A House of Delegates Finance subcommittee approved Arlington’s hotel tax surcharge bill today. It’s expected to be taken up by the full committee on Monday.
The bill that was under consideration today was approved by the Democrat-controlled state Senate in January, under the leadership of Arlington’s Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple. A House version of the bill, introduced by Del. Bob Brink, failed to make it out of committee after being blocked by a key Republican.
Under the proposed budget, the real estate tax would remain steady at 95.8 cents per $100. The 95.8 cent rate was approved by the board last year after Donnellan, then the acting county manager, proposed a rate of 94.2 cents.
Arlington is benefiting from a 6.3 percent hike in assessed property values, which is expected to bring in an additional $30 million in tax revenue for the county. In September, when the county was expecting a smaller increase in assessments, then-County Manager Michael Brown warned that tax hikes and spending cuts might be necessary. Neither prediction is coming to fruition under the Donnellan’s proposed budget.
As expected, the renewal of a hotel tax surcharge that is responsible for generating Arlington’s nearly $1 million per year tourism promotion budget was all-but-killed in a House subcommittee this morning. The bill, introduced by Arlington’s Del. Bob Brink (D), was passed by indefinitely — meaning the House version dead unless a member who voted against it changes his or her mind.
An identical bill introduced by Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple passed the Senate last week, however, meaning that the tax renewal will get another shot in House committee. It’s yet to be seen whether the outcome will be any different.
The lawsuit, which has thus far cost the county about $1.5 million in legal fees, was filed in order to block VDOT’s plan to build High Occupancy Toll lanes on I-395. The suit has been ruffling feathers in Richmond ever since, but on Wednesday it came back to bite the county on a key legislative priority.
Del. Tim Hugo (R) of Fairfax County used his chairmanship of a House finance subcommittee to delay action on HB 1513, Del. Bob Brink’s bill that would extend Arlington’s 0.25 percent hotel tax surcharge for another three years.
The increase is expected to bring in an addition $30 million in tax revenue for the county, which should help to offset this year’s estimated $25 million budget gap. The county budget office was originally expecting an approximately 1 percent increase in property values.
“It certainly… makes it easier for us to balance the budget,” said Michelle Cowan, Director of the Dept. of Management and Finance, who added that stepped-up commercial lending and property sales helped to drive the increase. “We consider ourselves very fortunate.”
Ingrid Morroy may be best known for being Arlington’s chief tax assessor, but on the campaign trail she’s known as the chief singer-songwriter for county Democrats.
Morroy, the county’s Commissioner of Revenue, often performs songs about political causes and candidates at Arlington County Democratic Committee events.
(The county collects a 4 percent “meals” tax on all prepared foods and beverages sold in Arlington. Often, this tax is passed directly on to the consumer.)
A new meals tax delinquency list dated Dec. 14 shows mostly stagnation when compared to the list released on Aug. 31. The amount owed by the three biggest debtors has increased slightly in the past three and a half months, likely the result of the 10 percent interest the county charges on such debts.
The keynote speaker at the Chamber’s 86th Annual Meeting, Webb said he’s encouraged by the president’s willingness to break with the Democratic base.
“What the president has done here is something I’ve been waiting for him to do for a long time, and that is to get out of the base of the party and move into where we need to be as Americans to solve the problems that we have,” Webb said. “There are things in here for everybody not to like, but that’s just what happens when you get into this business.”
Quarterdeck May Remain Open, After All — TBD is reporting that the owner of Quarterdeck has reopened lease negotiations with the property’s landlord. Last week it was revealed that owner Lou Gatti was telling Radnor / Fort Myer Heights residents that the restaurant would be closing after 31 years in business.
Plastic Bag Tax May Have to Wait — The county board’s desire to impose a 5-cent tax on plastic grocery store bags — similar to the tax currently in place in the District — may have to wait until another year. At Wednesday’s work session between the board and Arlington’s state legislative delegation, bag tax proponent Del. Adam Ebbin said getting Virginia lawmakers to grant Arlington the authority to impose such a tax would likely be “a multi-year effort.” More from the Sun Gazette.
Arlington funds its Convention and Visitors Service through a 0.25 percent surcharge on the standard 5 percent hotel tax. Each year, the county collects $21 million in hotel taxes, or about $5,000 per room, the highest rate in Virginia. Suffice to say that given the hoards of tourists who stay at hotels in Arlington as a cheaper alternative to the District, the surcharge isn’t much of a hindrance.
But the extra quarter of a percentage point, despite having the support of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and the local hotel industry, may be a tough sell in Richmond.
With architectural plans in place, neighborhood leaders are making a big fundraising push. They’re hoping that the upcoming tax season provides a bounty of tax-deductible stock donations and large corporate gifts.
As of October, the Lyon Park Citizens Association was about $430,000 away from their total fundraising goal of $550,000. In addition to large donations, the group is raising money by holding events like a recent gala dinner.
Since Virginia is a Dillon Rule state, Arlington must first ask the state legislature for permission to pursue policies not specifically allowed by state law. In past years, the state government has been reluctant to grant Arlington any new taxing power.
Arlington will make its unlikely bag request during the General Assembly session starting Jan. 12.
