JAY – The select board approved a mil rate jump of $1.75 to total $15.75 per $1,000 worth of property at a special meeting Tuesday afternoon.
The decision came after the latest appraisal of the Verso Mill in Jay fell by $223 million from a total valuation last year of $815 million to this year’s appraisal of $592 million. The 2013 tax rate was $14 per $1,000 worth of property and in 2012 was $13.75.
Of the town’s total net needed to raise through taxation at $13,887,860 to pay for municipal operations, which is $500,000 lower than last year, the school district and county shares and the two tax increment financing agreements with Verso, the paper mill total tax bill will be $8,478.642. Last year the mill paid $9,009,368 after receiving $2,406,244 in TIF funding used to upgrade the mill. This year, $845,426 in TIF funding will be available for the mill.
To help offset the much lower Verso tax contribution this year, approved was taking $750,000 out of the town’s undesignated fund balance.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the selectboard was given three choices for setting the tax rate by Paul Binette, an assessor of O’Donnell Associates for the town of Jay. The minimum mil rate needed to balance the books was $15.60 per $1,000 of taxable property. Selectpersons were also given $15.70 or $15.75.
Select Chair Stephen McCourt made a motion to set it at the minimum recommendation of $15.60, but that died for lack of a second.
Selectperson Timothy DeMillo prefaced his recommendation with, “everybody wants assurances it won’t get any worse.” But, he noted that with negotiations underway for Verso to acquire NewPage paper company in a transaction valued at $1.4 billion, everything is uncertain.
“There’s no guarantee that mill will be there after the negotiations. Six months down the road, will it be the same,” he asked. DeMillo then made a motion to set it at $15.75. The board voted 4-1, with McCourt opposed, to approve $15.75 mil rate.
There was some disappointment voiced at the late arrival of the paper mill’s latest appraisal figures.
Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere was anxious to get the final word from the town’s consultants on the mill’s appraisal so the tax rate could be set by the board and the bills could go out to taxpayers. She said after the meeting the bills will now go out next week.
The first of two tax payments is due on Oct 1 and the second on April 1.
2.4 million tax dollars for updates last year and the mill’s valuation dropped over 25%? How does that happen? Hard working people will have to subsidize the giant corporation that controls the town. But the bully gets his way or else….
After reading this and the article in the Lewiston sun journal I am a bit perplexed when one of the selectmen said our town budget was bare bones! I think if we all look around at surrounding towns and see budgets of 2 and 3 million we are most certainly not at bare bones! Livermore Falls employs a third of what Jay employs on their highway crew and that is also true for our town office. It is time for the towns people to start saying our children need to come first stop always putting the budget woes on the school district!
That’s a 12.5% increase in the mill rate, so far.
Has anyone gotten a raise in their pay of 12.5%? That would include pay and benefits.
We shut our dispatch to save money, the county spends more. We don’t pave our roads, reduce town costs, limit pay increases and services and the school spends more with negligible results.
On and on this scenario plays out.
When and how will the towns have better control of the quasi state entities that bleed us out?
Just pondering such things.
Have yee any possible solutions?