David Leake rejoined the Haymarket Town Council as a full-time member March 15, just in time to discuss the proposed Fiscal Year 2012 budget.

Leake, who previously served on the council from 2008 to 2010, received his certificate of election right at 7 p.m. from Tony Guiffre of the Prince William County Electoral Board one week after taking 50 percent of the vote in a special election to fill out the term of resigned former council member Susan Edwards.

Guiffre said 100 people voted in the election even though the Virginia State Board of Elections Web site states that only 98 people cast ballots between Leake, former appointed council member Sterling Brinson and write-ins.

According to Guiffre, 131 people voted in the general election last May, meaning the special election did generate a significant number of votes in comparison to typical turnout for a town election.

"Welcome aboard, David," said Mayor Pamela Stutz after Leake received his certificate.

Leake thanked the mayor and returned to his seat between council member Jay Tobias on his left side and vice mayor John Cole on his right side. That places Leake second on the roll-call list for votes taken by the council at each meeting after Tobias casts the first one. Cole casts the third ballot followed by council members Mary Lou Scarbrough, Milt Kenworthy and Bob Weir in that order. Stutz only votes to break ties. Town attorney John Bennett also has a seat to the right of Stutz but does not vote.

Budget

Tobias led discussions on the proposed $2.6 million operating and capital budgets for next year after the mayor designated him with that responsibility. Most tax revenue will be held at the same levels as they currently are under the plan crafted by Tobias and town staffers.

However, the cigarette tax would be raised from 35 cents per pack to 50 cents, a hike of 43 percent. According to the budget summary, the increase will allow the town to "realize the same amount of income" from the tax as in past years at $143,277. The summary states that revenue from the tax "has been flat or dropping over the past three years" during a time when Haymarket "has the lowest" cigarette tax rate in Northern Virginia.

"With the proposed tax increase we will remain below most other jurisdictions," states the summary, which is available on the Town of Haymarket’s Web site.

Otherwise, the meals tax is set to stay at 4 percent and bring in $415,000, which is $65,000 more than it currently does. The property tax rate is designated to stay at $0.00164 for the third year in a row. A "small increase" in commercial and retail assessments should generate an extra $5,833 into the town coffers even with the tax holding flat, according to the summary.

Straw polls among council members, which are essentially informal, non-recorded votes to gauge the level of support for each proposal, showed that only Weir was against raising the cigarette tax. Weir, a smoker, argued that the town could lose out of extra income if smokers opt to buy cigarettes elsewhere.

Stutz also called for a nominal reduction in the meals tax but could not generate support among council members, including Weir who initially opposed the meals tax when it was created.

"I don’t know how you balance this budget without it (staying at its current level) and, right now, this is pretty tight," said Cole. "We have come to rely on this money and, even though we don’t like it, it’s keeping us alive."

Leake mentioned that a "majority" of the money generated from the tax comes from diners who live outside of the town. Tobias noted that a 1 percent drop in the tax rate would result in a revenue loss of over $103,000 at a time when $101,000 has been set aside for capital improvement projects alone.

"I just don’t think the savings of half a percent would make that much of a difference," said Tobias.

Weir, who is running in the Republican primary for Prince William Board of County Supervisors chairman, added that "my opposition hasn’t changed" to the tax. However, the reality of the situation is "there is a potential cost on the horizon" for attorneys to fight for a boundary line adjustment, which could be expensive.

"We’re going to need that money," he said, later adding, "I’m going to be okay with retaining it."

Revenues from rental and lease contracts owned by the town are expected to rise almost $33,000 while revenue from police fines is expected to drop $70,000. State aid to the police department from Virginia 599 Grant program is being reduced by $3,000 "to reflect the current levels approved by the State Legislature," the summary states.

Expenses from town employee salaries are set to jump by just under $58,000 though "no general salary increase is proposed due to the cost of joining the Virginia Retirement system" and the "generous" health insurance policy granted by the town.

Money for one extra police officer has been set aside as has $74,000 for renovation of the Town Center property. The proposed budget also calls for $17,000 to go into a general reserves fund.

Discussions during the council meeting also centered around what the town should do with a hypothetical $7,000 that may be left over from this current year’s budget when it expires at the end of June. Suggestions included building a multi-purpose court and a walking path at the Harrover property on the east side of town. A flashing sign could also be put on town to alert commuters of changing events.

Tobias said those options became relevant because the town council has been unwilling to spend money on certain capital improvement projects.

"You all don’t want to tear down buildings that look like eye sores," Tobias said. "You don’t want to repair buildings that look like eye sores."

Cole recommended that before any decisions are cast, the council should consider the future of the Harrover property, including concepts that have not even been proposed yet simply because once construction on anything is complete, it will alter the way the town can use the property.

"Heaven forbid we make a decision," said Tobias sarcastically.

"I just want to place it where I know it’s not going to be an issue," replied Cole.