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Council debate over June minutes exposes disagreement on budget supermajority
Summary
A motion to withhold approval of June 17 minutes exposed a dispute among Purcellville council members about whether a supermajority was required to pass the budget; the disagreement led to a referral of the minutes to a future agenda.
A procedural motion on Sept. 23 revealed an ongoing disagreement among Purcellville council members about whether the town's 2025 budget was lawfully adopted.
Council member Wright moved to not approve the June 17, 2025 special budget-workshop minutes, arguing that the minutes incorrectly state that the budget passed because, in his view, a supermajority was required and was not achieved. "I still believe that we did not officially pass a budget because we did not have a super majority vote," Wright said. Other members countered that the legal interpretation provided by town counsel (cited in packet) indicated a supermajority is required only for imposing a new tax; the council did not resolve the substantive legal question that night and instead tabled further action on the minutes to a future meeting.
The exchange underscored a wider procedural tension that several speakers said has eroded public confidence; council agreed to place the contested minutes back on a future agenda so the record can be clarified.
