The Democrats-"Less Than One Mill Increase Over Two Budgets". Sounds Good Right? Too Bad They Only Gave You Half The Equation.

I was reading Rocky Hill Life the other day and noticed the Democrat's half page ad for the election. A statement in bold touted a less than a one mill increase over two budgets. That part may be true, but unfortunately they only gave you half the equation.

For anyone not familiar with the mill rate and how your taxes are calculated, here's a simple explanation. All property in Rocky Hill is assessed a value. That value is determined by an assessor that personally appraises your home. The value (or percentage of it) is then multiplied by the mill rate number to determine your tax liability.

In the 2008-2009 tax year there was a town wide revaluation of all properties in the peak of the housing market. For instance, my home at 568 Old Main Street jumped from a tax assessment of $121,900 to $190,610 meaning a 56.4% jump in evaluation. Doing the math this worked out to a 22.6% tax increase for the 2009 tax year.

So on the surface, the "less than one mill" statement may sound good, but it doesn't tell the whole story. The truth is that the Democrats in power now (and were in power during this revaluation) could have adjusted the mill rate downward to reflect the increased evaluation and kept taxes at their current level but they chose not to. What many families received was a tax increase of 20% or more.

To see how much more you paid in 2009 taxes. Click this link and enter your address.

We just can't afford any more fuzzy math and half truths in town. The people who touted a "less than one mill increase" are the same ones who orchestrated one of the biggest tax increases in Rocky Hill's history. Going forward, we need people on the council who offer "common sense leadership" and honesty with Rocky Hill residents..

This election you have a choice to put some new faces on the council and shake up the status quo. We cannot afford more tax increases like the one in 2009.

I promise straightforward leadership you can trust. Please make sure to vote for change November 8th.

Jeff Murray