The tax board received pressure from both sides Monday as residents weighed in on the proposed $57.07 million budget at a public hearing.
Several wanted the budget to remain as-is — a zero percent increase in tax bills. But others said they would gladly pay a little extra in taxes if it meant adequately funding the school system.
The hearing drew more than 450 people and had to be moved from City Hall to the Ansonia High School auditorium to accommodate the crowd.
By 9 p.m., about a dozen people had spoken in favor of more school funding.
“By making these cuts, the board is setting the students of Ansonia up for failure,” said Michele Fraher, a member of the Ansonia Federation of Teachers.
During that same time, another dozen people had spoken against raising taxes.
“The well is dry,” said Terry Burns, a member of the citizen group Axe the Tax.
Click play on the videos at left to hear more input from city officials and residents.
The Proposal
When the Board of Apportionment and Taxation received the budget draft, there was an 8.4 percent increase in taxes proposed.
That draft included a 4.9 percent increase in school funding over the current year — the full amount requested by the schools.
But, as the tax board trimmed the proposal, the increase was slashed to zero percent, along with the city budget.
As proposed, the school budget makes up $23.4 million of the total $57.07 million proposal.
The total budget proposal represents a 25.25 mill tax rate, which means a resident with a home assessed at $200,000 will receive a tax bill for about $5,050.
Next Steps
Acting Mayor Stephen Blume and Alderman Scott Nihill both spoke in favor of adding more money to the schools, as did Superintendent Carol Merlone and Board of Education president John Lawlor.
The Republican Town Committee issued a statement early Monday reiterating their position that there should be no tax increase this year.
The Board of Apportionment and Taxation has time to revise the budget proposal before it finalizes the budget on May 17.
The tax board is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. May 17 to vote on a final spending plan.
The document below is the updated budget proposal the tax board is reviewing.
