Tag: Hartford Courant

Opinion: The Democrats are still taxing their way out of Connecticut’s budget problems

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.courant.com/opinion/op-ed/hc-op-dem-budget-more-taxes-20210221-sjv6nz4kqffu3hrdrukk7lwcce-story.html

Excerpt:

Lamont’s budget does nothing to address the fact that Connecticut has some of the highest property taxes in the country. This massive tax burden hurts young families looking to settle down and grow; it hurts small businesses that have already been crushed by the pandemic; and it pushes seniors to find greener and cheaper pastures for retirement. The average Connecticut homeowner pays an astounding $5,327 per year — the highest property tax rate in New England. This puts us at a competitive disadvantage when our neighbors in New York and Massachusetts have more affordable property tax rates.

Nor does the governor do anything to address the structural budget deficits looming just over the hill. Instead, he reminds us we have a well-funded rainy-day fund and friends in Washington to bail us out. When your strategy is to drain your reserves and count on a global pandemic, you, in fact, have no strategy.

Author(s): Themis Klarides

Publication Date: 21 February 2021

Publication Site: Hartford Courant

Homeowners in these 10 towns would pay the most under a proposed Connecticut ‘mansion tax’

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.courant.com/politics/hc-pol-mansion-tax-towns-20210127-vn3vkw7hfrg6lngynndiwe5kzi-story.html

Excerpt:

A proposed statewide property tax on homes valued at $430,000 or higher would be largely paid by homeowners along Connecticut’s Gold Coast, with Greenwich accounting for more than 25% of all the new revenue, according to legislative estimates.

But the analysis prepared by legislative staff shows that some homeowners in smaller or less well-heeled towns like Manchester or Putnam, would also be on the hook for the new fee, though contributing far less to the estimated $75 million that would be raised annually than their Fairfield County counterparts.

Author: Russell Blair

Publication Date:

Publication Site: Hartford Courant