The administrative divisions of Virginia are the areas into which the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state, is divided for political and administrative purposes. Some are local governments; others are not. However, all local governments (counties, independent cities, and incorporated towns) are political subdivisions of the state.
According to the 2002 Census of Governments, Virginia ranked 43rd among the 50 states in the number of local governments, with 521 as of June 2002.
Counties.
Virginia has 95 counties, covering all of the territory not within the independent cities. Under Virginia law, counties may be chartered, although most are not. Their populations vary widely; in 2022 estimated populations ranged from 2,301 for Highland County to 1,138,331 for Fairfax County.
Since Virginia has no civil townships, and since incorporated towns cover such a small area of the state, the county is the "de facto" local government for much of the state, from rural areas to densely populated unincorporated communities such as Tysons Corner. In fact, Arlington County, while geographically small and entirely urbanized, is completely unincorporated, making the county board the sole governing body in the entire county.
Cities and towns.
Independent cities.
Since 1871, all incorporated cities in Virginia have classified as independent cities. This is the most noteworthy aspect of Virginia local government relative to the other 49 states. Of the 41 independent cities in the United States, 38 are in Virginia. The three that are not in Virginia are Baltimore, Maryland; St. Louis, Missouri; and Carson City, Nevada. Cities in Virginia are thus similar to unitary authorities in some countries. The United States Census Bureau treats all cities in Virginia as county-equivalents.
Other municipalities, even though they may be more populous than some existing independent cities, are incorporated as "towns", and as such form part of a county. Eight independent cities had 2010 populations of less than 10,000 with the smallest, Norton, having a population of only 3958. On the other hand, six towns had populations of over 10,000.
An independent city in Virginia may serve as the county seat of an adjacent county, even though the city by definition is not part of that county. An example is Fairfax, which is an independent city as well as the seat of Fairfax County.
A city can be formed from any area with a defined boundary having a population of 5,000 or more. Cities have been formed in the following ways:
Where the residents of an area of sufficient size wish to incorporate as a city, they must petition the Virginia state legislature to grant them a municipal charter.
Second class cities.
Virginia's independent cities were classified by the Virginia General Assembly in 1871 as cities of the first class and cities of the second class. The Virginia Constitution of 1902 defined first-class cities as those having a population of 10,000 or more based upon the last census enumeration, while second-class cities were those that had a population of fewer than 10,000. Cities which previously had been granted a city charter, but did not have the requisite population, had their status grandfathered in. Second-class cities did not have a court of record and were required to share the cost of that court with their adjacent county and also shared the cost for three constitutional officers of that court — generally, the clerk, commonwealth's attorney and sheriff — and those shared officers stood for election in both the city and the county. At least two constitutional officers — treasurer and commissioner of the revenue — were required to be elected solely by the residents of the city. The distinction between first- and second-class cities was ended with the Virginia Constitution of 1971. But cities that were classified as second-class cities at the time of the adoption of the 1971 Virginia Constitution were authorized to continue sharing their court system and three constitutional officers with the adjacent county. As of 2003[ [update]], 14 of Virginia's independent cities retain these features.
Towns.
Unlike Virginia's cities, and like municipalities in most other states, incorporated towns are municipalities that are within counties. Local government is thus divided between the town and the county. A town can be formed from any area with a defined boundary having a population of 1,000 or more. The method for forming towns is the same as for cities, petitioning the state legislature to grant a charter. As of 2014, there are 191 incorporated towns in Virginia.
Virginia also has unincorporated communities which are also called towns colloquially.
Powers of municipalities.
Local government in Virginia is subject to Dillon's Rule, which holds that cities and towns only have those powers expressly granted to them by Virginia or federal law, any power implied by those express powers, and those powers essential to the municipality's existence.
Under Virginia law, a municipality, whether a city or a town, must have a municipal charter; that is, there are no general-law municipalities. The charter is a form of contract, and the municipality has no power to act outside of its charter. With few exceptions, a municipality's powers are narrowly construed.
Typically, the powers extended to Virginia municipalities usually include the following:
State law prohibits municipalities from having an amount of outstanding debt greater than 10% of the value of the taxable real estate within that municipality, with a few exceptions made for certain kinds of bonds, particularly those used to fund projects expected to make enough money to repay the bonds within a set time frame. Municipalities are also prohibited from enacting income taxes, but they may impose licensing fees on specific occupations, and the Virginia Supreme Court has held that such licensing fees can be adjusted upwards or downwards to reflect the level of income of a particular business.
Both cities and towns in Virginia have certain functions that are considered "public" functions - such as having police apprehend criminals, or educating children - and others that are considered "private" functions - such as holding a town fair or landscaping around sidewalks on private land. The legal significance of this distinction lies in the liability of the municipality to be sued by someone injured by its employees.
Ordinances.
One of the powers granted by the state to political subdivisions is the power to enact local regulations regarding matters covered by the local charter, called ordinances. In order to pass an ordinance, a locality must provide published notice of the proposed ordinance prior to its enactment, including the text of the ordinance or a reasonable summary thereof, and particularly directed to the attention of residents likely to be affected by it and advising such residents of their ability to object to the proposal. The ordinance must be debated in a public meeting and passed by a majority vote of the governing body of that subdivision.
Some limitations exist on the power to enact ordinances. The Supreme Court of the United States has held that the United States Constitution requires that laws, including municipal ordinances, may not be arbitrary or discriminatory, and may not be unreasonably vague, so that a resident may be reasonably certain that their conduct conforms to the law. Furthermore, local governments cannot delegate the power to enact ordinances to other bodies. However, they may establish fixed and certain standards for carrying out certain activities (such as home building or operating restaurants), and then delegate to subordinate bodies the power to make rules governing how residents can demonstrate compliance with these standards.
A resident who wishes to challenge the validity of an ordinance need not wait until it has been enforced against them (although it may be challenged at that time). Instead, a resident may bring an action for a declaratory judgment alleging that the ordinance is void because it was not properly noticed, goes beyond the county charter, is arbitrary, discriminatory, or unreasonably vague, or that it is preempted by state or federal law. An ordinance will be deemed preempted if it addresses an activity for which the state has prohibited local regulation altogether, or where it is inconsistent with state law. An ordinance may not permit an activity that is expressly prohibited by state law or prohibits an activity that is expressly permitted by state law. However, if some state regulation exists as to an activity, political subdivisions may impose further regulations on that activity so long as it is possible for a resident to comply with both sets of regulations.
Zoning.
Every municipality is required to maintain a publicly accessible zoning map indicating what parcels of property within the municipality may be used for what purpose. This map must be updated at least every five years. Every municipality is required by state law to have a zoning administrator who oversees the local government's regulatory scheme and is generally the party responsible for bringing legal actions against zoning violators. Each municipality is also required to have a board of zoning appeals empowered to grant variances and settle boundary disputes. The standard for granting of variances is that the party requesting the variance faces an unnecessary hardship unique to that party, but that adjacent property will not suffer a substantial detriment, and the character of the district will not be changed. The board may also grant special use permits allowing a property owner to use a property for a purpose that is neither specifically permitted nor specifically prohibited within a particular zoning area, and such permits may be conditioned on the property owner making concessions such as improving roads leading into the property, providing street lighting in the area, or setting aside a certain amount of land for public use. The board of zoning appeals may be appealed to the local Circuit Court if such an appeal is filed within 30 days of the zoning board decision, and from there decisions may be appealed directly to the Virginia Supreme Court.
Eminent domain and inverse condemnation.
A political subdivision may exercise eminent domain against property in its jurisdiction, provided that it comports with the requirements set forth by Virginia law. All localities are empowered by their charters to acquire property through condemnation. In order to effect such a seizure of property, the local government must demonstrate that a public need for the property exists, which must be declared in a resolution or ordinance passed through the usual process for passing ordinances. The locality must make a good-faith offer to purchase the land at a value appraised by the city.
Following the United States Supreme Court decision in "Kelo v. City of New London", the Virginia legislature enacted limitations on the purposes for which property could be taken, specifying that public uses include government offices, utilities, and prevention of urban blight, and excluding the condemnation of property for the purpose of giving it to private parties.
The government, in asserting eminent domain, must pay the owner the fair market value of that land. If the government takes only part of the property, it must pay both the value of the land that was taken, plus any decrease in the market value of the remaining portion (called the "residue"). A person who contests the value assessed for such a taking is entitled to empanel a committee of jurors to determine the fair value. A resident can also seek compensation for damage to the value of real property arising out of government activity through an action for inverse condemnation. The immunity to suit generally enjoyed by local governments does not apply to such actions, pursuant to the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution as incorporated by the Supreme Court.
School divisions.
A school division is the area under a jurisdiction of a school board. Unlike school districts in most other states, Virginia's school divisions are not completely separate units of local government. This is because no school division has taxing authority. Instead, they are dependent upon their associated city, town, or county governments for at least a portion of their funding. Additional funds may come directly to a school division, typically from state and federal sources.
Special districts, agencies.
While special districts exist in Virginia, they are generally less important than in other states. As of June 2012, Virginia had 193 special-district governments, as well as numerous special agencies, areas, and districts that were subordinate to the state or to a county, city, or town government.
Several examples of the many special districts and agencies created as political subdivisions for specific purposes are:
Although the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority serves suburbs in Virginia (and Maryland), the Census Bureau counts it as