May 22, 2009
SMART GROWTH PROVIDES NEW REVENUE FOR TOWNS
Regionalism and Sales Tax Sharing Equals Win-Win for Municipalities
State Representative Jason Rojas joined with a majority of Connecticut House of Representative members on Tuesday to support legislation that more efficiently delivers government services and save taxpayers money. The legislation, co-sponsored by Rep. Rojas gives municipalities the ability to implement cost saving measures and offers real property tax reform through voluntary regional cooperation incentives.
House Bill 6585, An Act Concerning Regionalism, includes a provision to return a portion of the sales tax to towns as an incentive for participating in regional initiatives. The state sales tax currently generates about 3.5 billion dollars annually. Beginning in 2011, the legislation would return a portion of the state sales tax revenue generated within participating regions.
"When I was running for State Representative last fall I expressed to voters that the cost of providing services to taxpayers was becoming unsustainable. We need to reduce the cost of government and make smarter choices about how our town and cities work together for the betterment of our communities. Doing so is key to Connecticut's economic future," Rep. Rojas stated. "This bipartisan package of legislation is just one step that can move us in that direction."
The program is voluntary and towns that agree to work together collaboratively would be able to share property tax revenues generated from large new developments and for the first time would be able to access federal economic development funds. These new revenue streams would offer permanent property tax relief to participating towns.
Rep. Rojas further added that "Connecticut has a rich tradition of home rule and this legislature recognizes and appreciates that. This bill preserves that tradition while allowing towns and cities to work collaborative to reduce the duplication of services and their associated costs."
The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.
In addition to the regionalism initiative, the General Assembly has additional pending legislation to overhaul Connecticut's long-range planning, better coordinate state programs for open space and brownfield remediation, and streamline the approval process for new development proposals.