Whereas, Arlington County’s one-party government has increased the tax burden on local property owners every year for more than a decade, and

Whereas, real estate tax assessments for 2002 in Arlington are up by 15 percent over last year,

Whereas, at current tax rates, the increased assessments will generate an additional $36 million for the County government, more than twice the increase projected by the County last fall; and

Whereas, the increased tax assessments are particularly burdensome to residential property owners, with assessments on single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums rising by 20-25%; and

Whereas, if tax rates are not reduced, the average residential property owner will be hit with a 20 percent increase in County property taxes this year (from $2300 to $2750); and

Whereas, the tax burden is now increasing more rapidly, with tax bills rising nearly five times as much in the past three years as compared to the previous four years (44% from 1999-2002, at current rates, compared to 9% from 1995-99); and

Whereas, faced with a similar situation of rapidly rising assessments, the Prince William County Board of Supervisors has proposed a reduction in tax rates for property owners in that county;

Whereas, the all-Democrat Arlington County Board has not yet indicated any intention to provide tax relief to Arlington taxpayers, despite the sizeable new assessment burden and the greater-than-anticipated revenue projection; and

Whereas, the constant increase in Arlington property taxes drives families and businesses out of Arlington, and makes housing less affordable for those who want to live here;

Now therefore, the Arlington County Republican Committee resolves:

We urge the Arlington County Board to recognize the substantial tax burden that rising assessments are placing on our residential taxpayers, and to provide long-overdue relief to taxpayers by adopting a meaningful reduction in the real estate tax rate this year.

Considered and adopted by the Arlington County Republican Committee
at its monthly meeting on January 24, 2002, in Arlington, Virginia

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