An Analysis of Montville Revaluation and Taxes

Revaluation does not determine taxes. Revaluation only values all properties by the same standard at the same time. Taxes are set by government.

Unchanged, the existing tax (mill) rate would increase property taxes proportionally to increased values.

The mill rate is lowered after revaluation.

That is dangerous for the taxpayer; particularly in Montville.

For 2006-2007:

Adopted budget 51,290,586
Other funds available -20,566,264
Tax revenue needed 30,724,322

Grand List (total property values) = $1,028,853,850, mill rate = 29.86 ($200,000 house = $5793 tax)

Assuming a 75% average increase in property values, the Grand List would be $1,800,494,237. To meet the current budget the mill rate would be set at 17.06 (the now $350,000 house = $5793 tax).

Assuming a 4% budget increase for 2007-2008 ($31,953,295), the mill rate equals 17.75 ($350,000 house = $6211 tax).

The town is about $32 million in debt (existing + litigation), plus pending bond issues and legal expenses.

There are a range of options available to the town. Those options are default, fight the inevitable, bond the debt, and pay the debt.

Should the town default, its credit rating is destroyed, the state takes over, and who knows how far taxes would increase.

Fighting the inevitable, and continuing to fund new projects, further increases debt and drives long range taxes higher.

Bonding the debt would damage the town credit rating and drive long range taxes still higher.

To pay the debt and fund the budget ($63,953,295) the mill rate would be 35.52 ($350,000 house = $12,432 tax).

No matter what Montville does (short of unlikely exemptions) fixed and lower income Montville residents are doomed. Property taxes ignore ability to pay, punish past personal achievements, and the government refuses to get serious about controlling spending (particularly the Board of Education).

NOTE: A more detailed analysis will be presented in the near future.

Technical Difficulties

Technical difficulties have precluded publishing for about two months. With luck, timely articles will resume starting today (01/07/2007).

Flawed Resolution

The resolution (January 8, 2007 agenda item 13a) regarding tax rebates for certain types of vehicles is flawed. The resloution states that any person that owns and registers any new vehicle in the Town of Montville that operates on non petroleum fuel such as electric, natural gas, steam, water, propane or is a hybrid vehicle that their taxes shall be rebated each year by the Montville Town Council in the same manner as we rebate taxes collected in error.

Fossil fuel is the term for buried combustible geologic deposits of organic materials, formed from decayed plants and animals that have been converted to (petroleum) crude oil, coal, natural gas, or heavy oils by exposure to heat and pressure in the earth's crust.

Electricity is generated by Nuclear Power, Natural Gas, Coal or Fuel Oil and therfore electric cars are, in fact, powered by petroleum since Natural Gas, Coal and Fuel Oil are petroleum type substances (fossil fuels).

Obviously, Natural Gas powered vehicles are also powered by petroleum based fuel.

Steam powering a vehicle must be generated by a heat source capable of creating temperatures high enough to make large volumes of steam. Steam powered vehicle boilers are usually fired by a fossil fuel.

There are no practical water powered vehicles. The best approximation is a Fuel Cell powered vehicle. These vehicles use Hydrogen, Alcohol or Methanol as a fuel and a high oxygen content material as an oxidant. Some Fuel Cells use petroleum based fuels.

Propane is normally a gas, but is compressible to a liquid that is transportable. It is derived from petroleum products during oil or natural gas processing. Therfore, Propane powered vehicles also use petroleum.

The resolution would be viable if the words “operates on non petroleum fuel such as electric, natural gas, steam, water, propane or” were deleted.