                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PAYMENTS TO COMMONWEALTH OR POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS THEREOF; PAYMENTS TO THE CITY
OF HAMPTON (§ 2.2-2342)

A. The Authority may agree to make such payments to the Commonwealth or any
political subdivision thereof, which payments such bodies are hereby authorized
to accept, for any goods, services, licenses, concessions or franchises as the
Authority finds consistent with the purposes for which the Authority has been
created.

B. It is the intent of this section that the Authority shall pay a fee in lieu
of taxes as provided in this section. Such fee shall be payable by the Authority
to the City of Hampton and shall be payable, in arrears, for the period January
1 through June 30 on each June 30, and for the period July 1 through December 31
on each December 31. The amount of such fee shall be determined as follows: (i)
all property in the Area of Operation shall be assessed as if privately owned;
(ii) property that would not be taxed if located elsewhere in the City of
Hampton by virtue of the ownership, control, or use of the property, other than
property classified solely under subdivision A 1 of &#xA7; 58.1-3606, shall be
excluded from the calculation of the fee in lieu of taxes; and (iii) the total
assessed value, less any exemptions, shall then be divided by $100, multiplied
by the then-current real estate tax rate set by the City of Hampton, minus the
real estate taxes (a) owed to the City of Hampton directly from taxpayers other
than the Authority within the Area of Operation, including lessees subject to
taxation and billed to the lessee pursuant to subsection E, and (b) collected by
the Authority and remitted to the City of Hampton pursuant to subsection E in
the calendar year prior to the year for which the fee in lieu of taxes is then
determined. The Authority may apply to the assessor of real estate for the City
of Hampton and follow the process for recognition of an exemption applicable to
other such properties in the City for any property subject to the fee in lieu of
taxes, other than property subject to taxation and billed directly to the lessee
pursuant to subsection E.

C. The Authority shall use all funds available and manage its finances and take
all necessary and prudent actions to ensure that the fee in lieu of taxes
provided in subsection B is paid when due and shall notify the City of Hampton
and the Trustees as soon as practical if the funds will not be available to pay
the fee in lieu of taxes when due and the Trustees shall take all necessary
actions to remedy any deficiency. In the event the fee in lieu of taxes is not
paid when due, interest thereon shall at that time accrue at the rate, not to
exceed the maximum amount allowed by &#xA7; 2.2-4355, determined by the City of
Hampton until such time as the overdue payment and interest are paid. Unpaid
fees in lieu of taxes and interest thereon shall rank in parity with liens for
unpaid taxes and may be collected by the City of Hampton as taxes are collected;
however, no real property of the Commonwealth or the Authority may be sold in
such collection efforts.

D. The Authority shall have the right to contest the assessments made on
property at Fort Monroe owned by the Commonwealth or the Authority or any
property for which the Commonwealth or the Authority shall be responsible for
payment of the fee in lieu of taxes, using the procedures utilized by other
citizens of the City of Hampton, including appeals to the Board of Review of
Real Estate Assessments for the City of Hampton and appeals therefrom to the
Circuit Court of the City of Hampton, which is hereby granted jurisdiction to
adjudicate any such appeal by the Authority in the same manner as applicable to
private property owners or lessees in the City.

E. Notwithstanding the provisions of &#xA7; 58.1-3203, all real property in the
Area of Operation that is leased, whether by short-term operating/revenue lease
or long-term ground lease, shall be assessed as if it were privately owned, and
each lessee thereof shall be subject to taxation to be billed and collected by
the City of Hampton as if the lessee were the owner, regardless of the term;
however, leases for a cumulative term of less than 20 years shall be billed to
and collected from the Authority by the City of Hampton. For purposes of this
subsection, &#8220;cumulative term&#8221; includes the original term plus any
optional extensions or renewals of that term. The City of Hampton shall have no
obligation to assess any leased property that may be subject to taxation
pursuant to this subsection unless and until it has received from the Authority
a complete and fully executed copy of the lease, which shall include a
description of the property comparable to that which would be required for the
fee simple conveyance of such leased property. Any property not assessed by the
City of Hampton pursuant to this subsection shall remain subject to the
provisions of subsection B. This subsection shall not apply to leases of any
term with other government entities.

F. The Authority and any lessee that is directly billed by the City of Hampton
(i) may apply to the assessor of real estate for the City of Hampton and follow
the process for recognition of an exemption applicable to other such properties
in the City and (ii) shall have the right to contest the assessments made on
property taxed to the lessee pursuant to this section using the procedures
utilized by other citizens of the City of Hampton, including appeals to the
Board of Review of Real Estate Assessments for the City of Hampton and appeals
therefrom to the Circuit Court of the City of Hampton, which is hereby granted
jurisdiction to adjudicate any such appeal by a qualifying lessee in the same
manner applicable to private property owners and other lessees in the City.

HISTORY: 2011, c. 716; 2013, c. 221; 2019, cc. 468, 469.