Wilmington residents might have dodged property tax increases in the past, but this could change once Fiscal Year 2015 begins on July 1.
On Thursday night, Mayor Dennis Williams delivered his State of the City address, proposing a $150 million operations budget for the coming fiscal year, along with a property tax hike and increased rates for water and sewer use.
“The decision to raise revenue through taxes is never easy,” said Williams, whose proposed budget is 3.5percent larger than the previous year’s.
Several factors played a key role in the increase: heightened pension and pension healthcare costs, debt service on capital projects, mandated salary increases and higher animal control costs. As a result, Williams is proposing a 9.9 percent property tax increase, which means an additional $6.54 will be tacked on to the average city tax bill next year.
Rates for water and sewage customers in the city will increase by 8 percent for FY 2015. In addition, city facilities can expect to be billed for their water usage beginning Fiscal Year 2016. Click on the link below for the full story:
via Wilmington mayor proposes tax hike for 2015 budget — NewsWorks.
