Richmond can afford a property-tax rate cut that Mayor L. Douglas Wilder has said it can't, City Council President William J. Pantele said yesterday.

Blasting the mayor for his use of taxpayers' money, Pantele said higher real estate tax assessments and tens of millions of dollars of wasteful spending mean the city is in stronger financial shape than Wilder has argued.

"With that much money on the table, it is inappropriate for government to say, 'We're going to hold on to all of it, and we won't give any back to you,'" Pantele said.

He said the rate should be cut to $1.20 or less per $100 of assessed value.

Wilder last week asked the council to set the tax rate at $1.23 for the second consecutive year.

Asked yesterday about Pantele's proposal, Wilder said he would outline his view on taxes when he presents his budget in 13 days.

Asked whether he planned to cut the rate, Wilder replied: "You've tried asking me twice already and you have my response."

Pantele said a 7 percent increase in the city's real estate tax base should generate $15 million a year in revenue, at the current tax rate.

"If there's $10 million there, that belongs to the people, not to bureaucrats," he said.

He said a series of recent reports by the city auditor recommended actions that could save $30 million a year, almost none of which the Wilder administration has acted upon.

Pantele said he expected the council would approve $18 million of construction spending sought by the schools, including $5 million to make schools accessible to people with disabilities. Fifty of the school system's 55 buildings do not comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, and a 2005 study estimated the cost of fixing that at more than $17 million.

Pantele said the council was tired of waiting for Wilder to move on projects he had said he'd build through his $300 million City of the Future program.

"Nothing is happening on his capital plan at all," Pantele said of that program. "Our budget should reflect reality, not a fantasy."

Wilder said there was $104 million worth of projects in the pipeline for the two-year-old City of the Future program, although none involved the 15 new or modernized schools he initially promised to begin over five years.

"We are criticized for all kinds of things," Wilder said later when asked about Pantele's remarks.

Still later, in a written statement, he said Pantele's tax-rate reduction would reduce city revenue by $6 million, which could force cuts in police, human services and trash collection.

"It's unfathomable to suggest altering the tax rate as the city is facing challenges to keep services continuing at the current level," Wilder said. "While the temptation may be ripe for some to offer promises to voters during this election year, I will continue to put principle over politics."

Contact David Ress at (804) 649-6051 or dress@timesdispatch.com.