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Some industrial and commercial property owners in Northern
Virginia face new taxes to pay for regional transit
improvements.
Normally, Virginia localities must tax business
and residential real estate at the same rate. But the General
Assembly passed landmark legislation last year (HB
3202) allowing commercial and industrial properties to be
taxed at a higher rate to fund local transportation upgrades for
the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority and the Hampton
Road Transportation Authority.
For mixed-use projects, tax jurisdictions will
segregate residential from commercial and industrial uses.
Separate assessments will be issued for the non-residential
components.
The Virginia Supreme Court overturned parts of
HB 3202 in early March. However, the commercial real estate tax
increase was not affected by the ruling.
Local governments are allowed a commercial real
estate tax option with a maximum tax rate increase of $0.25 per
$100 of assessed valuation. If implemented, all of the funds
must be dedicated for transportation purposes. Arlington County
proposes a new tax of $0.125 per $100 of assessed value and
Fairfax County proposes a tax of $0.12 in its 2009 advertised
budget.
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