Voters approved it 71.8% to 28.2% on Nov. 3, so Charlottesville can add up to 1% to its 5.3% sales tax until 2046. It pays for school buildings only.
Charlottesville voters will decide on Tuesday, Nov. 3, whether the city can raise its sales tax by up to 1% to pay for school buildings. The money could go only to building or renovating schools. The tax would end June 30, 2046.
Updated Nov. 5: voters approved the tax 13,854 to 5,447, or 71.8%, with all nine precincts reporting, in unofficial state results. City Council must now adopt an ordinance before it takes effect. Read our Charlottesville election results.
Charlottesville City Schools estimates the tax would raise about $12 million a year. The district’s facilities page says that money would be “restricted to school capital projects.”
The question on your ballot
The referendum is the last item on the city’s sample ballot (PDF), under the heading “Additional Local Sales Tax for School Capital Projects.” It reads:
Shall the City of Charlottesville, Virginia be authorized to levy a local general retail sales tax at a rate not to exceed one percent (1%), the revenues of which shall be used solely for capital projects for the construction or renovation of public schools serving the City of Charlottesville, and which shall expire on June 30, 2046?
A majority yes vote authorizes the tax. It does not switch it on by itself.
How it would work
City staff set out the steps at a City Council work session on July 8, according to the approved minutes (PDF). Deputy City Manager James Freas told the council:
- the state budget passed this year lets the city add a local sales tax of up to 1%, but only with voter approval
- the money can pay only for building or renovating schools, plus the bond and loan costs of those projects
- June 30, 2046, is the latest end date the law allows, a 20-year maximum
If voters say yes, the council must still adopt an ordinance. The tax takes effect 120 days after that, the minutes say. The district expects it to start “sometime in 2027.”
The council voted July 20 to ask the Circuit Court to put the question on the ballot.
What it would and would not tax
Charlottesville’s general sales tax is now 5.3%. That is the base rate Virginia Tax lists for every locality without an extra levy. With the full 1%, the city rate would be 6.3%.
For comparison, Virginia Tax lists 6% in Richmond, Norfolk, Alexandria and much of Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads. Williamsburg, James City County and York County pay 7%.
The district’s voting flyer (PDF) says the new tax could not apply to:
- groceries
- essential personal hygiene products
- prescription medications
Groceries and hygiene items are taxed at 1% statewide today, and that rate would not change.
What the money could build
The district lists three projects the tax “could support.” It gives no cost for any of them.
| School | Proposed work | Why, according to the district |
|---|---|---|
| Jackson-Via Elementary | A cafeteria and kitchen | Meals are cooked at Charlottesville High and driven over each day |
| Greenbrier Elementary | A cafeteria and a secure front entrance | No cafeteria; the building’s layout blocks a secure entry vestibule |
| Charlottesville High | Classroom upgrades | Many classrooms have not been upgraded since 1974, and most have no windows |
The facilities page adds that the tax could help finish the Charlottesville Early Learning Center on the Walker campus. Most of that project’s money is already set aside.
For scale, the district puts the total budget for the Charlottesville Middle School modernization at $91.8 million. The council put in $68.8 million in April 2022, and a state school construction grant added $17.6 million.
If the measure fails, the flyer says, those projects “must be funded through existing revenue sources or delayed until alternative funding is secured.”
Neighbors are voting on their own
Charlottesville is one of 47 localities with a school sales tax question this fall, according to the Virginia Department of Elections. Nearby, that includes:
- Albemarle County, which surrounds the city
- Fluvanna County, home to Lake Monticello, about 12 miles southeast
- Greene County
- Nelson County
City voters see only the city question. Each county’s tax would apply only to sales in that county.
What it means for you
- Voting: early voting runs through Saturday at the City Hall Annex, 120 Seventh St. NE. Polls are open 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3. Our Charlottesville voting guide has hours, polling places and the rest of the ballot.
- Shopping: if the tax passes and the council adopts the full 1%, a $100 taxable purchase in the city would cost $6.30 in sales tax instead of $5.30. Groceries, hygiene products and prescriptions would not change.
- Property tax: the referendum does not change the real estate tax rate. Our property tax guide explains the current rate.
- Your school: see our pages on Jackson-Via, Greenbrier and Charlottesville High, or all Charlottesville public schools.
Questions about the projects go to Charlottesville City Schools’ operations office at 434-245-2400. Questions about voting go to the city’s Office of Voter Registration and Elections at 434-970-3250.
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