Editor’s note: This article is part of a series by Potomac Local News introducing candidates for the Stafford County Board of Supervisors. This fall, voters will choose representatives for the Garrisonville, Hartwood, Falmouth, and Aquia Districts. To help local voters learn more about their candidates, Potomac Local News invited all Board of Supervisors candidates to a virtual interview with the same five questions. Their answers have been condensed for clarity. The remaining candidates either declined, had scheduling conflicts, or did not respond.
Videos of the interviews are available here.
Today’s topic: Stafford County has a $1 billion budget and is experiencing rapid growth. Candidates weighed in on how to spend wisely—supporting infrastructure and services without overspending or overbuilding.
Michael Catell (R), Falmouth: 
We need to look deeper at how and what are we spending. How are we taking action within the context of management? Is the Board leading effectively? To what degree does it need to lead, perhaps, differently? I want to keep public safety as a top priority. I want to make sure our schools are funded to the extent that we possibly can. With an over 30% increase in taxes in the past 3-plus years, that’s not sustainable. Economic growth, economic development, and new funding formulas are also going to be key to diversifying our income base relative to tax and fee income.
Kecia Evans (D), Falmouth: 
As a candidate, as a supervisor, there has to be transparency. We have to make sure that our budget is transparent, and our budget gets balanced. We need to make sure taxpayers aren’t carrying the weight by ensuring that new businesses are helping to carry the tax burden. I do believe that a clear, transparent budget is needed.
Kelly Robertson (I), Hartwood:
We have to look at things on an individual level. We cannot take and give blanket increases and not actually address the problems. We can’t take a chainsaw where we need to take a scalpel. We cannot go back every year and ask our residents to pay more, more, more. We’re up almost 40% in the last four years. We can’t handle that as a community. [We need to be] thoughtful, project by project, on whether or not we’re going to get the return on our investment, and focus our energy on things that are actually going to give us a return and not just look flashy and nice.
Marcus Oates (I), Hartwood:
I think we can do a better job of being more transparent about the type of economic development that’s going on in Stafford. Hartwood is a different district from most, with a lot of rural areas and also commercial availability. We need to address issues as a teammate, part of the community, and a servant. As a supervisor, you’re really a servant to the community in which you live.
Bart Randall (I), Garrisonville:
This is the heart of how you run a business, and that’s what Stafford County is – a billion-dollar business. In the last four years, we’ve had an almost $300 million increase in revenue in the county (state and federal money not included): where did the money get spent? What are we doing with it? I think there needs to be a better way of showing residents how they’re benefiting from this increase in funds. We have incurred about $800 million in debt over the past 20 years, and how much of the additional $200 to $300 million in the last four years has gone to reducing that debt? Fiscal responsibility starts with getting out of debt.
Hank Scharpenberg (R), Aquia: 
The county is in a financial hole because years of approving residential growth without offsetting proffers put us in a situation where we don’t have the tax base we should, coupled with the exemption for 100% disabled veterans of around $22 million. We need to take a hard look at what we’re spending money on, make sure we have an efficient government, and then attract commercial investment to the county. Businessmen have told me it’s difficult to do business in Stafford because the permitting process is different. This may be one reason we don’t see restaurants, bowling alleys, movie theaters. We need to attract commercial revenue by good businesses. The revenue from data centers will have some benefit, but the overall gap is not going to be plugged instantly.
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👉 Next in our series: How should elected officials ensure transparency and keep residents informed? In tomorrow’s post, candidates discuss public engagement and access to local government.
