Alexandria residents may not see an increase in the property tax rate, but they could pay more in taxes due to market growth. The good news is that market growth has helped eased budget pressure in Alexandria.
"FY 2024 budget development initially forecasted expense pressures driven by employee compensation, collective bargaining, and supplemental funding requests from departments and other agencies. However, real estate assessments and other key revenue growth areas exceeded initial expectations and staff were able to propose a budget that makes investments in City Council priority areas without a real estate tax rate increase or significant service reductions," city officials wrote in an overview of the Fiscal Year 2024 budget, which was released Tuesday night.
Alexandria City Manager Jim Parajon proposed an $881.1 million budget for the City of Alexandria for the next fiscal year, which starts July 1. The budget maintains the current real estate tax rate of $1.11 per $100 of assessed value.
An earlier city council vote increases the stormwater utility fee rates from $294.00 to $308.70 as scheduled to help pay for improvements to Alexandria's sewer system.
The budget also includes the school system's operating budget transfer request of $258.7 million, an increase of nearly $10 million.
Other investments will include money to rename streets in the city and an additional 25 firefighters (paid for by a SAFER grant).
Residents will be able to weigh in on the budget through a form at alexandriava.gov/Budget or during meetings starting Thursday, March 2. The calendar of budget meetings is available at alexandriava.gov/Budget.
Where Revenue Comes From
Residential real property taxes account for more than one-third of revenue coming into the city of Alexandria. The rest comes from commercial property taxes and other local taxes and fees.
How Revenue is Spent
According to city officials:
City Council adopted six priorities that provide a cohesive framework for budget and policy decisions for the next fiscal year. This budget Proposal reiterates the City’s commitment through:
- Public Safety: Investing in our public safety areas to maintain a safe and secure community with the addition of staff for the Commonwealth Attorney for Body Worn Cameras, increased fire department staffing and other funding to support our police and sheriff departments.
- Affordable Housing: Providing Diverse Housing Opportunities through funding for eviction prevention, affordable housing construction and a Housing Analyst position to assist residents with housing instability and landlord tenant activities.
- Multi-lingual Community Engagement: Allocating funding for community engagement opportunities with Community Cooks-out, City Council town halls, staffing for hybrid public meetings, and multilingual accessibility. This funding builds upon Council’s efforts last year to revamp the City’s community engagement strategy.
- Our Youth and Families: Supporting Youth and Families by expanding Parks and Recreation classes and camps; Expanding staffing for early childhood programs; including, a Senior Therapist for the Parent and Infant Education (PIE) program; and providing administrative support for the Health Department Teen Wellness Center.
- Economic Development Growth: Fostering Economic Development through continued diverse small business support and continued support for the catalyst Landmark Mall Redevelopment.
- Staff Retention and Recruitment: Ensuring the City is the “Employer of Choice” by committing funding for collective bargaining agreements with PBA and IAFF, continuing to focus on compensation adjustments, and support for targeted staffing studies.
- Climate Action: Responding to our climate crisis by fully funding the new Office of Climate Action, investing in upgrading facilities, and an additional Urban Forester position to support the augmentation of our tree canopy.
Other major features of the FY 2024 budget proposal include:
- No tax rate increase for City residents or businesses.
- The continued full support of ACPS’ Operating Budget of $258.7 million.
- Financial support of our two historic Collective Bargaining Agreements with the Alexandria Fire Department (AFD) and APD.
