Average Homeowner's Municipal Taxes to Increase $59

The average homeowner’s municipal taxes will increase $59 due to the council approving a $56.6 million tax levy for 2013.

The tax levy, the portion of the budget funded by local taxes, supports the town's $78.1 million budget. The average home is valued at slightly less than $229,000.

Also factored into the $59 increase is nearly $3.2 million budgeted for the public library.

The tax increase is the lowest in more than a decade.

“It’s progress,” said Mayor Chris Veragno. “What we really need to do now is stabilize our ratable base and increase our ratable base.”

Vergano noted that one of the factors leading to the increase was the $27.6 million in assessed tax value the town lost this year.

The council approved the budget 5-3. Councilmen Joseph Scuralli, Joseph Schweighardt, and Al Sadowski voted the budget down. Councilman Alan Purcell did not attend the meeting.

The municipal budget is only part of the total taxes that residents have to pay. School taxes and county taxes are also included in residents’ tax bills.

“People forget that the municipal budget is one piece and when you add up the municipal budget, the county budget, and the school budget, it’s a lot of money every year that just keeps going up,” Sadowski said.

The average homeowner's school taxes went up $164 this year; the average county taxes decreased $30.

Sadowski said that the increase does not just affect residents but businesses and their customers as well.

“When people’s haircuts go up and nail salons have to raise their prices because their taxes have gone up, some of them can’t survive and they go out of business,” Sadowski said. “It’s not just residents who are affected. It’s everyone who’s affected. Residents are affected when they have to go to these businesses and spend more now.”

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