4-cent property tax rebate proposed for Richmond amid rate cut debate – Richmond BizSense

Amid what has become a more heated debate than usual on whether Richmond’s property tax rate should be reduced, the City Council is considering proposals including a 4-cent tax rebate for all property owners and better tax relief for low income people and seniors. .

At a press conference Monday, Mayor Levar Stoney and Council President Kristen Nye announced the proposed refunds and two new aid programs recommended by the administration. Heeded the call of Rep. Reva Trammell to reduce the cost, which is $1.20 per $100 of estimated cost.

Weeks earlier, at a board meeting that was sometimes controversial, Trammell pushed for a 4-cent reduction in the rate, which he said has remained unchanged since 2009. .Trammell said a price reduction is needed to help meet the existing real estate survey. arose at that time and many residents were more able to pay their rents and mortgages.

Council members Ellen Robertson and Ann-Frances Lambert have since added their names to Trammell’s petition, to which Nye responded with a request to maintain the current tax rate. to support a recovery and target tax relief. He and the commissioners note that the reduction in rates will benefit property owners with the highest rates of assessment. the city, rather than those most in need of relief.

Both proposals continued at a meeting of the House’s Standing Committee on Finance and the Economy this month, which is expected to resume the rate debate on Thursday. .

But on Monday, Nye and Stoney announced the proposed reimbursement and additional assistance programs, which were detailed to council members at another committee meeting later in the day.

The 4-cent tax refund would effectively return $16 million in property tax increases from last fiscal year to taxpayers who paid them. Refund checks will be sent to property owners in February.

The proposed assistance programs, collectively known as RVA Stay, include a gap grant pilot program that provides low-income individuals who spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing costs to up to $200 a month for six months in subsidies. Assistance will be available to homeowners and renters.

It also offers the Richmond Savings Program, which exempts homeowners age 65 or older or disabled from tax increases. real estate. Their current tax bill will be frozen based on the assessment of their home last year.

At the launch of the petition, Nye Trammell, who participated in the press conference, thanked for the use of pressure that caused it to be produced.

“I want to say ‘thank you’ to Councilwoman Trammell for bringing up the $1.16 bill, because without that, I don’t think we would be having this discussion and looking at all these options,” Nye said. Other council members gave the same to Trammell at Monday’s committee meeting.

However, after the announcement, Trammell noted that a tax cut, not a refund, is what people who don’t buy from the city want. He said he would continue to push for lower prices, and he did at the meeting.

Noting that the last reduction in 2009 dropped the rate to 3 cents, Trammell said at Monday’s meeting, “I’m asking for 4.”

The rate debate has continued in recent years, fueled by the review that takes place this time of year but a state law that triggers the “rollback” rate to meet annual increases in assessments of 1 percent or more. If the council wants to keep the city’s original tax rate, it must approve an increase from the current rate, which is Nye and Trammell put it.

The city is also currently working to adjust its review calendar to fall in time for the spring, when council prepares the annual budget. By doing this, said managers and members of the council, it will facilitate the discussion of tax rates so that any adjustments can be made in the budget.

Mayor Stoney said changing the tax now would not only cut a $3.2 million hole in the current budget, but would also have the effect of eliminating the $200 million from the plan for the improvement of capital of the city and flexible sharing agreement has been completed by the council and the firefighters. , police and other city employees.

While he disagreed with the rate cut, Stoney said at a press conference on Monday, “I think discussing these fiscal questions are good conversations to have at the right time.” now, especially when we know that many residents are facing the burden of rising prices.”

Monday’s announcement cited data from the 2023 American Community Survey, which reported that more than a quarter of Richmond’s renters, about 43,000, are spending more than half of their household income. Nearly twice as many are spending 30% or more of their income on rent, but the average household rent in 2023 will be $340,000, according to the study.

The Council has already given the tax reduction. Two years ago, a 5-cent rebate was approved as a replacement for the first reduction in the tax. That recovery is an $18 million increase from fiscal year 2022.