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New Hartford Tax Proposals Lower Taxes On Single Family Homes

By Jeff Cohen

May 18, 2012

Democrats on the Hartford City Council spent much of Friday afternoon trying to figure out just what to do with next year's city's budget. WNPR's Jeff Cohen reports.

The city's budget isn't yet final, but according to the latest proposals, what you think of it will depend on what kind of property you own.

Taxes on the city's 7,000 single family homes were originally going to go up about 4 percent in the mayor's budget; now they'll go slightly down. But average taxes on a four-family unit could skyrocket 65 percent. Taxes on apartment buildings will go up on average 14 percent.

Mayor Pedro Segarra faced a tough challenge to begin with -- because commercial property values tanked, he faced a ten percent deficit. Then it got worse when the legislature didn't act on bill he needed. The result? Segarra's proposed budget suddenly had a new $8 million hole.

To fix it, Segarra proposed a mix of revenue increases, spending cuts, and a tax hike to help balance the budget. Now, it's the council's turn to respond. The budget must be finalized by the end of the month.

For WNPR, I'm Jeff Cohen.