James City County supervisors found a way to get $1 million more to local schools, but they are not in the mood to cut taxes. Instead, they discussed how they could raise meals taxes to 6% next year.
At the supervisors’ work session Tuesday, they reviewed several ways they could provide more money to the Williamsburg-James City County school system without cutting the county’s proposed budget. The money would allow the schools to give teachers the first of a three-year series of raises to make local pay more competitive with that of other regional school systems.
The school system faces a gap of potentially up to $2 million for its revised budget, depending on how much money the state provides. Final state funding will not be known until May 2.
School officials proposed several budget cuts and axed 35 positions they wanted to help students who have learning difficulties, behavioral issues or are still learning English.
State law requires schools to return unspent budgets to the localities…