Manassas Public Hearing Set As Budget, Tax Rates Considered

MANASSAS, VA — As the real estate tax rate and other budget items are considered, Manassas City Council will hold a public hearing on the budget and tax rates Monday.

The April 22 public hearings will start at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 22 in the Jennie Dean Elementary School Auditorium, 9601 Prince William Street, Manassas, VA.

The real estate tax rate could result in higher average tax bills if adopted. Interim City Manager Douglas Keen's budget proposal called for keeping the rate $1.07 per $100 of assessed value rate with a $0.19 fire and rescue levy for a $1.26 per $100 of assessed value total rate. City Council advertised a rate of $1.28 per $100 of assessed value, which is two cents higher than the budget proposal's rate. That is the maximum rate that can be approved in this year's budget.

With a flat tax rate, the average tax bill could increase by $266, according to the city budget presentation. The average assessed home value is $423,234, which would come with an average $5,333 property tax bill.

The personal property tax on vehicles is proposed to remain the same at a rate of $3.60 per $100 of assessed value.

Utility rates are proposed to increase 5 percent each for electric, water and sewer services to support maintenance investments and meet federal and state water and wastewater guidelines. Keen said when a decrease in the pass-through charge is factored in, the average monthly bill would increase by $0.78. Keen attributed the proposed rate increases to investments in maintenance and the need to meet federal and state water and wastewater guidelines.

Keen's $333 million budget proposal, which doesn't include the Manassas City Public Schools funding total, would be a 6.7 percent increase over the last budget. The budget would provide a 3 percent merit pay increase for employees and increase from 542 to 546.5 staff positions for a maintenance worker, housing community coordinator and parks and recreation positions. The city is anticipating a $715,000 increase in shared service costs with Prince William County.

Another item for consideration is a contribution to the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission, which runs OmniRide and is facing a budget shortfall. Inside Nova reported that Prince William County funded most but not all of the budget gap.

Keen also proposed a $1.8 million increase in funding for Manassas City Public Schools. City support for MCPS would total $68.4 million — $62 million in operations funds and $6.4 million for current and future debt service.

After the budget public hearings, first reading of tax rates and budget adoption is scheduled for May 13, and second reading of tax rates is June 10.

See the full budget presentation and information on public comments on the city's website.