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By Mike Hixenbaugh The Virginian-Pilot May 8, 2012 VIRGINIA BEACH The City Council appears poised to approve a 6-cent real estate taxrate increase to maintain funding for schools and roadimprovements. At least seven of the council"s 11 members have signaledsupport for the mayor"s budget proposal, which includes therate increase and provides money to avoid teacher layoffs andschool program cuts. The council is to vote on the budget tonight following a publichearing. Mayor Will Sessoms and Vice Mayor Louis Jones agreed to a fewadjustments after unveiling their spending plan at a councilworkshop last week. Most notably, language was added designating 2cents of the proposed tax rate increase for road improvements and 4cents for schools. The city"s real estate tax rate stands at 89 cents per $100of assessed value. Each additional penny would generate about $4.8million in city revenue. Under the revised plan, the rate hike would be tied to statefunding and reduced if the General Assembly increases school orroads funding in future years. "It was really important to create a dedicated revenue streamfor the schools and to tie it to state funding levels,"Councilwoman Rosemary Wilson said. She and Councilman Glenn Davis– both facing re-election this fall – lobbied Sessomsto make the changes. Sessoms, who also faces a re-election challenge in November,emphasized that a tax rate increase would come after fourconsecutive years of declining home values with no rateadjustments. Residential assessments have declined 17 percent since thedownturn, city officials said. That means the owner of a homevalued at $250,000 in 2008 whose property declined by the averagewould owe roughly $1,971 with a 6-cent increase – about $254less than four years ago. "It"s not really a tax increase," Sessoms said."It"s a rate adjustment." The plan designates $387.9 million for schools, about $4.5 millionless than the School Board requested. It"s enough to avoiddrastic program cuts and gives the School Board the option ofgiving employees modest raises, Board Chairman Dan Edwards said. "Obviously we wanted more money, but am I supposed to screambecause the cup is 15 percent empty?" Edwards said. "Oram I supposed to be happy the cup is 85 percent full? I"minclined toward the latter." School Board members who had hesitated to endorse a tax increasesaid they like the language designating additional money forschools but remained concerned the council could cut funding fromother sources without a structured revenue-sharing formula inplace. "It"s unfortunate that past actions have caused me tobe leery of the actions of City Council," board member AshleyMcLeod said. "I"m hopeful that won"t be thecase." The mayor"s plan is one of three that will be before thecouncil when it meets tonight at 6. The budget initially proposed by City Manager Jim Spore would raisethe real estate tax rate by 4 cents and provide less money forschools. A counterproposal forwarded by Councilmen John Moss and BillDeSteph would avoid a tax increase altogether by eliminating jobvacancies, reducing travel budgets, doing away with city executivecar allowances and diverting money from the city"sAgriculture Reserve Program, among other cuts. "The city is better positioned to tighten its belt thanresidents are able in this time of economic decline to fork overmore money," Moss said. That plan gained little traction at a council workshop last week.Opponents said it relied too heavily on one-time spending cuts. Mike Hixenbaugh, 757-222-5117, mike.hixenbaugh@pilotonline.com. We are high quality suppliers, our products such as China Corporate Gifts Clocks , Mini Bike Lights for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Mini Bike Lights.
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