Arlington County (Virginia) Proposes Real Property Tax Increases

 

 

Arlington County, Virginia:  NOTICE OF PROPOSED REAL PROPERTY TAX INCREASE

PUBLIC HEARING ON THE INCREASE WILL BE HELD ON APRIL 5, 2018, AT 7:00 P.M. OR AS SOON THEREAFTER AS POSSIBLE IN ROOM 307, 2100 CLARENDON BLVD., ARLINGTON, VA.  AFTER THE HEARING IS HELD ON APRIL 5, 2018, THE COUNTY BOARD MAY ADOPT A TAX RATE LOWER THAN $0.993 PER $100 OF ASSESSED VALUE, BUT IT CANNOT ADOPT HIGHER RATE. 

Spanish language interpreters will be available. Please see Clerk prior to hearing.  Please visit County website at www.arlingtonva.us for information on advanced online sign-up to speak at hearing or call Clerk’s office at 703-228-3130 to register. 

Copy of proposed resolution fixing real estate tax rate for CY 2018 is on file and available for review in County Board Clerk’s Office, Room 300, 2100 Clarendon Boulevard, weekdays 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

The County of Arlington, Virginia, proposes to increase property tax levies. 

1.  Assessment Increase:  Total assessed value of real property, excluding additional assessments due to new construction or improvements to property, exceeds last year's total assessed value of real property by 1.3 percent.

2.  Lowered Rate Necessary to Offset Increased Assessment:  The tax rate which would levy the same amount of real estate tax as last year, when multiplied by the new total assessed value of real estate with the exclusions mentioned above, would be $0.980 per $100 of assessed value.  This rate will be known as the "lowered tax rate."

3.  Effective Rate Increase: The County of Arlington, Virginia proposes to adopt a tax rate of $0.993 per $100 of assessed value.  The difference between the lowered tax rate and the proposed rate would be $0.013 per $100, or 1.3 percent.  This difference will be known as the "effective tax rate increase." Individual property taxes may, however, increase at a percentage greater than or less than the above percentage.

4.     Proposed Total Budget Increase:  Based on proposed real property tax rate and changes in other revenues, the total budget of Arlington County will exceed last year’s budget by 1.7 percent. 

5.     The County also proposes to maintain the real estate tax for properties used for or zoned to permit commercial and industrial uses at the current rate of $0.125 per $100. Revenue from this tax is dedicated for transportation initiatives.

6.     The County also proposes to maintain the sanitary district tax at the current rate of $0.013 per $100 of assessed value. Revenue from this tax is dedicated for the stormwater management fund.

Hope Halleck, Clerk to the County Board

Advertised: February 28, 2018

Can’t make it? Arlington TV – Comcast Xfinity 25 or 1085(HD) and Verizon FIOS 39 & 40 – live broadcasts County Board Meetings, County Board Work Sessions, and meetings of the Planning Commission. You can also watch Arlington TV’s live stream on the County website or archived video. 

Alexandria (Virginia) City Council Votes Not to Increase 2018 Real Estate Tax or Personal Property Tax Rates

Alexandria City Council Votes Not to Increase 2018 Real Estate Tax or Personal Property Tax Rates

For Immediate Release: March 15, 2018

On March 14, the Alexandria City Council voted unanimously not to consider any increases from calendar years 2017 to 2018 in the tax rates for real estate, vehicles, or business tangible property. The real estate tax rate City Council eventually adopts could be the same or lower than the current rate of $1.13 per $100 of assessed value, but cannot be higher.

On February 20, the City Manager proposed a Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Operating Budget and Capital Improvement Program reflecting no change in any tax rate.

A public hearing on the ordinance establishing the real estate tax rate will be held on Saturday, April 14, at 9:30 a.m., at City Hall (301 King St.), in City Council Chambers.

City Council will adopt a final real estate tax rate in conjunction with the adoption of the FY 2019 budget on May 3.

For more information about the FY 2019 budget process, visit www.alexandriava.gov/Budget.

Arlington County Board Votes for No Tax Rate Increase

• Acts after Manager proposes staff, service cuts to close $20 million FY 2019 gap

• Chair Katie Cristol: “The Board, and the community, must spending the next two months evaluating and prioritizing”

The Arlington County Board today voted to advertise no increase in the tax rate for Calendar Year 2018. The Board’s action came after the County Manager proposed a Fiscal Year 2019 Budget that requires cuts in services and staffing to close an estimated $20.5 million revenue-expenditure gap within the existing tax rate.

“The demands on our budget are growing, and with continuing challenges in our office vacancy rate, our revenues are not keeping pace,” Arlington County Board Chair Katie Cristol said. “The Board, with the community, will spend the next two months evaluating and prioritizing how to deliver quality services within our existing tax rate.”

As cost pressures from Metro and new schools grow, Cristol warned, the Fiscal Year 2020 and 2021 budgets will require additional fiscal discipline.

“Tough choices lie ahead for our community,” she said. “But by taking these steps now to rebalance in County government spending, we aim to ensure Arlington’s fiscal sustainability in the years ahead.”

The Board voted 3 to 2 to advertise a real estate tax rate of $1.006, (including stormwater tax,) per $100 of assessed value, the same as the Calendar Year 2017 tax rate. Cristol and Board Members John Vihstadt and Erik Gutshall voted yes and Vice Chair Christian Dorsey and Board Member Libby Garvey voted no, saying they preferred to advertise a tax rate of $1.011 per $100 of assessed value.

“Arlington is at risk, with legislation pending in Richmond, of losing nearly $2 million in revenue that will affect both the County government and Schools budgets,” Dorsey said. “Revenue reductions of that magnitude will require eliminating essential programs and services, or raising the tax rate. Advertising a slightly higher tax rate would have allowed the Board to engage with our community on the best way to meet this potential fiscal challenge.”

By law, the County can adopt a real estate tax rate equal to or lower than what is advertised, but cannot adopt a higher rate. The Board also voted to advertise higher rates for some fees. For a complete list of advertised fee rates, see the staff report for item No. 24 on the agenda for the Saturday, Feb. 24, 2018 Regular County Board Meeting.

In his presentation to the County Board during a work session on Thursday, Feb. 22, Schwartz pointed out that even without a tax rate increase, the average Arlington homeowner will see an increase in taxes and fees of $297 a year, a 3.5 percent increase overtaxes and fees in FY 2018. The increase is due largely to the 3.8 percent increase in residential property assessments in Calendar Year 2018.

Manager’s Proposed FY 2019 Budget

The Board’s action came after County Manager Mark Schwartz formally presented his Proposed FY 2019 Budget to the Board. His proposed budget, with $1.27 billion in General Fund spending, hewed to the budget guidance the Board provided in November, which called for a balanced budget within the existing tax rate.

Schwartz’s presentation to the Board marks the start of weeks of intensive review of the proposed budget by the Board, as it combs through the budgets for each department in a series of work sessions, and hears from the community. The Board will hold a public budget hearing at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 3 and will hold a public tax rate hearing at 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 5. The Board will adopt the Budget on Saturday, April 21.

Sign up in advance to testify at the public budget hearing/ the public tax rate hearing.

All the budget work sessions will be live-streamed on the County website.

To learn more about the Proposed FY 2019 Budget, and view the Manager’s presentation to the County Board, visit the County website

View this release in our newsroom

Arlington Va., is a world-class residential, business and tourist location that was originally part of the “10 miles square” parcel of land surveyed in 1791 to be the Nation's Capital. Slightly smaller than 26 square miles, it is the geographically smallest self-governing county in the United States, and one of only a handful with the prized Aaa/AAA/AAA bond rating. Arlington maintains a rich variety of stable neighborhoods and quality schools, and has received numerous awards for Smart Growth and transit-oriented development. Home to some of the most influential organizations in the world — including the Pentagon — Arlington stands out as one of America's preeminent places to live, visit and do business.