With the budget deadline rapidly approaching, Derby tax board members are considering a possible tax increase of 1.5 mills.
That’s about $234 more in taxes next year for a property assessed at $160,000.
Nothing is set in stone, just yet. Tax board members met Tuesday in the City Hall basement to examine budget requests — and to explore their options.
As of Tuesday, Szewczyk said it looked like the school district could receive a funding increase in the neighborhood of 3 percent.
The school board was hoping for 7.3 percent.
The school budget already includes staff reductions.
School business manager Pamela Mangini said a 3 percent increase would result in layoffs.
“More than likely we would have to reduce services and people,” Mangini said.
If the tax board passed the combined city and school budgets as requested by department heads and the school district, the tax rate would increase by 2.5 mills.
That would increase the average tax bill next by $396.
Tax board members don’t want to do that.
An informal poll of tax board members showed they wanted to whittle the budget so the increase fell somewhere between .9 and 1.9 mills — with 1.5 mills being the common ground.
To hit that magic number, members of the tax board will have to trim $905,700 off a proposed 2011 – 2012 spending plan of $36.6 million.
How they’ll manage that remains to be seen. Tax board chairwoman Judith Szewczyk told her fellow members to work on it, then report back at the next budget workshop, scheduled for 7 p.m. May 3 in City Hall (all meetings are open to the public).
In addition to the May 3 workshop, the tax board tentatively scheduled another workshop for May 4.
A public hearing on the budget is scheduled for 7 p.m. May 17 in City Hall.
