This is part of an ongoing series of guest posts about issues in Norwalk. yourCT.com is a non-partisan site dedicated to airing all sides of a issue. That can’t happen without valuable contributions from our readers.
by Fred Wilms
This year we are starting the city budget process at a very good point. Many may recall that last year there was a great deal of controversy over the budget, especially in relation to the Board of Education. This year I believe we can avoid extreme controversy while keeping our taxes low and, at the same time, ensuring that new crime and public safety initiatives get funded.
This year our starting point on taxes is an average increase of 3.7 percent. To put this into perspective, we are starting lower than the 4.1 percent inflation rate. We are also starting at the same point where we finished the past two years: In 2006 the average tax increase was 3.6 percent, while last year it was 3.9 percent.
Why are we off to such a good start? There are two big reasons. The first is the school board is finally requesting a more fiscally responsible budget. Their 4.9 percent increase falls within the 4-5 percent spending range over the past 10 years. This goes to show that the best way the school board can reduce budget controversies is by being more fiscally responsible.
The second favorable reason is we are finally done phasing in the past revaluation. So this year there is no further tax burden shift from commercial owners to residential homeowners. This goes to show that a growing commercial tax base (such as our future 95/7, West Avenue and Wall Street redevelopment projects), could take the pressure off our residential taxpayers.
On the spending side, the proposed budget focuses on the protection of life and property. The mayor is recommending funding for three additional police officers, two new firefighters and a zoning compliance officer. With increasing concerns about crime and public safety, the new police and fire positions make a lot of sense. The new zoning compliance position will improve our quality of life by reducing the backlog of zoning violations.
Unfortunately, there are storm clouds on the horizon. The economic recession, the housing market downturn and defaults on subprime mortgages could all spill over to us at the municipal level. Fewer home sales mean less conveyance tax revenue. More homeowners going into default means less property taxes being collected. Lower interest rates mean reduced investment income. All of these trends could force property taxes to go up.
So we will not rest on our laurels. We know we have our work cut out for us. Over the next two months, the BET will go line by line through every city department. We will look for further savings and for more effective ways of doing things. Leadership starts at the top, and Mayor Moccia is leading the way by voluntarily defunding a position within his own office.
We will also continue to scrutinize the Board of Education budget closely. We have already reviewed every single page of their budget and have already submitted a list of 40 questions. Many of our questions focus on savings outside of the classroom. We have reviewed the Cambridge Report and share the concerns of many about Norwalk failing under No Child Left Behind. While there have been improvements since the last election, there are still concerns about the school board exercising proper oversight over Central Office and the transparency of the entire school budget process.
I look forward to working once again with my six dedicated colleagues on the BET. We also look forward to working with the Common Council, especially in their formation of a responsible appropriations cap. Together we can craft a budget that protects the taxpayers, while at the same time providing adequate funding to needed city initiatives.
Fred Wilms is chairman of the Norwalk Board of Estimate and Taxation
