City of Norwich proposes 3.02 percent tax increase
NORWICH – The City of Norwich Common Council held a special meeting last week to discuss the proposed budget for 2009. While the budget is not entirely complete, Finance Director William Roberts explained the city is currently looking at a 3.02 percent tax increase.
“Our main concern was the financial impact the budget would have on the property owners, for both the taxes and the water and sewer rates,” Roberts said. Revenue the city was planning for, including state aid and increased sales tax revenue, Roberts said, are things the city cannot be sure of this year.
“This budget was extremely challenging because of the state of the economy, so we had to be realistic on revenue projections,” Mayor Joseph Maiurano said in a prepared statement. “We did not include in the budget $80,000 due to the city in state revenue sharing for 2009, because sales tax revenues may remain flat.”
Roberts said by trimming down the budget as much as possible, the city managed to bring the budget from a possible 13 percent tax increase down to 3.02 percent, while still keeping the fund balance intact. The proposed 2009 tax rate, per $1,000 of assessed value, will be $17.42, compared to $16.91 in 2008. For the average homeowner with a taxable assessed value of $55,000, the tax increase will work out to approximately $2.34 cents a month, or $28.05 a year.
Currently, the only details missing from the budget regard the Special Grants Fund, which will have no effect on the taxes or other rates.
Roberts explained that water and sewer rates will also be increasing this year. Currently, the city is in the process of completing a $4.5 million upgrade to the rotating biological contactors at the waste water treatment facility, and as a result the waste water debt service fund has to be built up. The proposed water and sewer rate increase is 10.23 percent; however, Roberts said, the dollar increase is only $13.01 a quarter, or $4.34 a month.
“In total, the increases to the average taxpayer will be around $6 a month,” Roberts said.
Mayor Joseph Maiurano explained that the improvements to the waste water treatment plant are being made to address current problems and to plan for future development. “If we don’t start planning now, we won’t be able to have the development in the future,” Maiurano said.
Roberts said city department heads, the mayor and the finance director put a tremendous amount of work into the 2009 budget. Roberts said this year’s budget is tight, but will still leave an unappropriated, unreserved fund balance of $553,000 and a general fund reserve balance of $647,000. “We should have a total of $1.2 million in unappropriated reserves at the end of next year,” Roberts said.
A public hearing will be held to discuss the 2009 budget at 7 p.m. on Oct. 28 at City Court. Copies of the budget are available at city hall or online at www.norwichnewyork.net.
“Our main concern was the financial impact the budget would have on the property owners, for both the taxes and the water and sewer rates,” Roberts said. Revenue the city was planning for, including state aid and increased sales tax revenue, Roberts said, are things the city cannot be sure of this year.
“This budget was extremely challenging because of the state of the economy, so we had to be realistic on revenue projections,” Mayor Joseph Maiurano said in a prepared statement. “We did not include in the budget $80,000 due to the city in state revenue sharing for 2009, because sales tax revenues may remain flat.”
Roberts said by trimming down the budget as much as possible, the city managed to bring the budget from a possible 13 percent tax increase down to 3.02 percent, while still keeping the fund balance intact. The proposed 2009 tax rate, per $1,000 of assessed value, will be $17.42, compared to $16.91 in 2008. For the average homeowner with a taxable assessed value of $55,000, the tax increase will work out to approximately $2.34 cents a month, or $28.05 a year.
Currently, the only details missing from the budget regard the Special Grants Fund, which will have no effect on the taxes or other rates.
Roberts explained that water and sewer rates will also be increasing this year. Currently, the city is in the process of completing a $4.5 million upgrade to the rotating biological contactors at the waste water treatment facility, and as a result the waste water debt service fund has to be built up. The proposed water and sewer rate increase is 10.23 percent; however, Roberts said, the dollar increase is only $13.01 a quarter, or $4.34 a month.
“In total, the increases to the average taxpayer will be around $6 a month,” Roberts said.
Mayor Joseph Maiurano explained that the improvements to the waste water treatment plant are being made to address current problems and to plan for future development. “If we don’t start planning now, we won’t be able to have the development in the future,” Maiurano said.
Roberts said city department heads, the mayor and the finance director put a tremendous amount of work into the 2009 budget. Roberts said this year’s budget is tight, but will still leave an unappropriated, unreserved fund balance of $553,000 and a general fund reserve balance of $647,000. “We should have a total of $1.2 million in unappropriated reserves at the end of next year,” Roberts said.
A public hearing will be held to discuss the 2009 budget at 7 p.m. on Oct. 28 at City Court. Copies of the budget are available at city hall or online at www.norwichnewyork.net.
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