If you live in West Hartford, or are considering buying a home in West Hartford, you hopefully are paying attention to the ongoing debate about the 2008-2009 budget. This year’s proposed town budget is up almost 7% from the 2007-2008 budget, to $216 million. Residential property taxes provide the majority of the revenue to run the town and provide the services, so all homeowners in West Hartford are affected in one way or another by increases or decreases in the budget.
Last evening was the second, and last, public hearing for West Hartford residents to voice their opinions about the proposed budget to the Town Council. I attended the meeting to understand the public sentiment regarding the increase, as I hear both favorable and dissenting opinions in my line of work.
The Courant reported on the events this morning. Members of the West Hartford Taxpayers Association and West Hartford First were in attendance and made their voices heard.
Unfortunately the Courant did not report on one of the more interesting comments of the evening, provided by Prospect Avenue resident, Robert Sisk.
Mr. Sisk took advantage of the publicly available budget information (both current and historic) and forecasted the West Hartford budget over the next 5 years. His important analysis and conclusions can be found here.
Coming from a corporate background, budget forecasting is the norm. Shouldn’t the town of West Hartford be doing this exercise as well? If Mr. Sisk’s forecast is true, West Hartford is heading down an unsustainable path. Property taxes will continue to rise at a rate faster than real wage growth, and those on fixed or low incomes will not be able afford to live in West Hartford. This will affect the property values of everyone in the town.
A referendum, if one was to occur, would be a short term fix. What can be done for longer term sustainability? Revenues must be increased and costs must be decreased.