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Keene officials outline FY27 revenue picture and explain "no-new-revenue" tax-rate impact
Summary
City manager and finance staff told council the CAD-determined no-new-revenue tax rate is 0.810641, down from the current rate 0.828978; staff projected roughly $19.7M in new taxable value and a $761,600 sales-tax forecast tied to new retailers.
City Manager Jonathan Seitz and the finance team led the council through a revenue-focused budget workshop on Aug. 6 that explained the state-calculated “no-new-revenue” tax rate and the city’s revenue assumptions for fiscal year 2027. Seitz told the council the CAD-determined no-new-revenue rate for Keene is 0.810641 compared with the current rate of 0.828978, a difference of about 0.018337.
Jonathan Seitz explained the rule’s meaning: “The no new revenue rate based on, on their numbers on CAD, is 0.810641,” and stressed that the measure compares revenue collected from the same pool of properties as the prior year rather than guaranteeing every homeowner’s tax bill will be unchanged. Finance Director Lam reviewed revenue composition and said property tax currently accounts for roughly 49% of the city’s general-fund revenue while sales tax was about 10% of the mix.
Lam presented figures showing taxable value rose to about $859.1 million (a reported 7% increase) and that new value added this year was approximately $19.7 million — a $6 million jump from last year. Lam projected sales tax revenue for the coming fiscal year at $761,600 and tied that to several new retailers and industrial activity the city expects will begin contributing in late 2026 and into 2027.
Council members asked about adoption timing and noted the legal steps; staff clarified the city is required to publish and adopt the no-new-revenue rate but cannot officially set a final tax rate until after budget adoption.
