To the Editor:

As most homeowners already know, there has been a huge tax liability transfer from businesses to residential taxpayers for 2023 and beyond. As previously noted by Greg Taylor in his 12/22/22 letter, Vision Government Solutions (reval company) was responsible for the valuation increase of only 8 percent for businesses vs up to 45 percent for residences.

This revaluation should have been rejected for this reason alone. Kathy Brown, tax assessor, has the authority to reject a revaluation outright; she didn’t. She should be held accountable.

I received no valid answer from either Dan Rosenthal or Bob Tait (Town finance director) as to who, if anyone has the authority to overrule Kathy Brown’s acceptance of this reval.

This authority needs to be clarified. The result of this shift in my case was my taxes going up 10.3 percent vs The Newtown Bee’s reported (4/28/23) “average” increase of 1.29 percent — that’s 800 percent more than “average.” Regarding the source for the 1.29 percent Bee’s increase estimate, an e-mail to The Bee went unanswered.

In contacting Vision Government Solutions directly, they claimed that businesses “suffered” from the COVID outbreak, which reduced their valuation. Unacceptable. There were many non-business hardships created by the pandemic.

The business impact was mostly only for one or two years, not permanent as this shift may be carried forward indefinitely. Imagine the political difficulty in raising business taxes enough to correct this error plus the “normal” annual tax increase. It won’t happen.

Perhaps it’s time The Newtown Bee did some hard-hitting investigative journalism to call to account the town tax authorities, right Mr Voket? A previous request in this regard was met with silence ... I’d like to see The Newtown Bee put the town tax people on the spot and demand exact details about the tax roll and the actual planned mill rate increase.

C’est la vie John?

Jack Carlson

Newtown

Editor’s Note: On numerous occasions The Bee reported in the 2023-24 tax cycle, property owners were expected to see an estimated tax rate increase of 1.29 percent at a new proposed mill rate of 26.24. That information was shared with the Legislative Council by Town Finance Director Robert Tait, and represents a town-wide average of every property owner — including commercial.