Board of Supervisors Adopt $3.3 Billion Budget; Tax Rate Lowered by 5.5 Cents

For the first time since 2008, Loudoun County’s real estate tax rate will fall below $1. However, the average bill for homeowners is expected to increase by 0.7% for Fiscal Year 2022.

On Tuesday, April 6^th, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors approved a 2022 fiscal budget in the amount of $3.3 billion. The budget will decrease the real property tax rate by 5.5 cents per $100 of assessed property value, bringing the new rate to $0.98 per $100 in assessed value (down from last year’s $1.035). This new rate is a product of the Board’s guidance to the County Administrator which was to establish a real property rate exactly one cent above the overall equalized rate, which is currently $0.975.

Over the last year, the average home value in Loudoun increased by 7.6%, the largest amount to date. This property value increase is expected to bump the average bill of homeowners by 0.7% (or, by about $39) for the new fiscal year. For reference, the average tax bill for Loudoun homeowners was around $5,272 in fiscal 2021, and about $5,162 in 2020.

Also included in the budget is a 7.2% increase in local tax funding to Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS), which amounts to approximately $68 million. There will also be an additional $12.4 million allocated to employee compensation, including both merit and step increases for public safety employees. Finally, $2.3 million will be provided to the sheriff’s department for body-worn cameras, $900,000 will be invested into the expansion of the adult drug court, and $100,000 for additional after-school activities.

While Loudoun County is still grappling with the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, so are its counterparts in Fairfax, Arlington, and Prince William. These counties, among many others throughout the Commonwealth, have been taking similar steps in their budgets to mitigate the pandemic’s economic impact on their residents. The Arlington County Board, for instance, recently took measures to halt increases to base real estate property taxes altogether.

While the novel tax rates have been in effect since the first of the year, Loudoun’s 2022 Fiscal Year budget is set to take effect on July 1^st, 2021.

For questions, reach out to DAAR’s Government Affairs Director.

April 8, 2021