Surplus to lower Newtown tax rate in $123M budget
NEWTOWN — The 2021-22 budget that will be presented to voters on April 27 would decrease the tax rate by 0.3 percent after the Legislative Council voted to use a surplus in the fund balance to save taxpayers from an increase in next year’s bill.
“This fund balance adjustment allows us to make an immediate reduction in taxation but still fund most of the items slated for reduction,” said Paul Lundquist, chairman of the Legislative Council, before last week’s vote. “We are in a very fortunate position.”
The use of the fund balance and other adjustments means voters will decide on a $123 million budget for 2021-22 that carries a tax rate of 34.65 per 1,000 of assessed property value. A taxpayer with a home assessed at the town median of $260,000 would
pay $9,009 in taxes, or $28 less than the current tax bill.
In Newtown, residents vote separately on the town budget and the school budget.
Voters will decide three spending propositions — a $5 million proposition for emergency radio system upgrades, a $3.7 million proposition for a Sandy Hook memorial, and a $1.5 million proposition for a boiler and new lighting at Reed Intermediate School.
The $43.5 million town budget represents a 1.3 percent increase over the current town spending plan and includes increases for road paving and 2 percent raises for town workers.
The $79.7 million school budget represents a 1.3 percent increase over the current school spending plan and also includes raises for teachers and staff.
Another driver of increased spending is debt service, which increased 2.4 percent to $9.7 million in the
2021-22 budget.
The spending increases are offset in part by growth in the town’s tax base of 1.6 percent.
Lundquist said the point of the fund balance allocation and other budget adjustments was “to minimize the tax impact on voters.”
Among the adjustments adopted by the Legislative Council last week was an increase the town’s projected investment income by
$200,000, from $300,000 to
$500,000.
Voting will be in person on April 27 at the Newtown Middle School, 11 Queen St.