SMALL BUSINESS TAX RELIEF FOR COMING FISCAL YEAR

---NEWS RELEASE---

(July 6, 2007)--- Mayor Eddie A. Perez has sent a letter to City Council congratulating members on their hard work and efforts to reduce the tax burden on residents and small businesses.

The Mayor says, “This year, you cut the proposed budget by $6 million and identified $5 million in additional revenue to reduce the burden on taxpayers.”

The Mayor’s letter goes on to say, “Though the legislature was unable to act this year on a plan to help small businesses, the council showed leadership by phasing in revaluation to give significant tax relief to hundreds of small businesses who were going to be impacted by state mandated revaluation.  Additionally, homeowners and apartment owners will be protected by the state legislation passed last year that caps the entire residential class from experiencing an immediate and dramatic shift in its share of the tax burden due to revaluation.”

For example, without the phase-in, Bonnetti’s Florist in the South End would have seen a 58% tax increase due to the state mandated revaluation.  That increase is now down to 15%.  Lena’s Pizza has three properties on Park Street and would have seen an almost 78% tax increase.  Thanks to the phase in, that increase is less than 16%.

Homeowners will also see a change in their taxes, but because of last year’s legislation, that shift is not as dramatic.  For instance, property taxes on a single-family home in the South End would go down 0.1% and in the Blue Hills neighborhood, the change would be 2.6%.

The Mayor’s letter concluded with the fact that phasing in revaluation is a short-term fix and that long-term solutions are necessary.