Manassas Park council agrees to advertise FY26 'not to exceed' tax and utility rates amid debate over water increases

Manassas Park, Va. — The Manassas Park governing body on May 6 voted to advertise proposed FY26 tax and enterprise fund rates while council members continued to debate whether to include any water and sewer increases in the advertised maximums.

City staff presented example calculations showing a 37% increase to the water/sewer enterprise fund applied to an assumed 5,000-unit usage; staff said the example raised an average monthly bill by about $38, or roughly $460 a year. City staff member Keith explained the arithmetic and emphasized that advertised rates are maximums the council can only lower at final vote: "This gives us flexibility" and the public hearing is scheduled for June 3, with a final vote expected later in June.

Several council members urged caution about advertising higher water rates. One council member argued the water fund has been used to subsidize other departments and called for transparency on internal allocations; another said the council should advertise a property-tax figure now and keep working toward a 2¢ reduction before adopting final rates.

Council member Carrera said the advertised numbers are not necessarily final and urged the body to wait for additional analysis: "there's some analysis that we've yet to receive that I'd like to receive," Carrera said, adding the advertising requirement is a legal step to allow later reductions.

By consensus the governing body agreed to advertise the rates presented at the meeting while staff continues work to refine models and seek alternatives that could lower the final rates. City staff noted the mechanics of accrual versus cash accounting and warned that timing of tax receipts (personal property in October, real estate in December and June) affects short-term cash flow and the need to manage reserve levels.

Staff reported the city's fund balance at roughly 15% and recommended keeping sight of contingency needs when deciding whether to use reserves to smooth cash flow or advertise higher rates. The governing body encouraged residents to attend the June 3 public hearing or submit comments by email or YouTube.

The council did not take a final vote on FY26 rates at the May 6 meeting; the advertisement of the "not to exceed" rates satisfies the legal notice requirement and leaves the council room to adopt lower rates at the June public hearing.