The Smithfield Times will be taking a different approach to Smithfield Town Council candidate questionnaires this year. Rather than sending a list of questions and publishing all questions and responses in the same print edition and online, the Times will send the candidates a single question once per week.

There will be 12 questions in total, with up to 250 words to respond to each, through Oct. 23. For the ninth week, we asked, “Did the Town Council make the right decision in February by voting to set a real estate tax rate of 16 cents per $100 in assessed value, up from the 14-cent rate set eight months earlier? Why or why not?”

• Eighth week, Sept. 25: Should the mayor be directly elected by the people? Why or why not?
• Seventh week, Sept. 18: Should the Town Council accept and match Joseph Luter III’s $6 million gift to the town and agree to meet its conditions? Why or why not?
• Sixth week, Sept. 11: How big of a priority should the town make completing its 1-mile share of the Park-to-Park bicycle and pedestrian trail proposed to extend from Nike Park to Windsor Castle Park?
• Fifth week, Sept. 4: What criteria will you use when deciding whether to approve future residential development?
• Fourth week, Aug. 28: What, if anything, can the Town Council do to be more transparent with citizens?
• Third week, Aug. 21: Should Smithfield move its farmers market to the Grange at 10Main? Why or why not?
• Second week, Aug. 14: What is one challenge or opportunity for the town that has not received enough attention? Why is it important?
• First week, Aug. 7: What will be your top priority if elected?

 

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Mary Ellen Bebermeyer

No, I don’t think the Town Council should have raised the tax rate from 14 to 16 cents after it was set eight months prior. It essentially was a double tax increase in a very short time for residents who had just seen their tax bills go up because of the increased housing reassessment; their taxes went up due to the reassessment and then again when the rate went from 14 cents to 16 cents (per $100 in assessed value).

Increasing reassessments and taxes over such a short time span makes it hard for families to budget and plan for their expenses. While the town was raising taxes, residents were also facing higher prices at the grocery store, as well as gas, clothing and other daily necessities.

I appreciate how the town has managed the money it has. We should be saving money for capital improvements, infrastructure needs, and competitive salaries, but we must always remember this is not the town’s money, it is taxpayer money. And who is best to decide how to spend it? Taxpayers.

Citizens should keep money they earn, not pay extra taxes to fill up the town’s bank account.

In the future, I would be very leery of voting for tax increases unless there was a clear plan of what that tax money would be used for, and all budget options were explored.

 

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Jim Collins

As far as raising the tax rate set at 14 cents, yes, the decision to increase it was correct. That rate would have been worse for the Town’s budget since the revenue neutral rate needed to offset the increased property assessments was actually higher at 14.8 cents. That means to balance the Town’s budget at 14 cents, a large withdrawal from the reserves would be required to fill the shortfall.

However, I voted no to setting the real estate tax rate at 16 cents per $100 of assessed value. It will always be difficult for me to support any tax increase that will raise funds beyond the Town’s need. The increase in salaries for the Town employees was vitally important. Those increases were fully funded at any of the rates considered and should not have been infused into this conversation. My decision during the discussions on the rate came down to the fact that raising it to 16 cents would deposit about $260K into our reserves. At the time, our reserves were 128% of our FY23 general fund expenses. Our Town is in a great financial position and although we should not consider any decision to jeopardize that, I also believe that we should avoid tax decisions that intentionally add to our reserves.

 

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Darren Cutler

Council made the decision they felt was correct, as I understand, to keep wages for Town employees competitive and retain their corporate knowledge, which is important.  Transparency with tax management is something that must accompany rate decisions, and Councilman Smith was transparent about the rationale behind it.

Smithfield may be in a better position financially than some small localities, but that is not a promise of future security.  With the nest egg Smithfield has developed I believe a near revenue neutral tax rate accompanied by a balanced budget is desirable.  I would prefer to see tax payments remain stable between assessments, avoiding tax whiplash for citizens, as tax revenue will automatically have the opportunity to increase with rising property values.  

In times of economic prosperity, I think it is important for the Council to invest that prosperity back into planned capital improvement projects citizen’s desire or seek a tax reduction if already funded.  Likewise in the event of an economic downturn it will be important to look at all available options prior to seeking a tax increase in the event lost revenue leads to a deficit, to maintain stability for citizens.

Finally, with transparency in government as a core part of my platform, tax changes must be accompanied by clarity and reasoning that Council communicates to the taxpayers, with opportunity for citizen feedback.  This must be followed by use of revenue for the reasons communicated, not spent on beautifying development property, or public-private-partnership ventures with wealthy individuals.

 

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Raynard Gibbs

When asked whether the Town Council made the right decision in February by raising the real estate tax rate, I believe it’s essential to prioritize fiscal responsibility for our community. I voted for the increase to ensure our Town staff receive competitive salaries and to address pay disparities. A quick look at salaries in neighboring jurisdictions shows that a raise was justified, given the quality and responsive services we enjoy. Furthermore, raising the tax during an assessment year adds another layer of justification, reinforcing our commitment to support essential services and personnel.

 

 

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William Harris

People who describe me as fiscally conservative are correct. I believe the money town council has at its disposal, raised primarily through the taxing of the citizens, should be spent on projects and services that directly benefit the taxpayers. Council should establish a tax rate that generates enough revenue annually to meet its obligations to provide high quality services to the taxpayers; to finance planned capital improvement projects; and maintain a reserve for unplanned expenses, and emergencies. Tax increases should occur only when there is a specific, demonstrable economic need and the public has had an opportunity to provide input.

I followed council’s deliberations regarding the two cents tax rate increase closely. Proponents of the increase argued that town employees’ salaries, especially our public works employees, were not competitive with the market in surrounding areas and that if we wanted to keep our staff here in Smithfield, we needed to generate the revenue necessary to finance pay raises. All members of council eventually agreed it was necessary to increase salaries, but opinion was divided over how much a tax increase was necessary. The original motion called for a three cents increase but after deliberation, council settled on the two cents increase now in place. I understand the reason for the increase, raises for our public works employees were long overdue, but as a council member, I would have considered the possibility of using reserves as an alternative to raising taxes to fund pay increases, especially during these difficult economic times.

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Michael G. Smith

I was an advocate for the 2 cent real estate tax increase. My position is that we must continually evaluate the town’s fiscal needs. The rising cost of materials needed to keep our public works department intact and to keep our water and sewer systems operational has been significant. Additionally, the only way that Smithfield can attract and retain quality employees is with competitive pay and compensation. We have very talented staff and a wonderful police department, and we need to be proactive in making sure we do our best to retain them. Our staff feels a great sense of pride being part of what I like to call ‘Team Smithfield’. The tax increase will give us the ability to retain this talented and dedicated team.

Our town is continuing to change and we must continue to plan for growth utilizing sound fiscal policy. Citizens must understand the cost of preserving our small-town charm is not insignificant, but I think we all can agree, it is worth preserving.