Testimony Regarding H.B. 6745, An Act Allowing Different Mill Rates for Residential and Commercial Property
Katie Roy, Executive Director & Founder
Planning and Development Committee
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Chairpersons Cassano and McCarthy Vahey, Ranking Members Champagne and Zawistowski, and distinguished members of the Planning and Development Committee:
Thank you for the opportunity to submit informational testimony on H.B. 6745, which would allow municipalities to set different mill rates for residential property and commercial property.
My name is Katie Roy and I am the executive director and founder of the Connecticut School Finance Project, a nonpartisan, nonprofit policy organization based in New Haven that works to identify solutions to Connecticut’s school and state funding challenges that are fair to students, taxpayers, and communities.
H.B. 6745 would allow the creation of “split roll” taxes, which refer to certain types of property being taxed at lower effective rates than other types of property. Several states and the District of Columbia currently allow split roll taxes, including Massachusetts and Maryland.
Split roll taxes are typically implemented in order to reduce the tax burden on homeowners by taxing owner-occupied homes at lower rates than commercial property.
In the case of H.B. 6745, Connecticut municipalities would be allowed to set different mill rates for residential and commercial properties, which are currently taxed at the same mill rate. As a result, municipalities could potentially lower the mill rate for residential property to create property tax relief for residents while not reducing the tax property rate on commercial properties.
More information about split roll taxes, how some of Connecticut’s regional peers have implemented split roll taxes, and Connecticut’s overall property tax system, can be found in the Connecticut School Finance Project’s April 2018 report, Introduction to Features of Property Tax Systems. This report is available online at www.ctstatefinance.org/assets/uploads/files/Features-of-Property-Tax-Systems.pdf.
Additionally, the Connecticut School Finance Project is happy to provide further information about split roll taxes should you have any questions.
Thank you again for allowing me the opportunity to provide informational testimony on H.B. 6745 and the use of split roll taxes in some of Connecticut’s regional peer states. I sincerely appreciate the Committee looking at ways to update, and potentially improve, Connecticut’s property tax system, and please feel free to reach out to me via the contact information below should you have any questions or would like more information.
Sincerely,
Katie Roy
Executive Director & Founder
Connecticut School Finance Project