Citing high inflation, Massachusetts’ 351 cities and towns filed a report with the state legislature seeking revisions to Proposition 2 ½.
That law, enacted in 1980, protects taxpayers by limiting annual property tax increases to 2.5%.
Rather than cut back on needless spending, our cities and towns want lawmakers to eliminate the 2.5% cap on tax increases.
Instead, they propose tying any limit
either to a specific economic indicator (e.g., the Consumer Price Index) or some other locally appropriate rate.
(Can the average Massachusetts homeowner afford such a tax hike? That, of course, is not addressed in the report.)
Our municipalities are also seeking $351 million increase Unrestricted General Government Aid (UGGA).
This would amount to an additional $1 million for each city and town in the Baystate.
According to a GBH article on this issue,
Top policymakers on Beacon Hill show little to no interest in repealing Prop 2 ½. An election-year vote to allow higher property taxes could prove politically risky.
Let’s hope that’s true.