Where is the money coming from;

As we begin the second half of Hamden’s fiscal year there are concerns and questions going forward fiscally. First off, what will be the impact of the recent townwide reassessment?

As I suggested in the article I wrote (“Red Light Green Light”) prior to the current budget approvals, the Town used assumptions that were flawed and overly optimistic. A key revenue item was the projected income of $5 million dollars from the installation of traffic cameras. It is now halfway through the year and cameras are yet to be installed. According to a Dec. 17, 2024, CTtnewsjunkie.com article by Viktoria Sundqvist, a proposal needs to be submitted to the state Department of Transportation’s Office of State Traffic Administration (OSTA), and the law provides 60 days for the plans to be reviewed, and approved. Per the article, one town has received approval, and only two others, New Haven and Stratford, have proposals submitted. What is the status and timeline regarding the Town’s proposal and anticipated state approval? It appears that completion of the project and receipt of any revenue is a long way off.

In my opinion, the $5 million dollars in revenue will not be realized this fiscal year, and there is nothing we can do about it. This is only one of a long line of miscalculated budget assumptions made by our Town.

Another area of concern is how the Town deals with the $7.9 million hole that was caused when it used the one-time savings from our bond restructuring to balance last year's budget. Where is that magical money to appear so we can balance next year's budget?

Where is the money coming from? We all know the answer, the taxpayers. How much it will cost will have to be determined, but I know it will not be proportional. Why? The Town is in the process of reviewing its current reassessment. Most homeowners have seen their homes' appraised value appreciate since the last assessment, but how much and what will happen to the Mill Rate?

In theory, there will be a decrease in the mill rate which will correspond to the increase in the Town’s assessment. This means a 50% increase in assessment would be equated to a 50% decrease in the Mill rate, and taxes should stay the same. But this is not the case, what actually happens is that home owners will see an increase in taxes proportional to the increase in assessment.

How much our taxes will be next year is unknown, but based on the numbers the Town has provided in last year's budget, I fear it will be a lot. Why? Even if the town finds a way to balance out this year's budget without a deficit, we will need to cover close to the $8 million loss in revenue we appropriated from our bond fund. We have also been told by the administration it plans to increase spending for next year by another $10 Million. If we take the known loss of revenue and the increase in spending, we will need to cover $18 Million dollars in taxes. That will represent a 5% increase in taxes. And if your assessment went up more than average, you can be looking at a 5-10% increase for next year.

To answer the question, where is the money coming from? YOU the taxpayer.