Tax Rates For FY15 Approved by Selectmen

By Les Masterson and Dan Libon

The homeowner of the average Foxboro single-family home may pay another $113 in property taxes next year after the Board of Selectmen approved the fiscal year 2015 tax rate on Tuesday.

The selectmen approved the tax rate of $14.98 per $1,000 accessed value for residents and $17.09 for businesses. The tax rate still needs to be certified before it becomes official.

Taking into account the average single-family home value, the average residential tax bill would be $5,285 next year. Businesses will pay an average of $10,409.19.

In a comparison of fiscal year 2013 data to 15 nearby towns, Finance Director Randy Scollins said that Foxboro' came in under the average for total valuation, total single family parcels, and slightly under the average for a single family tax bill.

A Split Tax Rate

Once again, the selectmen also agreed to keep the commercial and industrial tax rate higher than the residential rate. Each year, the selectmen have to decide whether to use a flat tax rate for residential and commercial/industrial or have a split rate in which businesses pay a higher tax rate.

This year, residents will pay 73.46 percent of the tax burden while businesses will pay 26.54 percent. The burden remains very similar to last year’s percentages. 

Selectman Ginny Coppola, who normally is opposed to the split rate, voiced her support for the rates.

“I’m not a proponent of split tax rates. However, I think predicability is a very important issue here,” Coppola said.

The board also believed it would not be fair to raise the resident’s proportion of the tax burden. 

The selectmen voted 4-1 on the tax rate with Selectman Jim DeVellis voting against the rates. DeVellis voiced his support for a flat rate, something that may come back down the road.

“I would like to inch it back but one more year it’s going to have to wait before I move on that,” Chairman Mark Sullivan said.