Arlington names new management and finance director

Arlington County (Map, News) - Arlington County has named Mark Schwartz director of the Management and Finance Department and chief financial officer.

Schwartz, whose appointment was effective Oct. 1, has been serving as deputy chief financial office for the past year. Prior to that, he worked in the White House’s Office of Management and Budget starting in 1993.

“I have always thought commitment to government service is very important,” Schwartz said in an interview with The Examiner. “There’s no better place to actually make a difference than at the local level.”

Schwartz was familiar with Arlington’s budget process before working for the county. He was active as a member of the Fiscal Affairs Advisory Committee, a panel appointed by the county board to advise them on fiscal matters.

As head of the Management and Finance Department, Schwartz is charged with putting together department budget requests. He said he expects revenues to increase in coming years, but for growth to slow.

“We’ll have increases but they’ll be of a much smaller magnitude,” he said. “That’s going to require us to make choices” on how to best spend county funds.

Arlington’s budget for 2007 tops $1 billion. Schwartz said one of his most important roles is to ensure this money is being spent properly.

“Every dollar we spend is a dollar that was entrusted to us,” he said. “We need to make sure we’re spending it responsibly.”

dfrancis@dcexaminer.com

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