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Avon faces a projected 4.65% tax increase as state changes cut Grand List value
Summary
Town Manager said the FY25/26 proposed budget starts with a 4.65% tax increase driven largely by state changes to motor-vehicle appraisal and lost reimbursements; Council urged public participation in upcoming budget workshops.
Town Manager presented the FY25/26 budget context and said the proposal currently reflects a 4.65% proposed tax increase driven primarily by state-level valuation changes.
He explained that a change in how motor vehicles are appraised removed roughly $16.5 million in Grand List value — a reduction that translates to about $545,000 at the current mill rate — and that separate state adjustments for disabled veterans will further reduce taxable value with no corresponding reimbursement to Avon. He added that because the town’s mill rate fell under the state’s motor-vehicle tax cap last year, Avon will not receive approximately $850,000 in reimbursement the town would have received if it had been over the cap. The manager also noted last year the town used about $1.25 million from its Unassigned Fund Balance (UAFB) that will not be a recurring revenue source for FY25/26.
Councilors thanked staff for the tight departmental budgets and encouraged residents to attend the budget workshop on Saturday to review tradeoffs and hear department presentations. “We hope residents will participate in the budget workshop to see the process and thorough thoughts that go into what is included in the budget,” Mr. Weber said.
Councilors asked for continued clarity on state impacts and potential changes to education funding; staff said additional visual slides and modeling will be included in the upcoming workshop to explain the UAFB dynamics and interest income assumptions.
