Thank you for your comment. According to Virginia Tax Code 58.1-3321, Subsection A, the year-over-year increase in real estate taxes collected by the County is limited to no more than 1%.
The Board of Supervisors can override this tax relief and affordable housing protection, by invoking Subsection B and going out of their way to hold separate, public hearings publicized "at least 30 days" in advance, which I believe they have done already.
What I am suggesting is for the Board of Supervisors to have County Finance create, prior to this meeting, a budget in compliance with this 1% directive. This budget can then be used as a baseline to compare against the currently proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year that is based on not lowering the tax rate as stipulated in Subsection A. All expenditures funded by real estate tax revenues garnered in excess of the 1% directive (i.e., by the BOS not lowering the tax rate as stipulated in Subsection A) could then be highlighted for public discussion and comment.
The purpose of this exercise would be for the BOS to justify to the public why "such increase is deemed to be necessary," as required by subsection B. Expenditures found NOT to be "necessary" would be removed from the budget and the real estate tax rate would be reduced accordingly.
J Dirk Nies, Executive Director, nonprofit Floriescence Institute over 1 year ago on Whenever Albemarle County proposes to increase real property tax levies by more than 101 percent over the previous year's levies, I suggest the Board of Supervisors list all budget line items, for public review and comment, "deemed to be necessary" in overriding the letter and the spirit of paragraph A. of Section 58.1-3321 of the Taxation Code of Virginia.
Thank you for your comment. According to Virginia Tax Code 58.1-3321, Subsection A, the year-over-year increase in real estate taxes collected by the County is limited to no more than 1%.
The Board of Supervisors can override this tax relief and affordable housing protection, by invoking Subsection B and going out of their way to hold separate, public hearings publicized "at least 30 days" in advance, which I believe they have done already.
What I am suggesting is for the Board of Supervisors to have County Finance create, prior to this meeting, a budget in compliance with this 1% directive. This budget can then be used as a baseline to compare against the currently proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year that is based on not lowering the tax rate as stipulated in Subsection A. All expenditures funded by real estate tax revenues garnered in excess of the 1% directive (i.e., by the BOS not lowering the tax rate as stipulated in Subsection A) could then be highlighted for public discussion and comment.
The purpose of this exercise would be for the BOS to justify to the public why "such increase is deemed to be necessary," as required by subsection B. Expenditures found NOT to be "necessary" would be removed from the budget and the real estate tax rate would be reduced accordingly.