Alleghany County rescue chief warns budget cuts could end ambulance service; library and tenants urge funding at public hearing

Alleghany County Rescue Squad Chief Jason Long told the Board of Commissioners at a public hearing on the proposed 2627 budget that the squad has absorbed roughly $430,000 in shortfalls over several years and is no longer sustainable if funding is reduced.

"First, there's never been a slush fund at Alleghany County Rescue," Jason Long said, denying recent allegations and saying the squad has requested only necessary operating funds. He said some county employees "have received raises as high as 175% since 2015," a figure he raised while arguing that the rescue squad has been underfunded and has had to draw on savings or raise outside funds to cover shortfalls. Long said the squad logged nine successful CPR saves last year and was recognized by the American Heart Association for those efforts. "How do you put a price on a life save?" he asked.

Library officials who spoke urged increased support for library staff and services. Jen Marlo, the new branch manager of the Alleghany County Public Library, asked the board for a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment for library employees, increased funding for employee health insurance, more periodicals and materials, and additional support for the Hoopla streaming service that provides e-books and media to patrons. A former librarian, Debbie Brewer, told commissioners the library serves all ages and income levels and urged continued investment.

Tenants and small-business representatives who use the county's Business Development Center (BDC) warned that removing BDC funding and relocating Social Services (DSS) into that space would harm an established community hub. Pam Andrews, speaking for multiple tenants, said the BDC hosts more than 25 organizations for meetings, trainings and disaster-response staging and asked whether subsidy funding tied to the current DSS lease would continue if DSS moved into the BDC. Brett Jarrett, speaking for the Blevens family, said his family would consider relocating current BDC tenants into the DSS building at the same rent but urged the county to weigh the net financial and community impacts before changing the building's role.

Brandon Kino, the county ranger for the North Carolina Forest Service in Alleghany County, said the proposed county budget includes a $13,292 reduction to the county share of his office. "That equates to over $33,000 cut to my budget," Kino said, explaining that the county funds roughly 40% of the office and the state 60%, so cuts to the county share have an outsized effect on total resources. He said the proposed reduction would eliminate roughly two-thirds of his operating budget and would jeopardize services including timber assistance, insect and disease guidance, and wildfire response.

No formal votes on budget items were taken at the hearing. After public comment closed, a motion to adjourn was made and seconded; the board voted in favor and adjourned for the evening. The hearing provided the board with multiple requests for targeted restorations and clarifications — emergency medical services funding, library staff compensation and benefits, space and subsidy questions tied to the BDC and DSS, and restoration of county funding to the forest service — but commissioners did not act on those requests during this meeting.

The board did not schedule additional action or a vote on the budget during the session; next procedural steps or dates for formal budget decisions were not announced at the hearing.