Rappahannock County officials and residents urged the General Assembly committees to remove a 2008 cap on supplemental basic aid that they said freezes the county’s state education funding at 2007 levels.

The Nut Graf: County administrator Gary Curry and several local speakers told the joint appropriations hearing that the 2008 cap on supplemental basic aid prevents increases in state funding from benefiting Rappahannock County, leaving the county with the lowest per‑pupil operational funding in the Commonwealth and constraining rural schools.

Gary Curry, Rappahannock County administrator, asked the committees to implement the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) recommendation to eliminate Great Recession‑era caps, specifically the 2008 cap on supplemental basic aid that he said “froze our combined basic aid plus supplemental basic aid state funding at 2007 levels.” Curry said removing the cap is necessary so that any education funding reform will actually increase the county’s total aid rather than supplant an existing supplemental allocation.

Residents including Michelle McKinney and Stephanie Ritter described the county’s rural realities: schools provide universal free meals, serve as community health hubs and are focal points of community life. They argued the cap disproportionately harms rural localities where taxable bases are limited and transportation and other costs are high.

What lawmakers heard: Rappahannock speakers requested statutory relief targeted at one obscure cap. Curry offered additional material (an op‑ed) for committee members who want more data. No committee vote was recorded at the hearing.

Ending: Local leaders asked the General Assembly to remove the 2008 cap on supplemental basic aid during the current budget session to restore funding parity for the county’s schools.