By Lauryn Katz | Community News Service
Before voters on Town Meeting Day say “yes” or “no” to proposed local and education taxes for the coming year, the numbers they see on the agenda go through a labyrinth.
On the surface, with everything going right, it seems simple. First officials look at past budgets and see where expenses exceeded previous limits. Maybe a harsh winter required more salt on the roads, or a historical town building needed repair.
Education taxes make up the majority of what Vermonters pay.
That begins when the local school board creates a budget for the following school year based on per-pupil spending.
After drafting a budget for the next fiscal year — which usually starts around October — officials put on public meetings where townspeople can ask questions and pitch initiatives they want to see their local government finance.
Deliberation and review follows, and in a perfect world the selectboard approves the draft. Then it’s up to the voters.
In reality, a lot more goes into how those percentages arrive in your mailbox, starting with your town’s grand list. It’s one of the most important documents that a town draws up, said Therese Kirby, town manager and zoning administration in Bethel.
The list describes each parcel of land in town — its location, size, and assessed value. Both municipal and state property taxes are based on the information in the list, so if officials don’t keep records up to date, it creates a gap in what buyers are willing to pay for a piece of property and the assessed value, Kirby said.
That’s why “having town-wide reappraisals is so important to keep the value of your grand list accurate,” said Kirby.
Grand lists across the state increased in value by 12% in the past year alone, according to a recent report from Vermont Public. And with the real estate market booming due to a demand for residential housing that far exceeds the state’s supply, Vermont saw a nearly 17% increase in home prices in the last year.
White River Valley residents will likely feel this increase, as about two-thirds of Vermont towns face mandatory reappraisal on homes this year. But an increase in home price or assessed value doesn’t always mean that the tax rate will increase. The budget in Bethel will go up this year, as it did last, but the tax rate will likely change very little, even with ongoing growth in the grand list, Kirby said.
In places like Bethel, an increasing tax base can absorb budget increases without individual homeowners facing proportionally higher taxes. The danger occurs when costs are increasing and the tax base is decreasing, meaning individual homeowners may have to absorb more costs.
After the grand list is squared away, officials calculate the magic number needed to be raised through taxes by taking the expenses of the town and subtracting any non-tax revenue — such as zoning permits and marriage licenses — then dividing the result by the total assessed value on the grand list.
The School Side
Education taxes make up the majority of what Vermonters pay.
That begins when the local school board creates a budget for the following school year based on per-pupil spending. The difference between the expected spending from the school and the non-tax income from grants determines how much money needs to be raised by taxes, according to a report from the Vermont Children’s Forum and the Public Assets Institute.
Each year the legislature sets a homestead education property yield — costs divided by total assessed value — and a non-residential property tax rate. Both work to fund school budgets across the state.
The school board works to approve the draft budget, then it goes to townspeople—this year on March 7.
Once the funds are collected, municipal leaders send the education property taxes to the state.
Taxpayer income also influences the complex formula.
Vermont property owners may file a homestead declaration every year, indicating whether their property is their primary residence. That declaration determines the correct tax rate that goes to the state Education Fund.
In some cases, depending on residents’ income, they can qualify for a reduction in that portion of taxes. Such tax rebates are one way Vermont tries to equalize the tax burden across different incomes.
Sometimes, the state will raise or lower the tax rates after the fact to account for when assessed property values differ from market prices. Officials call that process the Common Level of Appraisal.
The process is complex, which can turn people away from understanding how it works, said Layne Millington, superintendent of Orange Southwest School District.
“If a person can’t sit down and calculate out, using the state formulas, what they should be paying in taxes and see if it matches what they’re being charged, that’s a problem,” Millington said.
Millington had left Vermont before lawmakers passed Act 60 in 1997, which moved education funding to the state level from the local level. The act created a statewide fund to pool tax revenue from every community and dole it out.
By the time Millington returned to the state in 2017 to take over OSSD, the change was dramatic, he said.
“When you visit schools now, the facilities are all in about the same shape and in pretty good shape. And people have plenty of resources for programming,” Millington said. “That was not the case when I left.”
He remembers doing his student teaching rotations in poorer towns in Vermont, where school facilities hadn’t been upgraded in 50 years and had textbooks that were falling apart.
The Community News Service is part of the Reporting and Documentary Storytelling Program at the University of Vermont.
All town and school budgets start with wish-lists by employees and teachers. Then the administrators review the list and accept or reject the lists. Boards then review the completed requests, and warn them to the public for a vote in March. Later in the year, the legislature decides how much you will actually pay for the wishes. — the only want this will ever come under control, is for people to vote no, no, no on every budget.
Here’s an idea — get out of this echo chamber and educate the public.
But, Joy, speaking of the echo chamber and complaining endlessly – why aren’t you organizing the revolution? I have yet to see one tangible, constructive recommendation from you. How does the lamb protect itself from the multitude of wolves?
Educate me.
I have nothing to teach you, you know it all.
” I have yet to see one tangible, constructive recommendation from you.”
You’re not paying attention:
Above: “Here’s an idea — get out of this echo chamber and educate the public.”
Why should I organize a revolution? It’s not mine it’s yours.
What is the point of endlessly complaining amongst yourselves? DO something.
Liberals are not spending time complaining in echo chambers, you can be sure of that. That’s why they, not Repubs are controlling the legislature.
The Peace & Justice Center in Burlington has had hundreds (probably more like 1000s) go through their trainings and they have been at it for many decades. Those people are voting.
Rally Repub voters. Put together information packets to use in study groups at libraries, churches anywhere with space. Like I said liberals are GREAT at it.
Can yo handle that? Mr. Patronizer.
I just reviewed some of the Peace & Justice Center (PJC) blogs and publications, Joy. I haven’t reviewed many of the topics. But from what I see, there is nothing presented addressing the points we’re discussing here – School Choice, the legislative oversite and control of education, and its legal accountability.
Furthermore, there is no venue available on the PJC site for extemporaneous discussion and debate. It seems to be a typical progressive web site promoting conferences on various preconceived notions like ‘Reflections on whiteness, privilege, and white supremacy as connected to issues of racism and justice in the food system’. Another topic is on the so-called ‘gross injustices and human rights violations committed by the policing, prison, and military systems, [in which it calls] for the decarceration and demilitarization of society”.
But no online discussion… tangible or otherwise.
I do agree that many ‘Repubs’ can’t get out of their own way. They are disorganized and easily distracted by pettiness, in large part because they haven’t learned to deal with progressive sophistry. But outlets like True North and Vermont Daily Chronicle are a start. And to those ‘Repubs’ who are getting so distracted by incongruous commentary like yours, Joy, I can only say: stay focused on the matters at hand.
In that regard, I feel that I’ve done my best to understand your perspective and address your points… certainly more so than you have afforded me.
You have your issues, they have theirs.
I haven’t been involved with them for many years. What I do know is that over the decades their grassroots organizing has been extremely effective. They are not as active as they once were. Founders have aged, people have died, fights amongst themselves have done great damage. They lost financial backing and their store, which was street level on the waterfront.
Rights & Democracy (something like that), which have been very successful advocates in the legislature are more prominent now. There issue of course, are racism, policing, … like that.
Kiah Morris, ex legislature is the Director. Yuck.
These days
Joy from Burlington, the Recovering Dem- that’s her own term, voted to destroy Burlington and by extension drag the entire state of Vermont down the drain with the city.
Now she sees that this is not working very well.
So she comes over here to the right to tell us that we are not running our side as she thinks we should- and that we are not doing enough to solve the fallout of what she voted to do to people – and now she doesn’t like.
And when we ask her legitimate questions or hold her accountable for her own words, she comes unhinged on us..
Yup, Alinsky 101, clear as a bell.
I see it, I hope everyone else does.
The Organizer is now here to Organize us- who she organized against until she ‘recovered’- but yet didn’t because she’s still organizing.
You can’t make this stuff up..
Stone: Me unhinged? There’s that B coming out again.
Unlike you, I would be too embarrassed to claim that I know how anyone votes just so I can go off on them.
Apparently, you didn’t read Jay’s charge that I haven’t contributed any suggestions. Fact is, I have contributed more than any one of the posters on this site — at his request.
Not that I give a sh*t about explaining anything to you but, I live in the only ward in Burlington that consistently votes against raising school taxes.
I haven’t voted for a Dem in many years and I have never voted for a Prog. I’ve been to Marxist meetings on the UVM campus and I have never bought into it.
You see what a fool you make of yourself. No matter the ideology one lean’s towards, if that is all they listen too, than they become stupid.
If you can tolerate a suggestion without falling apart and again becoming unhinged, I recommend the Intelligence Squared (IQ2) podcast. They hold GREAT debates with opposing sides. I listen to them regularly.
Because I don’t only seek to listen to one or the other’s echo chamber, I think both Dems and Repubs make some good arguments.
I am taking a class on 17th century Europe, we are studying Marxism, Fascism and Communism. As much as I do not support all the diversity crap, next semester I am enrolling in a diversity class. Unlike you, I think it is a good thing to be open to others perspectives.
Again, it is liberal Dems holding all the legislative power — and it is you, not me, even as much as I am troubled by it, that is unhinged about it. Stop making sh*t up and do something constructive to change that.
By the way it was small, grueling decades-long grassroots activism – one community education class at a time that got them there.
I can recall too sensible statements I’ve read here. 1. I admit the Repubs are in a rut and 2. we need to think outside of the box. Neither of them came from you.
YOU absolutely make sh*t up on here ALL the time. You’re a pathetic nasty B.
Re: Apparently, you didn’t read Jay’s charge that I haven’t contributed any suggestions. Fact is, I have contributed more than any one of the posters on this site — at his request.
Sorry, Joy. I must have missed your submittals. Please repost.
I’m not disagreeing with anything said here.
When you organize the revolution instead of just endlessly complain, I’ll be there with bells on.
The question should be “What are you getting out of your tax rate in Vermont?”
I always vote no on spending issues regardless of what there for. 99% of the time it’s not in my benefit to vote yes. I live on a dirt road, have my own well and sewer and my kids are in their 30’s. I need nothing they offer and don’t support more flatlanders moving here.
Waste, fraud, over billing, corruption, payoffs to lobbyists, special deals for crony capitalists, and extra benefits for those non profits…..that shouldn’t be getting tax money.
Oh and how could I forget Grant Money? The biggest swindle in the state supporting ideas nobody, NOBODY, could get passed by vote or find any one stupid enough to spend their own money on it.
Oh, but it’s free they say.
Don’t forget the Studies Neil.. lots of studying- but no seeing.
Again: Education law is complicated – by design. Its legislative development is reflected in Saul Alinsky’s RULE 3: “Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy.”
In other words, make it complicated so no one can make reasonable investment decisions. For example, Article 9 of the VT Constitution says: “previous to any law being made to raise a tax, the purpose for which it is to be raised ought to appear evident to the Legislature to be of more service to community than the money would be if not collected.’ – Well, good luck with that.
What Vermonters must decide, because their legislators, school, and municipal administrators don’t, is whether or not they are receiving the best return on their investment – i.e., their tax payments.
Typically, local municipal and fire district returns are reasonable. But they only cover about 20% of the paid-in-tax investment. Eighty percent is the education tax. And this is where the rubber meets the road.
As the VT Constitution puts it, it’s a cost/benefit ratio. Do I get a dollar’s worth of service for every dollar paid in?
When it comes to education, it’s a no brainer – literally. As I’ve pointed out over and again, not only are education costs exorbitant, the returns are embarrassingly poor. Again, in my district, real per-pupil spending is more than $26,000 per student – more than Castleton State’s tuition, room & board, and various fees. For that, 60% of our students don’t meet minimum grade level standards in Reading, Writing, Math, or Science. And still, 90% of them graduate.
In comparison, our School Choice 7th & 8TH graders receive a little more than $17,000 in a tuition voucher to attend alternate independent schools. And it’s the most popular education program in the district.
So how does the legislature react to this discrepancy? With the support of the various education special interest groups, and they are legion, including the gorilla in the room – the VT NEA teacher’s union, the legislature is doing everything it can to destroy the competition. It is nothing short of a breach in Sherman Antitrust law. We are experiencing ‘The Gilded Age’ of public education tyranny.
This article – What Goes Into Your Tax Rate in Vermont – is a continued attempt to divert readers from the dystopian reality that is today so obvious. Unfortunately, judging by the responses I see to these disclosures, it’s still not obvious enough.
They deliberately create a system designed to lose people in the process..
Just as many legal matters are designed to punish you in the process (you may as well say this is the case for Education also).
It’s a weaponized system used against the very people that pay for it.
What can we do to not allow them to steal our tax dollars to fund these schools?
People should read a whole lot more of our history.
Tax revolts were common.. when people were not happy- they didn’t pay their taxes and there was a whole lot of this!
Counties and towns seeking to secede over these matters was not unusual at all.
THIS is why they now steal them from us.
Perhaps secessions should be back on the table again -and lets get it done this time.
Education fails to recognize that they are working for us, creating a product for us.
And if we could stop paying them when we are dissatisfied, I bet a whole lot would be different. There is almost no incentive at all for them to do better and this right here is what a whole lot of the problem is.
Perhaps that is what we need to figure out how to do- how to not pay these people.
Yes Jay, it is time to think out of the box.
#taxationistheft
Jay that is a wonderful analogy: “We are experiencing the ‘Gilded Age’ of Public Education Tyranny”
You should write us an article with that title explaining this..
This is why I say until we find a way to defund this- it’s not going to end.