SWAMPSCOTT — The Select Board and the Board of Assessors voted at a joint meeting Wednesday to maintain the average single family tax bill at the same level as in fiscal year 2020.
Swampscott residents living in single-family homes will see their average tax bill remain at $8,999 while the average condo tax bill will increase from $5,225 to $5,508.
This stable tax bill was possible because of a vote at the November Special Town Meeting, when members approved a free cash transfer of $1.55 million to offset a tax levy increase. This was the third consecutive year the town had transferred free cash to offset the levy.
“We chose the amount of free cash to transfer strategically to keep the bill at this level,” said Assistant Town Administrator Ron Mendes at the Wednesday meeting.
If the transfer had not been approved, the average single-family tax bill would have increased to $9,279 next year, according to Mendes.
The Select Board vote selected a Residential Factor of 0.946165, shifting the town’s tax burden from its residential class to its commercial, industrial, and personal property classes at a 170 percent rate. The measure was unanimously approved.
The board also voted against adopting residential tax exemption for FY2021, and adopted a Small Commercial Exemption of 10 percent of the value of qualifying parcels.
“We really want to keep focus on Swampscott’s average single-family tax bill,” said Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald. “I understand that during this challenging economy, folks are hard-pressed.”
The Select Board has put special emphasis on reducing the taxpayer burden in recent years.
According to Select Board Chairman Peter Spellios, the average single-family tax bill had only increased by a total of $38 over the past six years. In the previous six years, from 2009 to 2015, the town’s average single-family tax bill increased by a total of $1,427, or an average annual increase of $238 per year.
“Every year since 2017, Swampscott’s average single-family tax bill has either stayed the same or dropped,” said Fitzgerald. “And that’s really unique. You won’t be able to find another community in the commonwealth who has spent as much time trying to find balance and stability.”
He emphasized that the town would still make community investments despite this focus on taxpayers.
“We can do both,” he said. “We can continue to make these public investments and also keep a steady hand on the financial impact that our taxpayers bear.”
