a must watch...Framingham's financial picture
http://207.172.210.8:5002/CablecastPublicSite/show/2211?channel=1
Mary Ellen starts her presentation at 8:35 on the water rates.
From the Patch:
Framingham business and property owners may be in store for more than a decade of annual increases, according to officials, after the water and sewer department ran into a deficit this year.
During Mayor Yvonne Spicer's weekly community hour on Tuesday, city Chief Financial Officer Mary Ellen Kelly gave an overview of structural deficit problems in Framingham's water and sewer funds, and possible solutions to them.
Kelly described two key problems that came together to create a $1.5 million deficit in fiscal year 2020: In recent years, Framingham has been using the water and sewer department's yearly surplus to offset rate hikes. There was no rate hike in 2020, and increases in previous years have been between 2 and 4 percent. When the pandemic hit, businesses shut down, severely cutting into water and sewer revenue, leaving the department in a deficit — and with no savings to cover it.
"So, we come to a point where we come to a pandemic, and we're not as resilient in the water and sewer fund as we are in the general fund," Kelly said during the community hour.
Framingham is also projecting a $2 million water and sewer fund deficit in fiscal year 2021. Adding the deficits between fiscal years 2020 and 2021, the city is on the hook for $3.5 million, and the state is requiring $2.5 million to be paid off this year.
Along with items like refinancing debt and updating the rate structure, rate increases will likely be necessary to keep the water and sewer fund from going into negative territory in the future, Kelly said.
Spicer's administration told a City Council subcommittee on Jan. 21 that a 12 percent rate hike — about $25 per quarter for the average user — may be necessary starting in July. Kelly said Tuesday residents could expect increases between 1 and 4 percent between July 2023 and 2032.
Complicating the matter, the state revenue department will not certify Framingham's 2021 tax rate until the $2.5 million water and sewer fund deficit is resolved. Spicer and the City Council have clashed over a solution so far, preventing tax bills from being sent.
Spicer wants the Council to use free cash reserves to pay off the $2.5 million that's due this year. Councilors have balked at that solution since Framingham already spent $6.2 million in free cash to plug holes in the general fund, leaving reserves at around $8.2 million. If elected officials do not reach a solution, the state will add the deficit to the tax bills, which means property owners will pay about $84 more on average.
The Council will continue discussions on a fix for the short and long-term water and sewer deficits at a future Finance Subcommittee meeting.
posted by Jim Pillsbury @ 10:41 AM
11 Comments
11 Comments:
Wait a minute. The state thinks we are in such bad shape they won't allow tax bills to go out until we resolve this issue? Has that ever happened in Framingham before? How often has it happened, if ever, in other MW Communitites? Sounds to me like the hen house (those hens being tax payers) needs someone to be watching the hens (those hens being CFO and mayor)
These are the increases we know are coming over the next 10 years but just like this one is a surprise there will be other surprises. I have lived in Framingham for more than 40 years but am going to have to leave my home because of the poor management of this city resulting in the property taxes being higher than I can afford. This is what happens when you elect a Mayor with absolutely no experience managing an enormous budget
Jim what can we as taxpayers do to stop the city from passing all their mistakes on to the backs of the taxpayers? The mayor is useless, the CFO is incompetent, and the district councilors are clueless so what can we taxpayers do?
Here is what we can do. Elect new councilors who are willing to work to resolve problems instead of just looking to point fingers, elect a new mayor who knows what they are doing, and who will find a qualified CFO. Other than that we are screwed.
No one could have seen the pandemic coming, so no fault there, but I do see fault in the administration not looking at all areas that would be impacted once the pandemic was here. Budgets were submitted and approved after the pandemic started, so no excuse for not doing that last spring when we should have been able to see this, especially given we already bailed this fund out last budget season. Poor management by all involved and that includes the mayor and the district councilors. I have to add that I have been pretty amazed at the performance of Councilor Stewart-Morales who claims to be an accountant. He is too busy backing the mayor to put on his accountant hat and look at the picture. I have to say that he is not an accountant I would want handling my finances.
It is a budgeting error, and a big one. On top of the Fuller School funding and the new CPA funding we are going to all be priced right out of living in Framingham. So much for the mayor's campaign promise that she values seniors.
$100 estimated increase in water bills for the year, plus Fuller plus CPA adds up, but I want to know why the tax bills are held up I suspect that the property tax bills could go up a lot more than we think using the increases we did not use in prior years. Anyone know what % is the maximun this years property taxes can go up?
Come on guys. This was an issue before we had a mayor. Ask the former selectmen about ignoring these issues for years
the above poster makes a very good point. This water deficit has been accumulating for years and only now, since the decrease in water use does this issue appear. None of the past elected leaders wanted to raise water rates when we should have. Instead they used savings to keep water rates from increasing.
Property taxes may go up as much as 3.5% for the next few years, with 2.5% as the cap and the city has some excess levy from years past.
Also, you can pay you tax bill now... and pay the difference when you get the bill later.
Where do I get my tax bill to pay now if I want to do that?
you can call the Treasurers office or send a check (make sure your address is on the check and if you pay by credit card on-line, there's a small handling fee to:
Treasurer / Collector
Physical Address
150 Concord Street
Room 111
Framingham, MA 01702
Phone: 508-532-5430
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home