Valley Independent Sentinel

Lauretti: Mill Rate Up, But Lower Taxes For Most

by Ethan Fry | Feb 22, 2012 7:41 pm

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Posted to: Shelton

Mayor Mark Lauretti on Wednesday proposed a $113.4 million budget that would increase the mill rate but see most residential property owners see their tax bills decrease.

That’s because the city went through a revaluation that saw property values decrease sharply, Lauretti said while presenting his proposal at a joint meeting of the Board of Aldermen and the Board of Apportionment and Taxation.

Lauretti said that represents a departure from past revaluations during his administration, where the tax burden shifted from commercial and industrial property owners to residential property owners.

“While residential property values have dropped, the commercial and industrial properties have held in value,” the mayor said. “The result is that most homeowners will see a reduction in their overall taxes once the mill rate is set.”

Under the proposal, the mill rate would go from the current 18.57 mills to 21.85 mills. The city’s tax board will now review the spending plan. Then the budget proposal will move to the Board of Aldermen, which must adopt a budget by May 15.

Lauretti’s proposed allocation for Shelton schools is about $500,000 less than the district requested. However, he said during his budget address, attended by about a dozen people at City Hall, that he would restore $285,000 of that only if the school board rescinds its “pay to participate” policy.

The school board in December sent Lauretti a $64.3 million budget request representing a 1 percent, or about $636,000, increase in spending over the current year. During its discussion, members said they hoped to begin to phase out the pay to participate program.

“It’s unnecessary,” Lauretti said after his 9-minute address about the pay to participate program, implemented in 2010 during a budget crunch. “If this is what it takes to force their hand, this is what I’m going to do.”

On the city side of the budget, Lauretti said spending will increase less than 1 percent largely due to an increase in debt service that will begin to trend downward in 2013-2014 and contractual obligations to city employees.

Employment levels are expected to remain constant, the mayor said, though the city will be able to make some investments in road repairs, fire and police vehicles, and fire and police communication systems.

Asked after his address if his budget, if adopted, would result in a 21st straight surplus during his administration, he said: “Barring any unforeseen, off-the-wall occurrences, there’s no reason for it not to.”

Lauretti said that even if some unexpected expenses do arise, he puts money in certain line items in the budget to try to mitigate the effects of such possibilities.

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