ADDISON — Addison’s 2018-2019 property tax rates will increase taxes for homeowners by 4 percent and for owners of commercial and rental property or second homes by about 10.3 percent.
Higher town spending is pushing the municipal portion of the rate up by any noticeable amount for the first time in several years.
The municipal portion of Addison’s tax rate is rising by 3.04 cents, or about 7.5 percent, to 43.53 cents per $100 of assessed value, including a small amount to account for a tax break offered to disabled veterans. As well as modest increases in administrative and highway spending, Addison also bought a new truck.
The homestead school tax rate that applies to Addison homeowners is increasing by 4.82 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $1.5457.
Despite that increase that rate remains more than 8 cents lower than the Addison’s 2016-2017 school tax rate because it follows a school-tax-rate decrease of more than 13 cents in 2017-2018.
In all, the new property tax rate for Addison homeowners is up by 7.86 cents to $1.8959. That figure remains about 4.4 cents lower than the 2016-2017 rate.
Still, it translates to an increase for 2018-2019 of almost $79 per $100,000 of assessed value to residential taxpayers who pay on the full value of their property. Residents who pay based on their incomes are likely to receive prebates for a portion of their school tax bills. About two-thirds of county residents receive prebates.
Due to a data mistake at the Vermont Department of Taxes many residential taxpayers around the state who typically do not pay taxes on the full value of their property did not receive tax bills reflecting that status. State officials have pledged to send towns corrected information by Aug. 1, according to local officials, after which new bills can be mailed out.
Voter-approved Addison Northwest School District unification is knocking 8 cents off tax bills in Addison and other ANWSD communities this fiscal year. The state offered that tax break as a benefit to districts that supported consolidation.
Because of declining ANSWD enrollment district officials had projected higher tax bills even with a level budget. But the Legislature voted to use $20.4 million from a General Fund surplus to offset local residential property taxes this year.
However, Addison’s non-residential rate rose more sharply because that same legislation called for a 4.5-cent hike in non-residential rates.
The town’s non-residential rate increased by about 7.6 cents to 1.4818, which combined with the municipal levy moved the overall rate to $1.9171.
That combined increase of 10.33 cents means about $103 of additional taxes per $100,000 of assessed non-residential value.
Unlike residential taxpayers, Addison’s non-residential property owners will be paying more than two years ago as Vermont’s commercial school tax rate has increased. In 2016-2017 the non-residential rate was $1.7958; in 2018-2019 it is about 12 cents higher.