Ansonia Taxes Are Flat In Cassetti’s Proposed Budget

PHOTO BY JEAN FALBO-SOSNOVITCH

Ansonia Mayor David Cassetti in an undated photo.

ANSONIA — A newly proposed city budget keeps the tax rate as is for fiscal year 2021 – 2022, Mayor David Cassetti said.

No, taxes will not be going up this year,” Cassetti said during Tuesday’s (March 9) virtual meeting of the Board of Aldermen. Ansonia’s residents and taxpayers have gone through too much over the past year to deal with a tax increase. I have therefore worked hard to put before you a city budget that does not raise the mill rate, while still funding all vital city services and moving our city forward.”

The mill rate in the city is currently 37.8.

Cassetti’s budget proposal is $59.2 million. That is a spending increase of about $1.5 million, or 2.6 percent.

The mayor, during his presentation, said Ansonia’s grand list is more than $1 billion — the highest it has been in more than a decade.

Cassetti said he and his team began working on the budget last October, being mindful of the challenging year residents endured amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. He credited the city’s new Chief Fiscal Officer, Kurt Miller, and the finance department for working with city departments to come in with budgets as lean and responsible as possible.”

The proposed budget doesn’t feature any significant cuts, Cassetti said.

We are fully funding the Ansonia Board of Education,” Cassetti said. I am pleased to announce that the leverage this Board of Aldermen extended last year, by creating the first-ever Board of Education rollover account, means we have the ability to fully fund the request from our schools.”

The school budget is $33.6 million, which is about $1 million, or 3.25 percent, more than the current budget.

Cassetti’s proposal also includes investments in city infrastructure, including a road rehabilitation program, technology upgrades and a long-term capital investment program. 

Other budget highlights include $5.4 million for the police department; $5.9 million in city employee benefits (which represents a reduction of nearly $224K); $2.1 million for public works; $1.7 million for waste collection and $286,259 for the fire department.

Cassetti said the city is also keeping its fund balance at a stable and healthy” 10.36 percent, which he said was on par with the nation’s top bond ratings agency. 

We have spent a great deal of time working to improve our financial foundation and this is proof that we continue to head in the right direction,” Cassetti added.

Miller, who came onboard last fall after resigning as neighboring Seymour’s longtime First Selectman, said the budget lays a foundation for Ansonia’s future.

Through strong planning, over the next two to three years, we will be able to realign the budget to allow the city to hit its goals in a straightforward way,” Miller said. I like to think that his process will make us much better prepared for the future.” 

Miller noted that the budget’s biggest drivers come from the city’s reinvestment in itself in the capital program, as well as debt service line, primarily from the new police station being built downtown.

Residents can view Cassetti’s proposal here.

The city’s tax board will next schedule a public hearing on the budget before it ultimately comes back before the Aldermen for review and a vote later this spring.

Keep local reporting alive. Donate.ValleyIndy.org