On February 18, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors met to hear a presentation on the proposed annual budget by County staff. There, it was revealed that a proposed meals tax in the County was not part of the budget per se, but instead is being proposed as a separate ordinance at either three or four percent. Staff suggested that the tax rate be advertised at the March 18 meeting of the Board, so as to put the ordinance on the same public comment timeline as the budget itself.
In the proposed budget, there is currently a 1.5 cent increase in the real estate tax. The presentation makes the point that the meals tax could stand in for all of that 1.5 cent increase and more, setting up an argument from the Board that a tax that includes visitors is better than one that affects one hundred percent of homeowners.
VRLTA is part of a broad coalition in the County, which includes restaurants, their teams, local citizens, Chambers of Commerce, and more fighting against the imposition of the tax. As the campaign against the tax spins back up into action, be on the lookout for communication from VRLTA on how to make your voice heard if you’re a County resident.
The Board is also considering, as part of the budget, a two percent increase in the transient occupancy tax, one percent of which would be dedicated to tourism. This is also something that VRLTA will be in the arena to oppose. As actions at the federal level make future demand in the area less certain, Fairfax’s hotels can ill afford another factor keeping visitors away.
This is part of a broader trend that VRLTA is seeing and engaging on in localities to use TOT and meals taxes to fill holes in local budgets left by inflationary pressures and no-longer-available federal funds. A concerning trend, and one that we should be vigilant for in all areas of the Commonwealth.