Mill Rate To Rise By 1.42 Percent In Fairfield For Fiscal Year 2024-25

FAIRFIELD, CT — Fairfield's mill rate, or property tax rate, for 2024-25 will be 27.90 mills, an increase over the current year's tax rate of 1.42 percent, following a party line vote Thursday night by the Board of Finance.

In his inaugural budget, First Selectman Bill Gerber sought a tax increase of 1.81 percent for overall town expenditures for the upcoming fiscal year of $370.1 million.

Earlier this week, the Representative Town Meeting approved a final budget of $369.7 million.

"The RTM added a net amount of about $30,000 to the budget," Frank Magneri, the town's Budget Director, told the board Thursday.

Finance board members who voted in favor of the mill rate were Democrats Lori Charlton, the board Chair; John Mitola, Vice Chair; Craig Curley, Secretary; Kevin Starke; and Shane Pendley. Opposing the new mill rate were Republicans Jack Testani; Amy Ruggiero; Jim Walsh; and Mary LeClerc.

Except for the pandemic year of 2020, Fairfield's mill rate has risen every year for the past decade.
The mill rate represents $1 for every $1,000 in assessed property value, or for 2024-25, $27.90 for every $1,000 in assessed property value. Properties are assessed at 70 percent of their market value.

"There are people who are going to be severely impacted by this increase," Testani said, focusing part of his opposition on the $100,000 cost for an upcoming Charter Revision Commission.

Democrats on the board, however, were not buying it, stressing that the tax increase is in line with recent increases, despite the rise in inflation and salary increases in new contracts for various town labor groups. Additionally, the town Grand List did not grow significantly over the past year.

"To begin to make a difference, we would have had to reduce the budget by at least $1.2 million," Pendley said, adding that members had not sought such cuts.

Mitola agree. "This is not a massive tax increase."

Click here for more information on Fairfield's 2024-25 town operating budget.