Lawrence committee sends FY2026 property tax-classification to full council, schedules Nov. 18 public hearing

The Lawrence City Budget & Finance Committee on Monday, Oct. 27, 2025, voted to send the fiscal year 2026 property tax-classification to the full City Council with a recommendation to order a public hearing on Nov. 18, after a presentation by Chief Assessor Alexi Vega on valuation changes and the mechanics of a tax-factor shift.

Vega told the committee the city—s total taxable real estate and personal-property valuation for FY2026 is approximately $8.9 billion, a roughly 7% increase from the prior year. He gave class-specific increases of residential +7.1%, commercial +4.6%, industrial +4.1% and personal property +12.7%, saying the personal-property rise reflected new equipment reported by utility companies.

The estimate of the levy for the fiscal year is in the range of $92 million. Vega explained that Massachusetts voters— Proposition 2½ and the Department of Revenue—s certification process govern how the city sets a tax rate. The city may adopt a tax factor (the maximum discussed was 1.75) to shift a larger share of the tax burden to commercial, industrial and personal-property taxpayers without changing the total dollar amount the city raises. Vega showed examples that, under a 1.75 factor, residential rates would fall and commercial rates would rise; he cited an illustrative average single-family assessment of $479,200 and an illustrative average single-family tax bill of roughly $4,101 under that shift.

Council President Giovanni Rodriguez asked whether 1.75 was appropriate this year; Vega replied that commercial values had not risen as much as residential values and that a 1.75 factor would be reasonable to rebalance the classes. Rodriguez and other members pressed staff on levy growth and the overlay (the allowance used for anticipated abatements and exemptions). Vega said the overlay is an accounting allowance used because the city does not expect to collect 100% of billed taxes once abatements and exemptions (for veterans, seniors and other statutory exemptions) and appeals are processed. He outlined the appeals timeline: tax bills are issued Jan. 1, taxpayers have 30 days to file appeals with the assessor—s office, and the office has 90 days to respond.

During the discussion, Vega and councilors referenced different figures used at different points in the process: the net rate used for budgeting in June (which the assessor said had been reported as a net 3.58% after an assumed overlay allowance) and the full-levy calculation presented at the meeting (about 4.2%). The committee asked for clarity on the difference; Vega explained the technical difference is the treatment of the overlay allowance in budget reporting versus the full-levy recap submitted for DOR certification.

Vega asked the committee to forward the classification to the full council to order a public hearing so the city can meet Department of Revenue certification timelines and mail third-quarter tax bills before Jan. 1. The assessor gave a proposed date of Nov. 18 for the public hearing and provided a contact phone number (Assessor—s Office: (978) 620-3190) for residents with questions about valuations or senior/veteran exemptions.

Votes at a glance: - Motion to approve minutes for 07/07/2025, 09/09/2025 and 09/22/2025: moved and seconded; roll call recorded and motion carried (affirmative recorded by Council President Giovanni Rodriguez and others). - Item 4.21.25 (FY2026 property tax classification): motion to send to full City Council as a committee report to order a public hearing (proposed Nov. 18); seconded; roll call recorded as affirmative and motion carried. - Items 4.18.25 ($405,377 authorization to expend; support & incentive grants), 4.19.25 ($23,846 FY23 SORB grant, address verification), 4.20.25 ($23,846 FY24 SORB grant, address verification): motion to table these three items as a block; seconded; roll call recorded as affirmative and motion carried (items tabled). - Motion to adjourn: moved, seconded and carried.

The committee did not adopt a final tax factor at the meeting; it forwarded the classification for a full-Council public hearing where the factor would be adopted. Committee members asked staff for clearer written explanations of the overlay/abatement calculations and of the new-growth figures used in budget projections. The assessor said the office will post the presentation and contact information on the City of Lawrence website and will assist residents who have questions prior to the public hearing.

(Reporting notes: direct attributions and quotations in this article come from Budget & Finance Committee proceedings on Oct. 27, 2025. All numeric figures and examples above are drawn from the assessor—s presentation and statements to the committee; where the presenter gave multiple figures for the same line item during the discussion, the article records the figures as presented and notes the committee—s request for clarification.)