Manager’s Message of the Week - Dawn Francis, Town Manager
The 2017-18 Municipal Tax Rate
The 2017-18 Municipal Tax Rate set by the Selectboard is $0.5271 per $100.00 of property value. Had the stormwater utility not been created, the tax rate would have been $0.5454, which is lower than the tax rate in 2013.
How is this tax rate reduction possible?
- Growth and investment in Colchester between 2012 and 2018 resulted in a property value increase of $150,005,900 (7.7%)
- The local option tax funded $627,964 of our voter-approved debt, which was previously paid for with property taxes
- Selectboard and staff are diligent about containing costs and finding more efficient ways to manage the Town to use fewer of your tax dollars
Stormwater Utility
- The adoption of a stormwater utility means that the Town’s stormwater program will be funded through user fees instead of property taxes
- All property owners will pay a user fee for stormwater: single family, duplex, and triplex properties will pay a flat fee; all others, including tax exempt sites, religious organizations, and the Town itself, will pay a fee that is based on the specifics of their site.
- You can get more information about the Stormwater Utility online at colchestervt.gov/213/managing-stormwater, including a link to a user cost database that shows a fee comparison of the two methods for your property, and all properties in Colchester.
For more about the Town Manager’s Office visit http://colchestervt.gov/manager or call (802) 264-5509.