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Arlington DEES proposes FY27 budget focused on climate investments, EV expansion and targeted cuts
Summary
The Department of Environmental Services presented a proposed FY27 budget centered on climate action and electrification, including new PPAs, expanded EV pilots and modest fee changes; staff also recommended pausing a planned solar+battery resiliency hub after feasibility costs exceeded available funds.
Board member Cunningham and DEES staff on Monday reviewed the county’s Department of Environmental Services (DEES) proposed FY27 operating budget and program priorities, emphasizing climate action, electric‑vehicle infrastructure and service efficiencies.
Greg, an agency official presenting the DEES package, said the proposal spans roughly $361 million and about 826 FTEs across funds and includes $1.5 million in one‑time reductions intended to minimize customer impacts. "This year, our proposed budget includes 1.5 million in proposed reductions," Greg said, framing the package as targeted efficiencies rather than broad service cuts.
Why it matters: The presentation prioritizes investments intended to reduce emissions and build operational resilience while balancing a tight budget year. The package highlights solar PPAs, more public EV chargers, electrification pilots and operational software upgrades that officials say will improve services while controlling net tax support.
Key proposals and context
- Climate action and solar: Staff described recent solar installations (835 panels at AMF and 481 at Lover Run) and four PPAs queued for board approval, and recommended $400,000 in the PIO for county facility renewable installations, contingent on PPA approvals.
- Resiliency hub pause: DEES recommended pausing the planned solar‑plus‑battery configuration for the Lubber Run resiliency hub after a feasibility review found battery capacity to run 60% of building loads for multiple days would exceed the project budget. Greg said scaling that system would push required battery investment above $2 million while available funding tied to the hub was roughly $1.2 million; staff proposed revisiting hub criteria via the climate action plan and CIP.
- EV infrastructure and pilots: The department reported more than 90 EV chargers countywide (staff later noted 51 public ports at nine county locations) and an EV utilization rate of about 16% against an industry benchmark of 12–15%. DEES is expanding a public‑safety take‑home EV pilot (adding four vehicles) and budgeting for 2027 public EV charging revenue around $85,000.
- Transit and data investments: DEES is phasing in Swiftly real‑time software across three phases (targeting completion by December 2027) and advancing transit signal priority pilots on Langston Boulevard with planning on Columbia Pike. The department also proposed $200,000 for a BEB (battery‑electric bus) consultant study to assess cold‑weather performance, charging infrastructure and operations.
- Print shop and staffing moves: The budget formalizes transition to an outsourced print model with one FTE retained for mail services and includes $313,000 one‑time to exit leased machinery; several minor staff transfers and freezes are proposed to realize efficiencies.
- Fees and revenue: DEES projects revenue increases from performance parking and DRPT transit assistance that partially offset cost pressures; most permit fees would rise about 3% to move toward cost recovery, and stormwater and utilities funds have separate rate and fee proposals discussed in other sessions.
Board questions and next steps
Board members pressed staff on whether the Lubber Run investment should instead be directed to building electrification and other resilience measures. Mr. Spain asked for a cost‑benefit analysis of take‑home EVs for public safety before scaling; staff committed to follow‑up analysis.
Staff said additional budget and CIP briefings are scheduled (PGO/TCF/TIF on April 9) and recommended the board consider the climate action plan output before final allocations for some one‑time funds.
What remains unresolved: The board will need to decide on the four pending PPAs and whether to reallocate the resiliency hub funding after the climate action plan and CIP work is completed. The presentation flagged several follow‑ups, including more granular performance data for EV and transit pilots and a study on BEB operations.
The board paused for questions and scheduled further discussion on capital items and fee proposals in upcoming sessions.
