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PW board struggles over tax rate
It's deja vu all over again. For the second year in a row, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors is having a hard time agreeing on a preliminary tax rate. On Tuesday, supervisors tried several times to come up with a maximum real estate tax rate but none of the proposals could get enough votes to pass.The board was supposed to vote Tuesday to advertise a public hearing for the tax rate. The advertisement must include the maximum real estate tax rate that the supervisors will consider. The board can then adopt a lower tax rate than what they advertised, but they can't adopt a rate that is higher.
The problem is, the supervisors had trouble agreeing on what to advertise and they ended up adjourning without reaching a consensus.
The same time happened last year and that time, they tried on several different days, eventually calling a special meeting to resolve the issue.
This year, the proposed budget is based on a tax rate of $1.198 per $100 of assessed value. At that rate, the average homeowner would see a tax bill decrease of $548 – about 16 percent.
But Supervisor Marty Nohe (R-Coles) said that claim is deceptive because most homeowners won't see that much of a tax cut.
“The reality is the only people who are going to see a 16-percent tax cut is people whose homes have lost most of their value,” he said, arguing that it's mainly foreclosed or blighted homes that will see that much of a tax decrease.
The same principle is true in the commercial sector, he said. The $1.198 tax rate will result in an average 5-percent increase in commercial real estate taxes because commercial assessments are rising even though residential assessments are decreasing. But Nohe, a small business owner, said it is primarily dilapidated commercial properties that will see only a 5-percent tax hike. Most businesses, he said, will see a much greater increase in their tax bills.
Nohe voted against all of the tax rate proposals because he said he wanted a more honest conversation about the impact of the tax rate.
Supervisors first shot down a tax rate of $1.295 per $100 of assessed value. Supervisor John Jenkins (D-Neabsco) proposed the rate that is 10 cents higher than the budgeted rate because the board has not yet heard from the agencies or departments that are facing budget cuts. Since the supervisors don't yet know what programs or services that would be cut under the $1.19 rate, they shouldn't lock themselves in, he argued. In addition, he pointed out that public hearings have not yet been held so the board hasn't heard from the public yet.
Only Woodbridge Supervisor Frank Principi (D) supported Jenkins in that proposal, however.
Gainesville Supervisor John Stirrup (R) then suggested the $1.198 rate that the budget is based on but that proposal also failed on a tie vote. Four Republicans -- Stirrup, Dumfries Supervisor Maureen Caddigan, Brentsville Supervisor Wally Covington and Chairman Corey Stewart – voted in favor of that rate. Jenkins, Principi, Nohe and Occoquan Supervisor Mike May (R) voted against it.
May then suggested a compromise measure: the $1.212 that County Executive Craig Gerhart had suggested. Gerhart had warned supervisors that the budget is based on economic projections that will change in the next month or so before the budget is approved. By capping the tax rate a few cents higher than it needs to be, they will have some wiggle room to adjust in case the county ends up with less revenue than expected.
However, that idea also failed with only Jenkins and May supporting it.
After that, the supervisors gave up for the time being, resolving to revisit the issue at a later date.
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