Arlington’s perpetual cat-and-mouse game with people attempting to avoid vehicle taxes continues.
“There are people who will do anything in their power to dodge the system,” Commissioner of Revenue Kim Klingler says. “It makes you want to find them even more.”
Klingler was speaking at a recent luncheon of Arlington Senior Democrats. In office for 18 months, she acknowledged there is no easy way to ensure all vehicles that should be registered in Arlington are in fact on the tax rolls.
“We are trying to get on top of it, but it’s a hard thing to do because we’re a very transient area,” she said.
In addition to those trying to beat the system, “there are people who just don’t know” the rules, Klingler said.
The commissioner of revenue said she has empathy with those unfamiliar with Virginia’s car tax provisions. Back in the day, she didn’t know the rules, either.
Klingler recounted getting her vehicle registered with the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles shortly after moving to the community. She then flew off for a work trip, leaving her car legally parked on the street.
When she returned, it had five tickets on it for failing to display the county decal on her windshield — an enforcement mechanism that has since been abolished in favor of other enforcement techniques.
Two of those citations later were dismissed, but Klingler had to pay for three, she said.
“I didn’t want that to happen to anyone else,” Klingler said, and over the past year worked with the county government to create an online checklist for new residents that assists in navigating tax laws.
In Arlington, the commissioner of revenue shares duties with the county treasurer when it comes to certain forms of taxes. Both are elected officials — Klingler as commissioner and Carla de la Pava as treasurer.
Between them, the offices collaborate to take in $150 million in vehicle taxes, about 9% of annual county revenue.
“I assess, Carla collects,” Klingler told the senior-Democrats group.
Klingler, a veteran Democratic activist and civic leader, was serving as executive director of the Columbia Pike Partnership when she ran to succeed incumbent Ingrid Morroy as commissioner in 2023.
She was unopposed in both the Democratic primary and general election, and took office Jan. 1, 2024.
The commissioner of revenue’s office has a staff of 54 and a budget that includes net tax support of $6.43 million for fiscal 2026. Fees and state funds provide other revenue streams.
Not everyone with a vehicle garaged in Arlington is required to register them in Virginia and pay the local car taxes. Exemptions are provided for active-duty military, members of Congress, foreign diplomats and full-time students attending school in Virginia who are not employed in the commonwealth.
The passion of Klingler — and de la Pava — for ensuring compliance with tax laws is tempered by a degree of mercy, the commissioner said.
She contrasted their approach to Virginia localities where the process of assessing and collecting taxes is done by government staff.
“In those jurisdictions, they are in my opinion a little heavy-handed,” Klingler said. “They’re about tax, tax, tax, where I’m about let’s be fair, fair, fair. That’s how I look at it.”
That doesn’t stop the office from deploying license-plate readers to sniff out whether vehicles are registered. Under questioning at the luncheon, Klingler said the information gathered was not used for any purpose beyond that.
“Once we determine whether or not it is registered, we delete the information, within 24 to 48 hours,” she said. “We do not share it with anybody.”
Another effort is an online tip-line, where residents can alert Klingler’s office about vehicles that appear to be out of compliance. According to her office, that effort brings in $1.4 million to $1.5 million per year.
When it comes to the next round of initiatives to ensure compliance, Klingler offered one possibility, presumably in jest.
“I walk my dog a lot,” she said. “I would like to get a license-plate reader on her. They’re starting to make them small enough.”
