Washington D.C. will collect $100 million more in property taxes than expected this year. The revenue windfall is due to a 20% increase in commercial property values along with significant new development.

D.C. Councilman Jack Evans tells the e-POER Report it’s time to cap commercial tax assessments. “If D.C. continues on its course of financial prosperity, businesses deserve a tax break,” Evans said.
     “I have introduced a tax cap on commercial assessments in the past but did not have the support of the majority of the Council. I will continue to push for tax relief in the future.”

Evans is Chairman of the Council's Committee on Finance and Revenue, which oversees the District's finances and tax policy. He sponsored the Commercial Real Property Real Tax Credit Act of 2007, which would have provided a tax credit to owners of commercial real property. The legislation never made it out of committee.

Non-residential commercial and industrial property owners in the District traditionally pay a much higher tax rate than homeowners and are not eligible for any relief under homestead or owner/user provisions. (See D.C. Tax Rates.) Without the benefit of tax credits or assessment caps, businesses will continue to shoulder the bulk of the tax burden in Washington D.C.