Virginia Fire Chief Says "No" To Reducing Budget
January 27, 2009 — In a news story published in today's Mesabi Daily News (Virginia), Virginia Fire Chief Darrell Knapper has told the city council that he will not reduce his budget. Earlier, the mayor and city council wanted city department heads to come forth with proposals which would cut their budgets by at least 10 percent. According to the news story, all of the other department leaders complied with the request. Knapper said, "the cuts can't be done without putting the public at greater risk than the current level." The mayor and those city council members present at the January 26th Finance Committee of the Whole meeting did not publicly comment on Knapper's decision. The fire department's annual budget, according to the newspaper, is $2.1 million. Like most cities across Minnesota, Virginia has been hit with a reduction in Local Government Aid (LGA). In December, the cut was $339,610, just over 16%. City officials are bracing for additional LGA cuts in 2009 and 2010. The City of Virginia's budget for 2009 is put at just over $11.5 million.