All candidates were offered an opportunity, after the primary/caucus decisions, to respond to the questionnaire or update their earlier responses. No response was received from John Jenkins or Scott Hirons.

Questions	Neabsco KEITH KESSLER - Independent
Question: Unmanaged development has a significant impact on the ability of localities to protect green open space and natural resource areas. The Virginia General Assembly has said that local governments have the tools they need to manage and contain growth within their jurisdictions. These tools include (1) the proffer system; (2) the issuance of permits for building and sewer hook ups; (3) planning and then legislating dedicated local funding mechanisms to leverage state and federal dollars for acquisition of parks and open space; and 4) comprehensive planning, zoning, and use of tax assessments to encourage/discourage types of development. How will you use these tools to manage the pace of development and direct where growth occurs?	KESSLER: I would use all 4 of the above tools to manage and direct our growth and keep a maximum of "green space" available for all future generations to come in this county. Past indiscretions have put this county in jeopardy and if we are unable to elect new representatives that have the vision and wisdom to protect our remaining assets then we are certainly in big trouble. A new BOCS must agree to work in harmony to protect our environment and all of our natural resources.
Question: Inadequate infrastructure - including storm water management, transportation, school and public safety systems - results in preventable increases to pollution levels, reduces quality of life for residents and challenges the integrity of valuable natural resources. There are currently 34,000 residential units approved for development in Prince William County that could accommodate 100,000 more people, increasing the current population by one-third. What will you do to improve the current Levels of Service, and how will you ensure that new rezoning requests to accommodate new development will not make the current problems worse?	KESSLER: We have a county budget surplus, which allows this county to maintain and now exceed current Levels of Service. Although I'd like to study a tax decrease I would never endorse one that lowered our qualities of service. New rezoning requests that would put a larger burden on our already stressed out highway and infrastructure system would simply be denied by utilizing the above 4 measures mentioned. Although legally I couldn't stop growth, I could certainly drag my heels on all unnecessary future growth.
Question: Prince William County's current transportation system cannot accommodate traffic from existing development. The resulting traffic congestion increases automobile emissions into the air within the Northern Virginia region, recently reclassified as "Severe" for air pollution. The 2000 Census shows that only 3.2% of Prince William County residents use public transportation to travel to and from their place of employment. What would you do to increase public transportation options for local residents and/or revamp land use patterns so jobs and housing are closer to each other within 20 years, especially in areas where redevelopment opportunities can maximize investments?	KESSLER: We first need to think towards the future with our transportation needs. Heavy rail is an outdated mode of transportation with extremely high operating costs and it has numerous safety risks along with terrible emissions. We need to utilize the environmentally friendly, cost effective, zero emission Mono-rail system which is also user friendly and has had no fatalities that I'm aware of. It costs $180 Million per mile to build a heavy rail system versus $30 Million per mile with a clean Mono-rail system. Do the math. With "smart growth" communities, commuting would be almost extinct as compared to the status quo.
Question: The rapid pace of development in Prince William County challenges government capacity to adequately enforce existing Chesapeake Bay and other environmental regulations. And when infractions are identified, the current penalties are often insignificant compared to the financial benefits that can be realized through noncompliance. As a result, many infractions are either not corrected in a timely manner or not addressed at all. What would you do to ensure regular, timely and comprehensive enforcement of existing regulations to safeguard Prince William's valuable natural resources?	KESSLER: This is more of a State and Federal issue but as a citizen and/or supervisor I would not hesitate to speak out about all of the infractions that go relatively unchallenged. My record as an advocate speaks for itself when I say I'll take the matter to the top of the pile and demand and receive the safeguards needed to protect all of our natural resources. I'd try for stiffer penalties and much stricter enforcement of our environmental regulations and laws already on the books as well.
Question: As a signatory partner to the Chesapeake Bay agreements, Virginia has committed to invest in productive strategies that support better ecological health of the Chesapeake Bay. Prince William has taken positive action to fulfill this commitment through efforts that begin to assess the ecological health of many County streams. Do you support a comprehensive stream protection strategy similar to that in Fairfax County, including the development of management strategies for the protection and/or restoration of County subwatersheds?	KESSLER: I'm not familiar with any Fairfax County initiatives but I certainly support better ecological health of the Chesapeake Bay and our county stream system.
Question: Steep slopes and highly erodible soils characterize many of the remaining undeveloped parcels in Prince William's designated development area. These landscape conditions necessitate the use of cut-and-fill development practices and have significant negative impacts on water quality, protected stream buffers and other natural resources. Although prevention is considerably more economical than mitigation, current regulations and requirements provide little, if any, protection for these valuable natural resources. What tools and/or strategies would you use to protect these environmentally sensitive areas?	KESSLER: I would seek to make the proffering system become such a disadvantage to developers who don't care about our sensitive land or who don't use good land use practices. I'd also use any other tool available to discourage these unnecessary projects particularly after the Cherry Hill fiasco. Perhaps a review or amendment to our Comprehensive Plan would be in order but developers certainly couldn't buy my vote.
Question: Prince William's designated rural area (Rural Crescent) was adopted in 1998 to preserve open space, agricultural resources and our groundwater supply. Since that time, development pressures continue to challenge local capacity to sustain these goals. Other open space areas protected by state and federal agencies are threatened by encroaching development. Prince William surveys repeatedly show that residents want more green, open space and passive recreation opportunities, such as birding, hiking, photography and other nature explorations. What tools, strategies and/or funding mechanisms would you use to protect and increase green, open space areas and agricultural resources? Would you support a comprehensive system of greenways and trails connecting parks in the county?	KESSLER: I would DEFINITELY support a comprehensive system of greenways and trails connecting parks in this county. We have far too many golf course communities jeopardizing our water tables now and again I would utilize every tool at my disposal to protect our open green spaces and what little agricultural areas we have remaining. Perhaps a special agricultural tax could be put in place to encourage those resources but we must act now before all is lost to more sprawl and development. We must discourage breaking up farms and/or set aside tax surpluses to purchase these rare gems remaining and perhaps use them for working farms for kids to visit and/or stay to work during school breaks and vacations. Fee's could be charged like summer camps to help defray the farms upkeep.
Question: Over 80% of Prince William public water users rely on the Occoquan Reservoir for clean drinking water. Although it is now too late to protect lands along the southern side of the reservoir, much of the headwaters lie in western Prince William. Conservation and preventative efforts offer significant economic advantages over technological solutions, as documented by the EPA in their assessment of New York City's successful watershed protection strategy. What tools, strategies and/or funding mechanisms would you use to protect the public drinking water supply? How will you protect the headwaters of the Occoquan Reservoir as development increases in the upstream sections of Bull Run, Cedar Run, and Broad Run watersheds?	KESSLER: I would have to rely on experts in the conservation field to supply me with the knowledgeable information to make the wise decisions needed to protect all of our water supply resources and the watersheds from the streams and rivers. With information from groups like the PWCA I could then again utilize all the tools and resources available to implement meaningful lifelong lasting results for the people of Prince William County and the greater Northern Virginia areas. This would also necessitate the agreements from the governing bodies of our neighboring counties for all of us to work hand in hand to address all of these issues that will affect all of us.