According to the Long Island Index 84% of Long Islanders believe that high taxes are an “extremely” or “very serious” problem and a near majority (45%) cites it as the major local problem. With an eye to finding out how other regions address the issue of local taxes, the Long Island Index compared Long Island to several peer suburban regions and found one stood out in stark contrast to ours. Northern Virginia (including Fairfax County, Loudoun County, Fairfax City and the city of Falls Church) has significantly lower per capita property taxes than Long Island and a dramatically different governance model with 17 governmental entities delivering the key services. This report compares Long Island and Northern Virginia expenditures on schools, fire services and more. It demonstrates options for lowering Long Island’s tax burdens by comparing what Northern Virginia has been able to achieve.