Prince Edward County holds public hearing on proposed 2025 real estate tax rate and FY2026 budget

Prince Edward County on Monday held a public hearing on proposed calendar-year 2025 county tax levies and a preview of the fiscal year 2026 county budget, with finance officials saying the advertised budget is balanced at a 39-cent real estate tax rate and noting property assessments rose about 37% on average.

Crystal Baker, Prince Edward County finance and budget manager, told the Board of Supervisors that “in the year of a general reassessment, the Code of Virginia requires localities to hold separate public hearings for county tax rates and for the county budget.” Baker said the county’s new assessments went into effect Jan. 1, 2025, and that a revenue-neutral rate would be 37 cents per $100 of assessed value but the proposed budget is balanced at 39 cents per $100, a roughly 5% increase from the current 51 cents per $100 rate.

Baker summarized the budget’s priorities and drivers, saying local revenue is projected to rise about $4.1 million (12.7 percent) and that the county plans to use $823,537 from the general fund balance to support the school system. She outlined personnel cost increases — a 3 percent cost-of-living adjustment and a 2.5 percent merit pool, a 1.5 percent bonus included in the pay raise reserve, and a 5 percent projected increase in health insurance costs — and said no new full-time positions are proposed. Baker also described capital and operating changes including funding for an elementary school renovation, an animal shelter allocation of $350,000, emergency radio system debt service increases, and an allocation toward a joint dispatch concept.

Speaking in support of the proposed levy, Dr. Cox, acting superintendent for Prince Edward County Schools, said the tax levy “maintain[s] and improve[s] our levels of service” and stressed the importance of competitive staff salaries to retain and attract teachers during the hiring season. Parent and resident speakers echoed those points: Eric Hodges, a Lockett District resident, urged supervisors to back the modest increase to support students and ongoing construction; Justin Pope of Farmville said the rate would help the county seize a “generational moment” to improve school facilities and staffing and argued a modest increase now could avoid larger increases later.

Baker noted the county advertized the proposed budget and tax rates in the Farmville Herald and posted materials on the county website and in the administration office. She also reminded the board that the county is on a four-year reassessment cycle (last reassessment in 2021) and urged the board to consider long-term debt-service needs tied to Sandy River and the elementary school renovation when planning the tax rate.

The board recessed the meeting and scheduled the public hearing on the FY2026 county and school budget for Tuesday, April 22 at 7 p.m.; a budget work session and adoption of the county and school budgets and tax rates is scheduled for April 29 at 7 p.m., and approval of appropriations is scheduled for June 10 at 7 p.m. A motion to recess until April 22 at 7 p.m. was made during the meeting; the transcript does not record a full roll-call vote or final tally on that motion.

Votes at a glance: no formal ordinance, resolution or final vote on tax-rate adoption occurred during this meeting. The public hearing presented the advertised proposal of a 39-cent real estate tax rate and scheduled required upcoming hearings and decisions.

The county will hold the separate, statutory public hearing on the FY2026 county and school budgets on April 22 at 7 p.m., when supervisors may take formal action on the tax rate and budget.