Commissioner of Revenue and Real Estate Assessments

There has been a lot of debate lately about whether or not the City Council should restore authority to the Commissioner of Revenue to conduct real estate assessments.

Many have asked why now? The reason is that the City Council has to hire a new assessor due to a retirement. I believe that now is the time to restore authority originally granted to the Commissioner's office when the City was founded nearly 50 years ago.

I am supportive of this move and came to this conclusion independently and after giving it much thought. I have listened to City staff, citizens and sought counsel from trusted friends and advisers.

There are two primary reasons I support measure:

1. Saves taxpayer money. I actually first came to this issue through the budget process. Back in July 2008 I was looking for ways the City could save taxpayer money. Consolidating government services is one way to do it. Already the Commissioner's office assesses 40 percent of property in the City. And because the Commissioner's office is a Constitutional Office, the Commonwealth may provide additional funding upwards of $50,000 a year if the real estate assessment function is under the Commissioner's office like it is 100 other Virginia jurisdictions.

2. Separation of Powers. I believe that the government closest to the people is that one that governs best. I have been persuaded that the original form of our City government, as established in our charter of 1962, is what's best for us now. That form of government has the City Council setting the tax rate, the Commissioner's office assessing property and the Treasurer collecting the money. This, to me, is closer to what I believe both the Founders of our City as well as our Commonwealth and Country aspired to when they created the foundation of our government.

Finally, I believe that there are significant checks and balances and cooperation already between the Commissioner's office, the Treasurer and the Council to make this not only work, but provide a better government for the Citizens of Fairfax.

This issue will be on the next City Council meeting's agenda. The meeting is Tuesday, September 22nd at 7 p.m. I urge you to come in support of this measure.

Below is an email from Mayor Rob Lederer that provides greater detail with regard to the issue and also very much reflects my opinion:

Dear City of Fairfax Friends and Neighbors:

It’s hard to believe that autumn has arrived, our kids are back in school, and your City Council is back at work on your behalf. We are still celebrating our achievement of being selected as Forbes Magazine’s third best city in the United states to live, work and raise a family. Intuitively, we know we live in a great community, but it’s always nice to get national recognition.

As your Mayor, I want to raise an important issue with you, the residents and taxpayers in our community. Over the past many months, the City Council has been reviewing various options on how to best staff our important Real Estate Department. This review came about as a result of a current vacancy in (based on the chief assessor’s retirement and a vacancy in our appraiser position) our real estate department.

It’s true that this office currently comes under the direction of the City Manager, and ultimately the City Council. The recent retirement provided the opportunity to review and determine if the “status quo” is the best course of action that is most accountable to you - the Citizens. Many of us believe that upon review, there could be a way to improve our system of “checks and balances” regarding your assessment, and ultimately the amount of real estate taxes that you annually pay.

For a variety of reasons, I believe that moving this office under the direction and control of our Commissioner of Revenue is a better, and in the end, more accountable way to proceed. Here are my reasons:

1. Our Constitutional Officer form of Government was set up by our state and city forefathers and is clearly outlined in our City Charter and state Constitution. The logic is that each one of our Constitutional Officers is directly accountable to you the voters and provides a system of checks and balances in our local government. Ironically, real estate assessments were a responsibility of the Commissioner until the late 1960s, until the city council at that time shifted it to the office of the City Manager.

2. Our Commissioner of Revenue currently assesses over 40% of all city revenue, primarily in the area of commercial assessments and personal property. No one can dispute that he has done an excellent job in this area and that his office has an unblemished record of service to our community.

3. I believe that the best government is where the city council accountable to the citizens should approve a budget and set a tax rate; a Commissioner of Revenue, also accountable to the citizens, should assess property and, a city Treasurer, also accountable to the citizens, who then collects that revenue. It’s as basic a basic system of checks and balances prevalent throughout Commonwealth of Virginia

4. It is important for me to state that the fact that this issue is being considered does not reflect negatively on either our city staff or our Commissioner of Revenue. We are blessed with an excellent staff that serves this community well. We are equally blessed with two tenured Constitutional Officers that have capably served this community with distraction for many years. In my view, the best time to make management changes is when there is a vacancy, thereby not impacting any direct reporting relationships.

To date, the City Council has had two lengthy public work sessions on this topic on May 12th and again on July 28th. Additionally, the City Manager provided the City Council with a draft code change prepared by the City Manager on August 13th.

At the request of the City Manager, the independent City Auditor was asked to weigh in on this issue. While the auditor outlined very effectively that the current system provided the City staff and Council with maximum control. He also concluded that there was no reason to believe that it could operate just as efficiently and effectively if moved under the control of the Commission of Revenue as originally set up by our city forefathers.

It has also been suggested that the City attorney has rendered an opinion in opposition to this change. This is not factural. The City attorney simply responded to questions presented by members of the City Council and specifically stated in the letter that he was not taking a position for or against which is an appropriate response.

Regardless of how you feel about this issue or the best outcome as it moves forward, this issue deserves a fair and honest public debate. Information is circulating in the community that has misrepresented the facts and provided only one side of this debate. These are issues that should be debated publically and voted up or down, based on the policy merits.

I appreciate the opportunity to serve as your Mayor, and I will continue to work hard to provide you with an open, honest and transparent local government.

Sincerely,
Robert F. Lederer, Mayor
City of Fairfax