58.1-3321 - Effect on rate when assessment results in tax increase; public hearings.
§ 58.1-3321. Effect on rate when assessment results in tax increase; publichearings.
A. When any annual assessment, biennial assessment or general reassessment ofreal property by a county, city or town would result in an increase of 1percent or more in the total real property tax levied, such county, city, ortown shall reduce its rate of levy for the forthcoming tax year so as tocause such rate of levy to produce no more than 101 percent of the previousyear's real property tax levies, unless subsection B of this section iscomplied with, which rate shall be determined by multiplying the previousyear's total real property tax levies by 101 percent and dividing the productby the forthcoming tax year's total real property assessed value. Anadditional assessment or reassessment due to the construction of new or otherimprovements, including those improvements and changes set forth in §58.1-3285, to the property shall not be an annual assessment or generalreassessment within the meaning of this section, nor shall the assessed valueof such improvements be included in calculating the new tax levy for purposesof this section. Special levies shall not be included in any calculationsprovided for under this section.
B. The governing body of a county, city, or town may, after conducting apublic hearing, which shall not be held at the same time as the annual budgethearing, increase the rate above the reduced rate required in subsection Aabove if any such increase is deemed to be necessary by such governing body.
Notice of the public hearing shall be given at least 30 days before the dateof such hearing by the publication of a notice in (i) at least one newspaperof general circulation in such county or city and (ii) a prominent publiclocation at which notices are regularly posted in the building where thegoverning body of the county, city, or town regularly conducts its business,except that such notice shall be given at least 14 days before the date ofsuch hearing in any year in which neither a general appropriation act noramendments to a general appropriation act providing appropriations for theimmediately following fiscal year have been enacted by April 30 of such year.Any such notice shall be at least the size of one-eighth page of a standardsize or a tabloid size newspaper, and the headline in the advertisement shallbe in a type no smaller than 18-point. The notice described in clause (i)shall not be placed in that portion, if any, of the newspaper reserved forlegal notices and classified advertisements. The notice described in clauses(i) and (ii) shall be in the following form and contain the followinginformation, in addition to such other information as the local governingbody may elect to include:
NOTICE OF PROPOSED REAL PROPERTY TAX INCREASE
The (name of the county, city or town) proposes to increase property taxlevies.
1. Assessment Increase: Total assessed value of real property, excludingadditional assessments due to new construction or improvements to property,exceeds last year's total assessed value of real property by . . . . .percent.
2. Lowered Rate Necessary to Offset Increased Assessment: The tax rate whichwould levy the same amount of real estate tax as last year, when multipliedby the new total assessed value of real estate with the exclusions mentionedabove, would be $. . . . . per $100 of assessed value. This rate will beknown as the "lowered tax rate."
3. Effective Rate Increase: The (name of the county, city or town) proposesto adopt a tax rate of $. . . . . per $100 of assessed value. The differencebetween the lowered tax rate and the proposed rate would be $...... per$100, or. . . . . percent. This difference will be known as the "effectivetax rate increase."
Individual property taxes may, however, increase at a percentage greater thanor less than the above percentage.
4. Proposed Total Budget Increase: Based on the proposed real property taxrate and changes in other revenues, the total budget of (name of county, cityor town) will exceed last year's by. . . . . percent.
A public hearing on the increase will be held on (date and time) at (meetingplace).
C. All hearings shall be open to the public. The governing body shall permitpersons desiring to be heard an opportunity to present oral testimony withinsuch reasonable time limits as shall be determined by the governing body.
D. The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to the assessmentof public service corporation property by the State Corporation Commission.
E. Notwithstanding other provisions of general or special law, the tax ratefor taxes due on or before June 30 of each year, may be fixed on or beforeApril 15 of that tax year.
(Code 1950, § 58-785.1; 1975, c. 622; 1979, c. 473; 1980, c. 396; 1981, c.212; 1984, c. 675; 1990, c. 579; 2007, c. 948; 2009, cc. 30, 511.)