City of Alexandria to Increase Meals Tax As Part of FY19 Budget

On Monday April 30, 2018, the Alexandria City Council approved through their add/delete process a 1 percent increase in our meals tax rate. This increase will apply to prepared meals (like meals one would eat at a restaurant). The Council intends to use this tax increase to pay for affordable housing through the trust fund established for the same purpose. While the Council had some discussion about reform in the budget process during their meeting on Monday they still sprung this on our community with little or no warning and certainly no public comment period on the specific proposal. The budget is expected to be approved today in a meeting of the Council and this tax increase will be included. More information on what happened Monday night can be found in this Washington Post article here.

As a reminder, the City increased taxes on real estate last year by 5 times what the City Manager proposed. AAYR believes that we deserve more from our government. We are looking to you to help us deliver our message to the City Council.