Many Services are Provided by our local governments

Created by the General Assembly to serve special functions

Planning, land use, transportation, water and waste disposal

Boards and commissions will establish and regulate to oversee public institutions.

Professional fire department

Separate police department

Roads Zoning laws for property

usage

Oversees the functioning of the many departments

Helps propose the budget which funds these departments

Henrico is a single school district School Board is elected and is responsible for

setting school policy, hiring/ firing teachers Superintendent overseas daily running – serves

as a managing executive School Board meetings are open to the public –

expulsion hearings and work-sessions are not. Schools are the largest expenditure of Henrico

County!

Notice each member is elected from a magisterial district!

States often aid local governments with grants, but local

governments do have some tax powers.

Real Property Tax: taxes on property that cannot be easily moved such as homes, land, business, etc.

Personal Property Tax: tax on property that is movable such as cars, boats, trailers, motorcycles, etc.

All property that can be taxed must be registered with the county

Property transfer tax –when property is registered with the county

Licensing fees (like hunting and fishing)

Income taxes (not in Henrico)

Sales taxes (not in Henrico)

User Charges for services (like trash pick-up and water-sewage)

Fines for legal penalties Issue bonds (this allows the

county to borrow money) but this is only done through referendum

Entertainment Tax (yep- if you can afford to have fun, you can donate a little bit to the community)