The Virginia county with the most federal workers in the United States is highlighting plans to assist them during the government shutdown.
Meanwhile, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeffrey McKay warns the county’s economic struggles will have a negative ripple effect on the entire commonwealth.
“Virginia’s budget is in deep trouble if Fairfax County’s budget is in trouble,” he said.
“The rest of the state relies on us to pay their bills, and all of a sudden, we don’t have a way to pay those bills,” McKay said. “And so, the ATM machine of Northern Virginia here could get broken.”
The numbers don’t fully portray how deeply the county is affected by the federal government shutdown, McKay said. An estimated 80,000 federal employees live in Fairfax County, and McKay says the number of federal contractors, which is harder to track, could equal that.
McKay said the county is ramping up its Coordinated Services Line, which was established during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“And that is the one number people can call if they’re having financial challenges, they need support for utilities; for rent; food, you know, if they’re having food insecurity issues as a result of going without a paycheck,” McKay said. “We also have people on that line that can provide help for people who, you know, receive WIC, SNAP and TANF support if suddenly that stops flowing to them.”
Federal workers struggling with finances are encouraged to contact the county, which, McKay said, is willing to work out a payment plan on car and real estate taxes. He noted those payments, along with sales tax revenue — which is likely to drop as people cut back — are huge contributors to the county budget.
“A county like ours gets hit on every level,” he said.
McKay and many of his constituents watched as a threat that could extend beyond the shutdown came from the White House Thursday afternoon: mass firings.
“Look, it’s likely going to be in the thousands. It’s a very good question, and that’s something that the Office of Management and Budget and the entire team at the White House here, again, is unfortunately having to work on today,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. “These discussions and these conversations, these meetings, would not be happening if the Democrats had voted to keep the government open.”
McKay believes the firing would be illegal.
“Those mass layoffs, every legal professional, including some of our members of Congress that I’ve spoken with believe they are 100% illegal, and so even if they do happen, they will go to court, and likely, the court will reinstate these employees,” McKay said.
The Coordinated Services Line is 703-222-0880 and available Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
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