CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE
WEEKLY MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor Rines, Councilors and Department Heads
FROM: Jeffrey Kobrock, City Manager
DATE: January 14, 2005
RE: Weekly Memo
Meetings for the Week of January 17, 2005
Safety Comm. Tues., Jan. 18, 10:00 am, City Hall
Appeals Board Tues., Jan. 18, 5:30 pm, City Hall
Historic Preservation Tues., Jan. 18, 6:30 pm, City Hall
Planning Board Wed., Jan. 19, 6:00 pm, City Hall
Tax Reform
There will clearly be significant changes in the funding of local services and
education, but exactly what those changes will continue to be discussed by the
Legislature. Currently a spending cap, increased Homestead exemptions
without full reimbursement and a new education funding model, “Essential
Programs and Services” (EPS) are major items on the horizon. However, the
proposals are far-reaching and complex, with four Constitutional amendments.
EPS is an entirely new approach to K-12 education funding that estimates the
generic (statewide, not local) cost per student and bases state support on that
cost per student. The current Homestead proposal could be very costly to
municipalities, as the state reimbursement to municipalities’ drops from 100%
to 50%, while the value of the exemption rises. There is an effort to shift some
of that cost, but its likelihood of success and effectiveness seems questionable.
A revenue sharing provision that recognizes the high tax burden of service
center communities may provide a little relief for municipalities like Gardiner.
This legislation has moved very quickly and that pace is likely to continue, as an
effort is made to address the tax reform issue and then move on to the other
business awaiting the Legislative session.
Council Schedule
We will meet on January 27 for a regular business meeting and workshop on
Tax Increment Financing. On February 3 our auditor Kathy Tyson will join us
to present the FY 04 Audit and discuss some associated issues.
In this packet
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