RICHMOND, Va. — The City of Richmond spent almost half a million dollars on a consultant whose job was to advise the Finance Director on improving processes for tax revenue billing, collection, and the overall taxpayer experience.
According to invoices obtained through a public records request and first reported by the Richmond Times-Dispatch, consultant Anne Seward, a subcontractor with Davenport Public Finance, began communicating with the city in January 2024.
That’s when the Finance Department was facing a big controversy: the meals tax fiasco. Dozens of restaurant owners complained they were getting hit with inaccurate and unfair late fees due to what they called poor communication and collection practices on the city’s part.
Seward’s work picked up in March 2024 and continued through at least May 2025.
She charged $200 per hour, and in a timeframe of just over a year, she billed…
