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Board sets 2026 tax rates, approves 44.89% personal property tax relief after public comment
Summary
After a public hearing that included a request from a resident to reduce the real‑estate rate to offset assessments, Roanoke County supervisors set 2026 tax rates (real estate $1.30, personal property $3.40, machinery & tools $2.80 per $100) and approved a 44.89% personal property tax relief percentage.
Roanoke County supervisors on April 7 held a required public hearing on calendar‑year 2026 tax rates, received citizen comment and then adopted the rates by unanimous roll call.
Budget administrator Steve Elliott explained that state code requires a public hearing before adopting real estate, personal property and machinery & tools tax rates. During the public comment period, local business owner and resident Scott Dryer urged the board to reduce the real estate tax rate to offset a cited average assessment increase of 6.72 percent so that households face less of an assessment‑driven tax burden.
After hearing comments, the board adopted the proposed tax levies for calendar year 2026 as presented in the agenda: real estate at $1.30 per $100 of assessed valuation, personal property at $3.40 per $100, and machinery and tools at $2.80 per $100. Clerk roll call showed each supervisor voting "Yes." The board also approved the annual Personal Property Tax Relief percentage at 44.89%, as recommended by Jessica Beamer, director of finance and management services; Beamer said the locality’s share of the state Tax Relief Block Grant is roughly $12.2 million and staff used a modeling approach to maximize relief under state rules.
Supervisor discussion during the meeting addressed the broader budget context — debt service pressures from recent school projects and the balance between maintaining services and tax relief — and emphasized staff efforts to model multi‑year funding needs.
The adopted rates will be used for calendar‑year 2026 tax bills; supervisors directed staff to continue financial planning work ahead of next year’s budget cycle.
