Gerry's dishonesty and cynicism regarding property taxes is breathtaking. Don't let his creative spinning fool you.

His proposed property tax rate will cause you to pay more in property taxes than you did last year. That's called a property tax hike.

As he is very well aware--but what he is hoping to confuse his constituents about--is that the property tax rate that he proposes will end up raising the property taxes we all pay because it won't be low enough to offset the Department of Tax Administration's rise in property assessments.

So don't be misled by the Connolly blarney: Gerry wants you to pay even higher property taxes this year. So much for his supposed advocacy of "affordable housing"....

According to Virginia law (Virginia Code Section 58.1-3321), if the property assessment goes up, the property tax rate automatically goes down to compensate, unless the local government decides it wants higher taxes, which it must get by voting to INCREASE the rate above what it would otherwise automatically drop to.

The specific language from the law follows:

A. When any annual assessment, biennial assessment or general reassessment of real property by a county, city or town would result in an increase of 1 percent or more in the total real property tax levied, such county, city, or town shall reduce its rate of levy for the forthcoming tax year so as to cause such rate of levy to produce no more than 101 percent of the previous year's real property tax levies, unless subsection B of this section is complied with....

B. The governing body of a county, city, or town may, after conducting a public hearing, which shall not be held at the same time as the annual budget hearing, increase the rate above the reduced rate required in subsection A above if any such increase is deemed to be necessary by such governing body....

But Greg! You would save $25 by not buying a decal! My gosh, with that kind of money, you could go to Starbuck's every week for a whole month! Yeah, you'd still have to pay the personal property tax on your car, but that is the Republicans' fault! But take away the decal, and no one will be able to tell if you paid or not!

Our board is very clever. To comply with section B of the above section of Virginia code, they just open the hearing at 3 p.m. on a Monday, when NO ONE can come!

That way, it isn't held "at the same time" as the budget hearing! IT doesn't start until 5! Clever, huh?

The article in today's Metro section disappointingly accepts part of the Board's spin on the issue of responsibility by writing that the expected increase in property taxes is "a result of new assessments."

Such wording implies the rise in property taxes is independent of the Board and an inevitable outgrowth of the rise in assessments, when in fact the Board raises our taxes when it chooses a tax rate that doesn't offset the rise in assessments.

Bottom line: the Board of Supervisors is responsible for the rise in property taxes.

Keep in mind that taxpayers fund the Economic Development Authority ($6.8 M annually) to lure more people to Fairfax County and taxpayers will have subsidized land development, building permits and zoning services by more than $31 M since fiscal 2003 began. Those tax subsidies could have been devoted to transportation. While they would not have fixed the entire transportation mess that over-development has generated, they would have helped. We need to clean house at the Board of Supervisors from top-to-bottom, replacing these developers' toadies with people who will look out for the citizens of Fairfax County. We need to look beyond political labels to find leadership that understands the concept of public interest.

Hold on. The story doesn't say they got rid of the hated car tax. It says they got rid of the $25 decal. Mr. Connolly, who loves the subtleties of spin that evade the press, is no doubt hoping everyone will assume it means he got rid of Gilmore's car tax But that isn't what the Post's story says...
The name for what the board does not do every year to balance assessments and taxes is to "EQUALIZE" them. That is why real estate taxes have gone up, up, up and up, and the county jubilantly spends all the money. The Post picks up Connolly's language, which minimizes that there has been a substantial tax INCREASE in Fairfax County every year since 1993. They supes RAISE taxes by a VOTE at that 3 p.m. tax rate hearing on the Monday of the week of the all day budget hearings that no one pays any attention. By then, it's all a formality anyhow.

Read the above bloggers -- all two or three of them talking to themselves -- and it becomes clear: you folks just don't know what to do with good news. I mean, you are absoloutely beside yourself.
Such hatred. Such pettiness. Grow up and start doing something constructive with your lives.

Fred, was there something that wasn't ugly that you meant to say? Did you mean to talk about taxes and fees, but just get carried away by your feelings?

I read the "above bloggers," and I took away a strong feeling that they think this "gesture" is nothing when compared to the huge increases in real estate taxes they have suffered.

I'll put in my two cents: I think it's a marvelous gesture, but I would rather have steady-state real estate taxes for a few years. The increases have eaten into all my discretionary money. So, I'll give Connolly credit for a good idea, but withhold judgment until I see what "increase" I face this year.

It's hard to believe - folks in Fairfax County really do believe that the Fairfax County is cutting their tax with this $25 thing.

Tell you what, do this: Wait until the County gets finished with this year's "tax cut" with another drop in the tax rate. Then, oh wise citizen, compare your next year's property tax bill with your last year's bill.

What! Your taxes go up? Can't be. We got a tax cut!

Some folk will believe anything.
Anyone out there want to but a used bridge, in Brooklyn?

I liked the anonymous and cute post that was just before Jim Foster's. Everyone must surely agree that the sticker is a nuisance, regardless of how they feel about the political aspect of things.

I think Jim Foster makes a fair point, too. I don't think eliminating the sticker equates to a reduction in personal property tax. The sticker is not based on value but on broad classes of vehicle, regardless of value. Removing the sticker fee is more like removing a user fee.

Hey, twenty five bucks is twenty five bucks... or about five trips to Starbucks in my estimation. For my twenty five bucks, I'd rather have some tasty chai instead of the darned sticker...

On real estate taxes: oh, yeah, they're going to go up. No mystery there. Reducing the tax rate is only a way to moderate the "damage" caused by rapidly rising assessments. Everyone wants to feel like they can unload their house for much, more than they paid, right? But the flip side is that assessed value is somewhat (albeit rather imperfectly) tied to the market.

Jerry Connolly must think that Fairfax County voters are dumb.

Any lost revenue will be increase our real estate taxes. Geez Louise. How dumb does he think we are?

Cutting spending is never an option in Fairfax County.

I don't care who runs for the Board of Supervisors next election.

I will not vote for any incumbent. Period.

If you believe that Gerry Connolly is giving taxpayers a break on the $25 fee, rethink it.

He simply increased real estate taxes to compensate. Daaaaaaa