Fair Taxes – I'll give you what you are paying for!
High property taxes affect all of our communities negatively, causing sprawl in rural areas and inordinately high taxes in cities. We have to address this problem on both the State and local levels.
"Recent studies show, without exception, that residential development costs a town more money in terms of added services than the property provides the town in real estate taxes." (Green Valley Institute Fact Sheet #2) This is because public education is the fastest-growing expense in local budgets but it leans heavily on the slowest-growing source of revenue: property taxes. Connecticut's public education system is more reliant on property tax than any other State in the Union. Windham is a crossroads, the regional center, but we can not shoulder the region's education and service expenses alone.
I will partner with other towns and city leaders to pressure State legislators to employ a diverse tax system balanced among income, sales and property taxes. We will then fairly share our tax burden and support good development practices, like open space in rural areas and housing development in cities.
In addition, the state PILOT Fund reimbursement is entirely inadequate. ECSU, Windham Hospital and the Housing Authority properties are paying far less in taxes than the same property used for private residential or business would pay. And neighboring towns receive much greater PILOT payments for State properties due to special legislation and the fact that our Town officials submit the application for PILOT fund reimbursement based on the Windham tax rate, rather than the Willimantic Service District Tax Rate, where most of the properties are located. It's time to renegotiate our PILOT funding.
I will join with other city leaders and our legislators to aggressively fight the grossly inequitable PILOT reimbursement and the reliance on local property taxes at the State level. We do have a plan in-place and many allies and organizations are presently working on this.
Windham residents have big hearts and have taken care of our region's population for many years. And the city should be the service center for our region. But when worthwhile charitable organizations are exempted from paying property taxes, the entire tax burden falls on Willimantic taxpayers…with a ripple effect on Windham's taxes. When an organization provides a regional service, Windham should collect tax revenue. Once again, we are paying much more than our fair share of taxes.
Local taxes must change, too. Taxes and fees should be tied to the services required, and used to discourage blight and overcrowding, not reward them. Currently, increased tax assessments discourage owners or landlords from making improvements to their properties. Instead, taxes and fines should be levied on blighted properties.
Another backwards tax practice is that rental properties are taxed at a much lower rate than single-family households. The middle class homeowner then bears an unfair tax burden. For example, a 4500-square foot house with five apartments with 2-3 bedrooms per unit and children in the schools currently pays less tax than a 1600-square foot, 2-bedroom home with no children.
Garbage service should be tied to the amount of garbage that is produced. People who recycle and conserve will reap the rewards of lower fees.
Windham badly needs a thorough fiscal analysis of our current zoning regulations to analyze what will happen if every property that is zoned for residential is built out. We will learn that we are headed towards higher and higher taxes. We need an immediate moratorium on housing until we establish a clear, fiscally sound, direction. I will work hard to increase the grand list by making zoning changes which will bring industry and retail businesses into Windham.
If these issues are important to you, I ask for your vote this November so I can take action on them.
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