Fairfax passes 1-cent increase in tax rate, closes budget gap

This year, the county faced a $169 million dollar shortfall, which will be paid for by a combination of spending cuts and tax increases (photo courtesy of Kevin Loker).

Faced with reduced federal government spending, a $169 million budget gap and sequestration, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a compromise budget for the 2014–2015 fiscal year.

The budget presented by Fairfax County Executive Ed Long initially proposed a 2-cent increase in the real estate tax rate, but the board ultimately decided on a 1-cent increase. According to a county press release, the increase will cost the average county homeowner an additional $216 in real estate taxes.

“The budget is a difficult compromise under less than ideal circumstances,” Supervisor John Cook said in a written statement. “I support it as such.”

Cook, who represents George Mason University on the board, said that inaction by the U.S. Congress has had a negative impact on business growth in the area and, subsequently, on the commercial tax rate.

“Lack of business growth means empty office space, which drops building values and commercial real estate assessments,” Cook said. “Had the federal government done its job and commercial growth occurred as expected, there would not have been a 2-percent gap between current revenues and expenses.”

According to the Washington Post, Supervisor Pat Herrity, who was the only dissenting vote on the board, believed the tax increase was too large.

“We as a board spend a lot of time talking about helping people in need,” Herrity told the Washington Post. “I can only say that when it came time to tax them, they were sadly forgotten.”

The county also allocated $1.89 billion to the Fairfax County Public Schools system, which will be appropriated by the school board.

The board of supervisors will officially adopt the budget on April 30.