Richmond’s 4 cent tax rebate amid debate over rate cuts – Richmond BizSense

Amidst what has become a more heated debate than ever over tax cuts in Richmond, the City Council is considering proposals that now include a 4-cent tax rebate for all homeowners and tax relief for low-income and senior citizens. .

At a press conference on Monday, Mayor Levar Stoney and Council President Kristen Nye announced the refunds that are being requested by two new assistance programs that the city administration recommended in the calls of Councilmember Reva Trammell to reduce the cost, which is $ 1.20 per $ 100 of assessed value.

Weeks earlier, in a sometimes testy committee meeting, Trammell pushed for a 4-cent reduction in the rate, which he said has not changed since 2009. It rose at the time and exceeded the ability of many people to pay rent and mortgages.

Councilors Ellen Robertson and Ann-Frances Lambert added their names to Trammell’s proposal, which Nye opposed with a proposal to keep the existing tax rate to reduce returns and tax credits. He and the administration insist that the tax cuts will help the city’s most scrutinized homeowners, not those in need.

Both proposals were brought forward to this month’s meeting of the council’s finance and economic standing committee, which is expected to resume the debate on Thursday.

But on Monday, Nye and Stoney announced the refunds and other aid programs, which were detailed to lawmakers at a later committee meeting.

The 4 cent refund will effectively return $16 million in remaining property taxes from the last fiscal year to taxpayers who paid. Refund checks will be mailed to property owners in February.

The assistance programs offered, collectively known as RVA Stay, include a pilot program in which low-income people who spend more than 30 percent of their income on the cost of housing can receive $200 per month for six months. The funds are available to both home owners and renters.

Also proposed is the Richmond Freeze Program, in which homeowners who are 65 years of age or older or permanently disabled will not have their property taxes increased. Their current tax payments will be suspended based on their previous year’s assessment.

In announcing the proposal, Nye praised Trammell, who was present at the press conference, for using the problems that led to its creation.

“I want to say ‘thank you’ to Councilwoman Trammell for bringing in the $1.16 bill, because if she hadn’t done that, I don’t think we would be discussing and looking at all these options,” he said. Nye said. Other councilors paid the same tribute to Trammell at Monday’s committee meeting.

However, following the announcement, Trammell emphasized that tax cuts, not refunds, are what citizens should not be paying outside of the city. He said he would continue to push for lower prices, and he did so at the meeting.

Explaining that the last cut in 2009 was 3 cents lower, Trammell said at Monday’s meeting, “I’m only asking for 4.”

The price debate has been repeated in recent years, fueled by the reviews that take place this time of the year and the government’s law that causes a “retrograde” to end the annual increase with the assessment of 1 percent or more. If the council wants to maintain the city’s previous tax base, it must approve the increase from the refund, hence Nye and Trammell’s proposals.

The city is also working to align its review calendar to spring, when the council prepares the annual budget. In this way, the governors and councilors said, they will support the tax negotiations so that all changes can be made in the budget.

Mayor Stoney said the tax reform now not only cuts $3.2 million from the current budget, but will also have the effect of removing $200 million from the city’s multi-year capital improvement plan and breaking the collective agreement the council concluded with the fire department. , police and other city employees.

Although he disagrees with the cost reduction, Stoney said at a press conference on Monday, “I think that discussing the economic questions is the best conversation that can be had at this time, especially since we know that many residents are facing high costs.”

Monday’s announcement cited data from the 2023 American Community Survey, which said more than a quarter of Richmond renters, or about 43,000, are spending more than half of their income on housing. About twice as many spend 30% or more on rent, while the average home assessment in 2023 was $340,000, according to the survey.

The council has previously offered tax breaks. Two years ago, it approved a 5-cent rebate as part of a tax cut that had already been passed. The same reimbursement reached an additional $18 million starting in 2022.