Newport
But, if approved, the amount to be raised by taxes would increase nearly 7 percent for the fiscal year beginning July 1, though county taxes are a small part of homeowners’ overall tax rate.
“The biggest reason for that increase is because we are taking less out of fund balance,” said Derek Ferland, the county’s new manager. “Last year we took $2 million from fund balance to offset taxes but this year we are proposing to take only $1 million.”
The county tax is the smallest portion of the three components that make up the tax bill for county residents. The other two are the municipal and education tax rates. In Claremont, the county tax of $2.86 per $1,000 of assessed value is less than 7 percent of the overall rate and equals about $430 in taxes on a $150,000 property. The individual tax rate impact for each of the county’s 15 communities based on the proposed budget has not been calculated.
Ferland also pointed out that for five straight years the county tax rate has either fallen or remained unchanged
“To keep the lid on taxes for that many years is remarkable,” he said.
As has been the case in the recent past, health care cost increases for county employees are a big part of the increase for next year.
“We are looking at 9 percent increase on the heels of a 23 percent increase last year,” Ferland said. “Those are two big jumps from fiscal year 2016 to 2018.
“We are continuing to look to meet our health care needs in ways that don’t penalize employee or hurt taxpayers.”
Major budget increases are for the nursing home ($707,000 or 5 percent) and the County Attorney’s Office ($144,000 or 23 percent). Ferland said the nursing home increase is mostly attributable to the wage and health insurance and for the county attorney it is for a fourth prosecutor as a result of the state’s new Felonies First program. That program, which sends felony charges straight to Superior Court rather than first going through District Court, is expected to increase the caseload in the county attorney’s office by 30 percent, Ferland said.
The sheriff’s department budget is down about $167,000 or 16 percent because for the current year there was a one-time capital expenditure to replace the department’s vehicles, Ferland said. The rest of the budget includes smaller increases and decreases across various line items.
The Executive Finance Committee is made of up five state representatives with state Rep. Sue Gottling, D-Sunapee, as the chairwoman. The committee will meet Friday at 8:30 a.m. in the first floor of the county office on Main Street in Newport. Additional meetings are June 9 and 12, also at 8:30 a.m. The full delegation will vote on the budget before the end of June.
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
