Berlin tax increase hardly guaranteed

Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall’s proposal to add 1.25 cents to the town’s property tax rate suggests the town’s finances, constrained as they are by the slow-to-moderate growth of its assessable base, are headed toward red ink territory without an increase in revenue.

That would be so … but only if the proposed expense budget emerges from the approval process with no changes. That doesn’t seem likely, especially if the Town Council and the public, for that matter, strike the word “deficit” from their vocabulary.

Although “deficit” is usually employed to describe the difference when expenses exceed income, it isn’t applicable in this case, because no money has been collected or spent at far as the FY27 budget is concerned. It’s all conjecture at this point.

What the town has currently in this stage of the budgeting balancing act is a variance between predicted income based on current circumstances and what the various departments want to spend.

Essentially, the proposed budget shows that government wants to spend about $412,000 more than it expects to take in without an increase in the tax rate. It’s a snapshot in time.

Again, this presumes that the council shrugs its shoulders, says “Oh well,” and accepts this financial package as presented. But even if a month from now that is what the council chooses to do, it still has plenty of time to sift through and separate the “needs” from the “wants” and see more precisely where they are financially and whether any kind of tax increase is warranted.

They already have a head start because the anticipated increase in health insurance costs turned out to be about half the projected amount, making a significant dent in the proposed expense budget.

So rather than view this tax increase, income shortfall and spending plan as faits accomplis, Berlin residents and property owners should wait and see what the council can do.