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Lakeville assessors recommend single tax rate ahead of classification hearing
Summary
The Town of Lakeville Board of Assessors voted to recommend a single tax classification rate to the select board and prepared LA-4 filing materials for the upcoming classification hearing; staff requested signatures on the LA-4 form and cautioned against submitting the package before review.
Speaker 2 (Assessor/assessment staff) told the Board of Assessors that final submittals for the town's tax classification package were being assembled and that he would "need your signatures on the LA 4," the value-tabulation page used in the classification filing. He asked members to "sign and save" the LA-4 but said he preferred to gather the full package for review before final submission.
The update preceded a brief discussion about whether to recommend a single or split tax rate. Speaker 1 (Presiding officer) said the select board is the body that ultimately adopts the tax rate and asked the assessors for a formal recommendation. Speaker 2 noted Lakeville's relatively small commercial and industrial base — "a lot of mom and pop, small commercial, property owners" — and warned that a split rate applies uniformly across commercial properties, limiting the ability to single out large companies.
Speaker 3 moved "to keep it, the single rate considering there's been no change since last year." The motion was seconded; members voted in the affirmative and Speaker 1 said, "Motion carries." The board's recommendation will be forwarded to the Board of Selectmen, which makes the final decision at the classification hearing scheduled next week.
The assessors were advised to notify and solicit input from the commercial/industrial community before any decision to change the classification structure is finalized. Speaker 2 said Jen Williams, the Bureau of Local Assessment Advisor, would review the submission if it was ready by the next day.
Next steps: staff will finalize the packet, collect signatures on the LA-4, and submit materials for review prior to the classification hearing before the select board.
