2. Why They're Rising: Raises and Benefits Drive Tax Hikes
Raises and benefit rate hikes for 40,000 county and school employees account for 96 cents of every new tax dollar collected. Not roads. Not schools. Not public safety. A structural spending problem that compounds every year.
The chart says it all: FY2026 tax increases total $321M. Of $315M in new spending, $245M goes to raises and $59M to benefits. Only $11M -- about 3.5% -- goes to anything else. This is not a service-delivery budget. It is a compensation budget.
Where Every New Tax Dollar Goes
RAISES $245M (77.7%) BENEFITS $59M (18.7%) OTHER $11M (3.6%) --------------------------------- TOTAL NEW SPENDING $315M |
The county and school system collected $321M more in FY2026 than the prior year. Here is what that money paid for. The revenue side: of $321M in new taxes, $188M came from real estate taxes, $68M from the meals tax, and $52M from state taxes. Nearly every dollar of that went straight to compensation.
The Six Structural Drivers
Salary Escalation -- Automatic Annual Raises
County and school employees receive automatic annual raises plus "step" increases -- regardless of performance, economic conditions, or budget constraints. In the private sector, pay increases are tied to performance and market conditions. In Fairfax County, they are guaranteed. The result is a wage floor that never stops rising.The Never-Ending Salary Spiral
When Fairfax County raises salaries to match neighboring school districts, those districts respond by raising their own salaries -- which then prompts Fairfax to raise again. There is no ceiling to this spiral. Each round is funded by the next tax increase. Taxpayers are trapped financing a competition between government employers that has no finish line.Pension Underfunding -- Retire at 55 with 75% of Final Salary
Most county and school employees can retire at age 55 with 75% of their final salary -- guaranteed for life, indexed for inflation. This benefit was eliminated from private-sector employment a generation ago. The pension liabilities it creates are massive, underfunded, and growing. Every year the problem is not fixed, it gets more expensive to solve.Gold-Plated Medical Benefits -- Rate Hikes Every Year
County employee health insurance packages far exceed private-sector equivalents. Employer contributions, deductibles, and premium structures are benchmarked against other government plans -- not the competitive market. Every year, insurance rates increase, and taxpayers absorb the difference. This is not a small number when multiplied by 40,000 employees and dependents. (More on Pensions.)Half Your Taxes Go Directly To FCPS
Approximately 50% of all county tax revenue is transferred directly to Fairfax County Public Schools. Of that FCPS budget, the overwhelming majority funds employee compensation -- not classroom materials, not facilities maintenance, not technology. The school budget has grown dramatically while student outcomes have declined. FCTA's February 2026 Bulletin proposes tying school salaries to academic achievement.The METRORAIL "Black Hole"
Fairfax County subsidizes Metrorail by hundreds of millions of dollars annually -- a system with fixed routes, aging infrastructure, and declining ridership relative to its cost. Unlike bus transit, which can adapt routes as population patterns change, Metro is a permanently expensive commitment. FCTA has long argued that free bus service could serve more residents at a fraction of the cost. Instead, the Metro subsidy grows every year, crowding out other priorities.
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