Darien BOF OKs 3% tax rate increase

DARIEN — The Board of Finance has approved a mill rate increase of 3.12 percent for the next fiscal year to 16.84 after keeping it flat this year to alleviate pandemic impact, of 16.84.

It was the last budget vote to be presided over by finance board Chairman Jon Zagrodzky, who announced he would not be seeking re-election in December at his state of the town address to the Representative Town Meeting. Zagrodzky has been on the board for 15 years and served as chairman for six.

The finance board approved a total operating budget of $106.6 million for the Board of Education and $46.1 million on the town side.

A mill is equal to $1 of tax for each $1,000 of assessment. To calculate the property tax, residents multiply the assessment of the property by the mill rate and divide by 1,000.

Last year, the Board of Finance voted to approve a total budget of $147,862,069 for the town and education combined, with a reduction in the tax rate from 16.47 to 16.36 and a flat tax levy of $138,000,000 for fiscal year 2020-21. Because of the reduction last year, the two-year mill rate average increased to 2.25 percent, or 1.12 percent per year.

The school budget approved by the BOE in February did not include possible COVID-19 expenses, though some members objected. Former Board of Education Chairman Tara Ochman, for the first time in her board tenure, opted to vote down Darien’s school budget, saying she believed the board had a statutory responsibility to include COVID-19 expenses.

The debate surrounded the decision to not include just over $800,000 of possible COVID-19-related expenses for the start of the next school year.

Those included five full-time positions for extra sections for social distancing purposes, additional nurses for elementary schools, personal protection equipment, a contract tracing nursing stipend, additional lunch monitors to supervise social distancing practices on all grade levels, and more.

The budget next goes to the Representative Town Meeting in May for final approval.