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Hamden council member Eric Jarvey explains mill-rate mechanics to RSU 22 committee
Summary
Guest presenter Eric Jarvey walked the committee through how municipal mill rates are calculated, how assessed-value changes and taxing-authority choices interact, and what options (exemptions, deferrals) taxpayers can use to manage their burdens; his examples helped frame the committee's carry-forward debate.
Eric Jarvey, a third-term Hamden council member, presented a plain-language primer on how mill rates are calculated and how shifts in assessed value and taxing-authority decisions can affect taxpayers.
Jarvey said the mill rate is driven by the total amount to be raised (the sum of RSU 22’s share, county obligations and municipal budgets) divided by assessed property value. He used four simple scenarios to show how a rise in valuations does not always lower tax bills if the taxing authority elects to keep the mill rate steady.
"It's calculated by dividing the municipality's total tax levy requirement... that which comes from RSU 22, that which comes from the county, and then what the municipal budget comes up within each of our four communities," Jarvey said, describing the three components that determine the tax burden.
He stressed that state-level changes and county budgets (he cited pressure from Penobscot County's jail budget) can materially affect local taxes. Jarvey also outlined homeowner options that can reduce local bills, including homestead and veterans’ exemptions and a property-tax deferral program for eligible seniors.
Jarvey's presentation framed committee members’ subsequent debate about how much carry-forward money to use in FY27: whether to return money to taxpayers now as a modest reduction or preserve reserves for future capital needs.
