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HomeMy Public PortalAboutTOL NR 2022-03-22 Adopted Fiscal Year 2023 Budget Town of Leesburg News Release For Immediate Release Tuesday, March 22, 2022 Media Contact: Betsy Arnett, Public Information Officer pio@leesburgva.gov  703-771-2734 Leesburg Town Council Adopts Fiscal Year 2023 Budget and Fiscal Years 2023-2028 Capital Improvements Program Real estate tax rate reduced from 18.4 cents to 17.74 cents per $100 of assessed value. Leesburg, VA (March 22, 2022) – This evening, the Leesburg Town Council adopted the Fiscal Year 2023 Budget and Fiscal Years 2023-2028 Capital Improvements Program. The adopted General Fund budget totals $72.6 million, up 11% from the Fiscal Year 2022 budget. The entire adopted budget, including the General Fund, the Capital Projects Fund, and the Utilities Fund , is $XXX million, an increase of $18 million over the current fiscal year budget. The Town Council set the real estate tax rate for 2022 Tax Year at 17.74 cents per $10 0 of assessed value, down from the current rate of 18.4 cents. With 2022 assessments on existing residential properties in Leesburg up almost 13% from 2021, the average homeowner’s real property tax bill will increase just over $75 annually. In addition to fully funding the normal increases to the base budget due to inflation, including a 2% cost-of-living-adjustment to staff and council member compensation, five new full-time positions were added in the General Fund, including: • Small Business Development Coordinator in the Department of Economic Development • Senior Management Analyst for Community Development in the Town Manager’s Office • Energy and Emergency Management Analyst in the Town Manager’s Office • Systems Analyst in the Information Technology Department • Customer Service Technician in the Information Technology Department Ongoing costs for these five positions, plus a $500,000 increase in the Town’s annual snow and inclement weather response budget, adds $X.X million to the operating budget. In order to address the Town Council’s strategic initiatives in the areas of economic development, Town Plan implementation, information technology, and emergency management, the new budget uses $1.4 million from the Fiscal Year 2021 Unassigned Fund Balance for several one-time expenditures, in addition to the new full-time positions. Those one-time expenditures include a comprehensive rewrite of the Zoning Ordinance, the development of capital intensity factors for new construction, traffic study and model updates, and a strategic plan for economic development. The adopted Capital Improvements Program (CIP) for Fiscal Years 2023-2028 totals $229 million and includes 81 projects, including 14 new pro jects. CIP funding for Fiscal Year 2023 totals $52.9 million for 46 projects. The proposed Utilities Fund budget for fiscal year 2023 totals $52.8 million, including $21.1 million in capital projects. This adopted budget represents the fourth year of the adopted five- year rate plan. A digital copy of the adopted budget document will be available on the Town website at www.leesburgva.gov/budget by the end of April. # # #