounted life-saving responses by Chester Gap crews. Alan Fox, who said he was severely injured in a 2021 vehicle crash, credited on-site intubation and rapid care by Chester Gap responders with saving his life. Janet Fox Monosmith described the department's roughly three-minute response on that night and urged supervisors to continue funding the shared program because \"location matters, response times matter, minutes matter, seconds matter.\"

Board members acknowledged the emotional testimony and the importance of rural EMS but said limited county revenue and commitments elsewhere complicate the decision. One supervisor noted that Rappahannock County's actions and the interjurisdictional cost-share arrangement make the situation difficult to resolve unilaterally. The board said the decision on funding remains subject to broader budget constraints and scheduling.

Ending: The board did not take a formal vote on Chester Gap funding at the hearing. Supervisors said they will continue budget deliberations, noting that public safety funding competes with education, infrastructure and other priorities in a constrained revenue environment.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Warren County Board of Supervisors Special Meeting\tJun 10, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Multiple residents and Chester Gap volunteers urged supervisors to keep county funding of the Chester Gap Volunteer Fire Department, saying cutting the program would lengthen response times and risk lives in rural areas; county supervisors said revenue constraints and a cost-sharing arrangement with Rappahannock County complicate the decision.","taxTitle","Warren County, Virginia","taxId",38193,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6528754,"Warren County budget hearing spotlights school funding as residents urge larger increase",4547,43795,4591505,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5379437-59db7fffce818fed67a2bc6b15da46b3&start=43&end=4591","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5379437-59db7fffce818fed67a2bc6b15da46b3/thumbnail_43795.jpg","/articles/6528754/Warren-County/Virginia/Warren-County-budget-hearing-spotlights-school-funding-as-residents-urge-larger-increase","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6528754-d56b7a91898842432111fcef290b6d1f/orig.mp4?Expires=1771167485&Signature=MoRi8IinV06ULWOtTKrGukLb3gy34InIiL1oqxNWHcU46rgDQZ8p8mJ5VdPVeOQXP9~6JfbfSVM2XjW80bpO5QfpEj0Er-tx058aXG1DXoR-rZxUWFNkAGUSvRxePeuhJl4e5G8zKN7ieQKKpcOmcqjBZaQkPaqpyqleQ9RvRGJikgfABQBKPIDrevBSbjrGskZuaMWetImxBwnR76bs7BlaDUNfASNdSlWCkg-7D5ctVMRp4bmM7Ka5OIRFmYMQqahHCLYMK2ozMpeIXd74XGO7~I1uPIiK2~RtCWlQwHlmcHEc7p4hwPudalLBi67upXvTpepc2R7pS7g0wX3aaA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Warren County supervisors held a public hearing on the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget, during which county finance staff outlined a proposed $93.44 million budget and several speakers, including teachers, parents and school association leaders, pressed the board to increase funding for Warren County Public Schools.

The county's finance presenter, identified in the meeting as Miss Scott, said the proposed FY26 amended budget is $93,440,000, down $651,944 from the adjusted FY25 total after transfers. Miss Scott told supervisors the FY25 adopted budget was $97.35 million but, after moving certain programs out of the general fund and accounting for supplements and transfers, the adjusted FY25 baseline used to prepare FY26 is lower.

Why it matters: school operating budgets and personnel were the most frequent concern raised during public comment. Speakers said flat funding in prior years has left schools short on support staff and classroom resources and warned that continued restraint threatens teacher retention and programs the community values.

Members of the public urged a larger increase than the $750,000 in the county's proposed budget. Sarah Jones, a resident of the Happy Creek District, said the county must \"prioritize funding our public schools now\" and that \"an increase of only $750,000 falls far short of what is required to adequately support every student.\" Rebecca Hudson Hodge, who identified herself as co-president of the Warren County Education Association and as an educator in the county, asked the board to fund at least $1,147,000, a figure she said the school board had adopted in a unanimous resolution on June 5.

Several other teachers and parents made similar appeals. Megan Budd, a Fork District teacher and parent, called the $1,147,000 \"the bare minimum\" to address insurance increases and to retain a student support assistant in each school. Jenny Haywood Bryant, a teacher at Warren County High School, said teachers are \"doing more and more with less and less every passing year\" and that underfunding forces educators to spend personal funds on classroom supplies.

Miss Scott explained revenue sources in the proposed budget, saying most revenue is from general property taxes (real estate and personal property), with other local revenues from fees, fines and charges for services and additional state and federal funds for designated programs. She said the county typically does not budget for grants until awarded; when grants are later received they increase revenue and are appropriated through supplements.

The proposed budget includes an increase in the county's contribution to schools: the schools' operating allocation was listed at roughly $29.4 million for FY26 (up from $28.65 million in FY25), which Miss Scott said reflects the county taking on an energy bond payment previously paid by the schools. That shift, she said, increases the county's direct costs while freeing the school system from that specific debt payment.

Board members and staff acknowledged competing priorities and limited revenue. One supervisor said the county contracted its proposed budget by about 3 percent and that if every request were funded the tax increase would be roughly 16 percent, which the supervisor said would be untenable. Another board member said the timing of the school budget and the county's decision calendar complicated deliberations between the two boards.

No budget adoption vote occurred at the hearing. County staff and supervisors described the session as a presentation and public comment period; one supervisor said, \"At this point, we are not voting tonight. No, sir. We're just making the presentation.\" The board did later move to adjourn the special meeting.

Ending: Supervisors closed the public-comment portion after dozens of residents spoke and said further budget deliberations will continue before any formal adoption. Several speakers asked the board to reconsider the county's proposed $750,000 increase and instead approve at least $1,147,000 as urged in the school board's resolution.

","At a public hearing on the proposed fiscal 2026 budget, county staff described a proposed $93.44 million budget and residents, many educators and parents, urged supervisors to increase the county's contribution to Warren County Public Schools above the $750,000 in the proposal, citing staffing and program cuts tied to years of flat funding.","actionData","errors"]

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Residents warn cuts to Chester Gap Fire Department would raise response times; county grapples with cost and revenue limits

Warren County budget hearing spotlights school funding as residents urge larger increase