Budget Approved by House
Meriden legislators today backed a biennial budget package (HB 7061) that provides property tax relief to working families, protects the services that middle-class families rely on, and invests in a world-class transportation system to grow our economy.
Rep. Cathy Abercrombie said, “Throughout this legislative session, thousands of Connecticut residents called, emailed, or met with their legislators in support of a budget which protects the critical social services many families rely on. Your voices were heard. This budget restores funding to libraries, mental health services, after-school programs, and many social services.”
Beginning July 1, 2016, Meriden will receive additional state funding, mainly from state sales tax revenue that will be directed toward municipalities for property tax relief. Meriden will receive an additional $2,450,912.
The budget institutes a cap of 29.36 mills on the rate cities and towns use to levy car taxes. Since the state will cover any lost revenue to municipalities with higher mill rates, it’s a win for taxpayers and cities and towns.
“Rising property taxes are a major issue for middle-class families in Connecticut. This session, we worked hard to create a budget which provides real property tax relief for working families by bolstering state aid for every city and town,” Rep. Hilda Santiago said. “This will help relieve the property tax burden on families and small businesses right here at home.”
Facing projected deficits over the next two years, over a billion dollars of cuts have been made to the current services budget. The budget also ensures significant investments in Connecticut’s crumbling transportation infrastructure, including improvements to roads, bridges and rail.