12/19/2017 - First Selectman Tesoro Directs Trumbull Tax Collector to Immediately Send Out January and April 2018 Tax Bills
December 12, 2017 - - First Selectman Vicki Tesoro has directed the Trumbull Tax Collector to immediately send tax bills for January and April of 2018. The bills do not change the tax rate for residents’ homes or cars. The tax bills previously sent out last June listed "TBD" for the January and April quarters. The new tax bills list the exact amount owed and show the mill rate is staying the same, keeping First Selectman Tesoro's promise not to raise taxes this year.
“I wish the town had sent these sooner, but I’m making sure the bills go out now so that our residents can plan the timing of their tax payments and have confidence in their household budgets,” Tesoro said. “It is especially critical to get these bills out now in light of the current tax reform bill being voted on in Washington. Sending out tax bills is not the first thing I wanted to do as First Selectman. However, I’m pleased that we are able to keep taxes stable in spite of inheriting an unbalanced budget.”
Trumbull’s current budget is unbalanced by $2.8 million. When the mill rate was set, the revenue budget relied on increasing fees at the Transfer Station by $1 million, but that fee has not been implemented. That budget also used $1.8 million from the town’s general fund, which is the town’s savings account. However, in the current fiscal environment, using so much of the town's savings account is not prudent.
"We plan to keep taxes stable. We do not need to spend more, we need to spend smarter. The budget we inherited does not have room to fund everything. We will prioritize town spending to best utilize finite resources,” Tesoro said. We plan to implement efficiencies which will save taxpayers money while continuing to provide high quality services and maintain our commitment to public safety and our schools."