Candia News : taxes

Citizens ask for no tax increase

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:33:00 GMT

By Ginger Kozlowski

It may not hold any legal power, but 78 citizens are asking the Candia Board of Selectmen and School Board to help them pay their taxes by keeping the property tax rate from increasing.

A petition-like form was sent around town in early November and was available in several businesses. It said:
“To:
“Candia Selectmen
“Candia Budget Comm.
“Candia School Board

“This letter to inform the three boards that we do not want any increase in our property taxes. We do not want any increase in any of the town or school budgets.”

Ingrid Byrd, a member of the Candia School Board, said the letter and signatures were presented to the selectmen at their Nov. 9 meeting and to the business manager at SAU 53 the same week.

Byrd said the School Board has already finished its budget for the coming year and kept it level-funded. While she spoke as a single member of the board, she said the other members of the School Board were unanimous in their support of keeping costs down.

“We made cuts across the board,” said Byrd. We went literally line by line, meeting all the things we’re supposed to meet.

School Board Chairman Ed Caito agreed, saying the board worked hard to keep costs down.

“This year, the School Board and the Candia School District administration made a concerted effort to communicate more effectively with the Candia Budget Committee in order to try to work together to present a reasonable budget in these challenging economic times,” said Caito.

The budget is driven by a number of factors, he said.

“Our health insurance provider provides the district with a guaranteed maximum health insurance premium increase for the following school year. This year, that maximum has been set at a 21.5 percent increase,” said Caito.

“Second, the state of New Hampshire, in order to meet their budget obligations, reduced their share of retirement contributions, reneging on their promise to school districts, and pushing those increases to local districts.

“Third,” he said, “the issue of special education needs continues to weigh heavily on school districts. In order to offset some of those drivers, we decided to defer or seek alternative funding sources for some expenses. For example, certain building repairs may be funded out of our building maintenance expendable trust fund.”

Caito said there will be some losses.

“Due to projected enrollments,” he said, “we are reducing two teaching positions. Class sizes will remain within Candia School District policy and state of New Hampshire guidelines.”

Caito also said the Spanish curriculum was eliminated in order to increase time for math and language arts. Candia Selectman Richard “Dick” Snow had not seen the letter, but said he is always open to input from residents.

“I have, in those areas of the operating budget that I am responsible for, reduced expenditures without reducing the services that the voters voted for in March” he said. “My operating budget requests for next year were, in the Parks & Recreation area, just under level funding. The operating budget requested for the cemeteries was higher, based on my desire to more properly maintain them. That number will actually also be close to level funded, based on warrant articles that I will be proposing that will more efficiently manage the cemeteries. None of these efforts, however, will affect this year’s taxes.”

“I really hope the selectmen will level-fund the budget because the citizens are so hard up for money,” said Byrd.

“We have more citizens asking for help from the Welfare Department. People simply cannot continue the increase in taxes that we’ve had.”

Byrd noted that some of her friends have property tax bills of $8,000 or $9,000. “So we need to do something to help citizens,” she said. “People should not be driven out of their homes.”

Candia’s property tax rate for the current year was just set at $19.90 per $1,000 of property value, $1 lower than last year’s rate of $20.90. For the owner of a home valued at $300,000, that means a tax bill of $5,970, $300 lower than last year.

Candia completed a full revaluation this year with the valuation coming in roughly 5 percent higher than last year. Snow pointed out that the tax rate was recently set by the Department of Revenue at a figure roughly 5 percent lower than last year.

“The actual impact on this year’s taxes for the 78 residents would depend on what happened to their individual assessments, based on the revaluation and any changes that they made on their individual properties prior to April 1,” said Snow.

Tax collector Candice Stamatelos said bills were expected to be mailed by Nov. 20, and would be due by Dec. 21.

Candia asks state to be allowed to draw from reserve fund as expenses mount

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 21:12:00 GMT

BY TOBY HENRY

Candia selectmen and members of the Budget Committee are at odds after a 2008 budget shortfall prompted officials to seek permission for an emergency expenditure from the Department of Revenue Administration.

On one hand, Budget Committee members say the fivemember Board of Selectmen failed to take adequate financial precautions after severe snowstorms in early 2008. Committee member William “Kim” Byrd said the “warning signs” were readily visible in the spring, when Road Agent Dennis Lewis warned officials that the winter storm money had already been exhausted.

“This shouldn’t have happened,” Byrd said.

But Selectman Joe Duarte said the late-year storms, particularly the devastating December ice storm, are what really “blew the budget out of the water.” On top of that, the 2008 payment on the bond for the new transfer station came in at a whopping $215,910. Although selectmen have the power to move money from one line item to another, Duarte said that in this case, there isn’t any money left to move around.

Selectmen Chairman Fred Kelley said officials “should have had a buffer” to help defray unexpected and last-minute costs, and he said the bare-bones budget put forward by the Budget Committee for 2008 left little in the way of a safety net. In an unrelated conversation in early December, Kelley had already begun to warn that the town was “almost out of money,” and he said on Jan. 5 that in the end it was the ice storm that “really killed Candia,” budget-wise.

Kelley said the town’s plan is to ask the Department of Revenue Administration -- the state entity which sets property tax rates -- if the town can draw some money from the unreserved fund balance. But he added if the town had “a buffer” of between $50,000 to $100,000, the request probably would not have been necessary.

Officials and residents said they could not recall a similar situation ever happening in Candia before, and at an emergency meeting Monday, Jan. 5, committee members and selectmen signed off on an $80,000 withdrawal request to the DRA.

Don Borror, an assistant of municipal services at the DRA, said Candia’s situation is far from unique this year.

In fact, he said there are “a small handful” of other towns pursuing similar requests to Candia’s right now, and in most of these cases, natural disasters also play a role. While Borror said he did not know about Candia’s case specifically, he said the process involves getting majority agreement from selectmen and the Budget Committee on what amount to request.

He said towns are also usually asked to provide a reason along with the request. According to law, this procedure is necessary in cases like this when a town is forced to make an expenditure in excess of the total budget approved by voters.

“And our procedure, if everything is in order along with a reasonable explanation, is that we usually approve it within a few weeks,” he said.

Selectmen said they have about $65,000 in unpaid bills, while there is less than $15,000 remaining in the 2008 general fund.

Candia recycling center bond forces tax spike as payment kicks in

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:19:00 GMT

BY TOBY HENRY

Old Candia Road resident Cheryl Carson is one of hundreds of local residents who received a property tax bill this month which is significantly higher than last year’s.

Carson, who appeared in person to pay tax collector Jane Sanders on Nov. 14, said the bill is “several hundred dollars more” than the last one she paid, and Sanders said the same situation is being faced by most of the other families in town. The tax rate is now $20.90 per $1,000 of assessed property value, an increase of $2.44 over the previous rate.

According to a breakdown of the cost on the town’s Web site, municipal taxes account for $4.40, while the school’s portion is $12.72. State tax comes to $2.69, with county tax at $1.09.

Officials questioned about the increase said the bond payment on the new recycling center was the main cause for the more than $2 boost on the tax rate. An amortization schedule for the center’s 10-year, $1.5 million bond states the 2008 payment due is $215,910, but Selectman Joe Duarte said the amount is slated to decrease each subsequent year.

In 2009, the amount due drops to $208,875 with $202,875 to be paid in 2010, and although the payment amount drops by between $5,000 to $7,000 annually, residents will not see the payments cease until the final payment of $152,250 in 2017.

Ingrid Byrd, a School Board member, said her major concern about the higher tax rate is the effect it will have on retirees and other residents who live on fixed incomes. With the addition of the recently announced 11-year-high on the national unemployment rate, Byrd said the coming months could prove to be a dire financial time for all residents.

“I’ve heard … from people whose tax went up $1,000, even $1,500,” Byrd said. “No matter where you look, people are hurting. I know of several people that had professional jobs, jobs that they worked at for 10, 15 years, and now they’re out of a job. It’s not just people in the middle income who are hurting. Now it’s people who you’d think were doing well.”

Recycling center operator Chuck Whitcher said while the center’s cost is heavy this year, the center will save the town money in the coming years. For the most part, said Whitcher, the more residents recycle, the more the town stands to make when it resells metal and other valuable commodities.

“In the long run ... we’ll be able to recycle more here, we can handle more vehicles quicker, and things are much more efficient,” he said. “Not only are we saving money, but in a lot of areas, we’ll be generating revenue.”

Ultimately, Duarte said he’s going to seek a stop-gap measure to help residents by proposing to obtain some money from the land-use change fees. Currently, 100 percent of the money -- estimated at about $100,000 annually -- is put into an account for the Conservation Commission to purchase land for open space preservation, but Duarte said he’d be willing to divert as much as 75 percent of the amount to the general fund to help residents weather the tough financial times.

Part of the issue, Duarte added, is that the lack of major business in town means Candia is forced to make almost all of its income from residential taxes. While taxes occasionally fluctuate downward depending on budget demands, Duarte said a better approach would have been to have an incremental increase each year to help prevent situations like this year’s “sticker shock.”

“What we should have been doing is increase the taxes a little each year, instead of surprising everybody like this with a $500 or $600 increase all at once,” he said.

Towns seeing spikes as tax rates are set

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 19:40:00 GMT

BY GINGER KOZLOWSKI

Tax rates are being set for the year, and some towns, like Candia, are seeing large increases.

Candia
In Candia, the new tax rate increased by $2.31 per $1,000 of property value, to $20.90, a 12 percent hike.

The new rate will result in a bill of $5,225 for the owner of a home assessed at $250,000, about $577 higher than last year.

The town portion of the rate is responsible for the bulk of the hike, going from $2.75 to $4.40, a 60 percent increase. The school portion rose from $12.12 to $12.72; the county portion from $1.08 to $1.09; and the state portion from $2.64 to $2.69.

Epsom
In Epsom, the tax rate rose from $15.14 per $1,000 of property value to $17.35, a 14.5 percent increase. The owner of a $250,000 property should expect a bill of $4,337.50.

The town portion is $2.60, county portion is $2.51, state portion is $21.5, and the local school portion if $10.09.

Bills were expected to be mailed soon, said Epsom tax collector Dawn Blackwell, with payment due by Dec. 15.

Auburn
In Auburn, the tax rate rose 85 cents per $1,000 of property value, moving from $13.71 to $14.55, a 6 percent increase. The owner of a home valued at $250,000 can expect a tax bill of $3,637.50.

The town portion of the rate rose from $1.91 to $2.26; the school portion from $8.57 to $9.09; and the county portion from 90 cents to 94 cents. The state portion of the tax rate actually decreased from $2.33 to $2.26.

Auburn tax collector Kathleen Sylvia said bills were to be mailed by Nov. 7 and are due by Dec. 10.

Pembroke
The 2008 rate rose $2.16 to $25.82, a 9 percent increase. The town portion is $5.69, down 29 cents; the school portion is $14.98, up $2.15; the state school portion is $2.44, up 3 cents; and the county portion is $2.71; up 27 cents.

At the Town Meeting in March, the Pembroke Budget Committee had predicted a 7.6 percent tax increase for the town and school operating budgets and warrant articles.

At the School District Meeting, voters restored money that would have resulted in staffing and sports team cuts, so the 9 percent increase is very close to what was predicted in March.

Allenstown
Tax rate information was not available by press time.

Middle school plans progress – Candia School Board OKs new middle school tuition plan, Auburn expected to follow suit

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 19:48:00 GMT

BY JENNIFER McDOWELL

Candia School Board members ratified the tuition agreement for the proposed Candia/Auburn middle school on Thursday, Nov. 1, after a public forum at Moore School at which the projected tax impact for the new school was presented.

Candia school board members voted 4-1 to accept the agreement. Auburn’s board will vote on Tuesday, Nov. 13.

Plans for the school have been in the works for over a year now, after both school boards pursued other measures in previous years to expand their schools and improve their educational programming.

If the vote in Auburn passes, the tuition agreement will go to the state Department of Education for review and approval to make sure it complies with all applicable laws and regulations. Members of both boards hope to get the agreement placed on the agenda for the next school board meeting in December.

At Candia’s vote in March, residents will decide whether to pass the tuition agreement. Voters will have the opportunity to further weigh in on the agreement during the deliberative session of School District Meeting in February, said Candia School Board member Ed Caito.

“We know the time line we have to be under,” Caito said at the public forum.

Should the article pass in Candia, Auburn will vote on a general obligation bond for the school of about $29.7 million to cover the capital costs plus interest for both towns. Candia’s tuition payments will pay for its portion, and Auburn will make payments on the bond itself.

The tuition agreement between the two towns offers Candia teachers first consideration for positions at the new school, protections for both towns should either pull out of the agreement before the 20-year bond period is up, and explains the governance of the proposed school.

Less an anticipated 40 percent in state aid for the project, the school is expected to cost $14.8 million for building and site costs.

Tax impact

The tax impact, based on current assessed value of homes in both towns and projected up to year six of the bond schedule, is less for both in the first year, when only one payment would be made.

In subsequent years, each town would make two payments per year.

For the first capital cost payment, projected in February of 2009, Candia’s payment amounts to $296,707, translating to a school tax increase of 80 cents per $1,000 of assessed value.

Candia residents owning homes assessed at $300,000 would see an increase of $240 in their tax bill in the first year, using those figures, which includes capital costs only. The second year accounts for the biggest increase, $2.13 per $1,000 of assessed value. That amounts to an estimated $639 for residents in $300,000 homes.

The tax impact for Auburn residents is a little less than that of Candia’s because of Auburn’s greater population and number of homes, which lessens the per household impact.

Auburn residents would see an increase of 71 cents per $1,000 of assessed value in the first year of the bond schedule. Those owning $300,000 homes will take on a total increase of $213 in the first year. In the second year, the increase jumps to $1.91 per $1,000 of assessed value, bringing the dollar increase for those in $300,000 homes to $573 per year.

Year two of the bond schedule, said School Board Chairman Karen Smith, sees the deepest impact because the bond payments for both towns are bigger in that year than in any of the others.

Costs

The tax impact numbers are based on the capital cost estimates for both towns and do not yet include Candia’s tuition, using current enrollment to calculate the percentage each town will pay.

Candia is projected to absorb 38 percent of the total project costs and Auburn 62 percent, but those figures will likely change by 2010.

Using those percentages, Candia would pay $11.3 million and Auburn $18.4 million over the 20-year bond schedule in capital costs and interest.

Tuition is not included in the projections, said SAU 15 Business Administrator Karen Lessard, because it will be incorporated into the school operating budgets for both towns.