UPDATED: Sussex County Council Hears from School Officials on VSA; Short-term Rental Lodging Tax Public Hearing in December
UPDATED – 10/29/24 – Public comment during today’s Sussex County Council meeting focused on the Voluntary School Assessment (VSA), which the Sussex County Council voted against some time ago. Several people connected with the Milford and Cape Henlopen School Districts spoke before the Council and discussed that Sussex County is the only county in the state that hasn’t adopted the VSA, which is a fee paid by developers to school districts to support school construction, maintenance and operations – it is not a tax. The VSA (Senate Bill 186) addresses the impact of residential development on school capacity and was passed by the Delaware General Assembly in June of 2023 and signed into law by Governor Carney on September 14, 2023.
The Council discussed the VSA at its January 30th meeting but gave no support to continue on with the discussion. The Council all agree that there’s nothing voluntary about the VSA and that it is a tax, but only school districts where development is taking place would see funding. Council President Mike Vincent called the VSA flawed – and said that in Sussex County the majority of new homes are second homes or for retirees – not families with school-age or future school-age students.
Speakers during this week’s meeting stated that the VSA has been helpful to school districts in Kent and New Castle County – and helped to lower school taxes.
County Finance Director, Gina Jennings discussed legislation that was signed in September by Governor Carney (House Substitute 2 for House Bill 168) that creates a short-term lodging tax and license services for the State of Delaware and also authorized Sussex County to impose a lodging tax of no more than 3% on short-term rentals. The County has been collecting a lodging tax on hotels, motels and tourist homes in unincorporated areas since 2020 – collecting about $3.4-million. About half that funding has gone towards the dredging of White Creek Canal and the current Fenwick Island dredging of the north and south channels in the Little Assawoman Bay. The Council this week introduced an ordinance that would add short-term rentals to the County’s lodging tax collections. This added funding would be restricted – and only used for beach nourishment, waterway dredging, economic development, tourism programs, recreational activities, water quality and flood control projects and workforce and affordable housing programs. A public hearing on the short-term rental lodging tax will be held on December 10th.
The Sussex County Council will not meet again until November 19th because of Election Day next week and Veterans Day the following week. County offices will also be closed on Thursday, November 7th for Return Day.
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The Sussex County Council will meet at 12:30 on Tuesday. County Finance Director Gina Jennings will discuss and possibly introduce a proposed ordinance that would impose a lodging tax of 3% of the rent for short-term rentals in unincorporated areas of Sussex County. County Engineer Mike Harmer will discuss the JP Court Annex project and Airport Manager Bob Bryant will discuss the parallel taxiway B construction.
There are 5 public hearings scheduled for 1:30pm ā two are sewer annexations. There is an application for a Conditional Use No 2523 on behalf of Tavra Trinidad for a nail salon business in the Frankford area and an application for a Change of Zone No 2018 on behalf of James Yerkie, II to rezone about 1.5 acres from Medium Residential to AR-1 on Old Shawnee Road. The Council will also hear an ordinance amendment for Ordinance No. 23-01 to amend the Sussex County Sewer Tier Map for properties on Route 113 in the Delaware Avenue area near Frankford.
The Sussex County Council meets in the County Administration offices on The Circle in Georgetown
Click here for the Council Agenda
Click here for the Council Packet
