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Massena town board supports library transitioning to receiving tax funding through school district

Posted 3/28/20

BY ANDY GARDNER North Country This Week MASSENA -- Town councilors passed a resolution saying they support the Massena Public Library moving from a town-entity to receiving their tax payments through …

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Massena town board supports library transitioning to receiving tax funding through school district

Posted

BY ANDY GARDNER

North Country This Week

MASSENA -- Town councilors passed a resolution saying they support the Massena Public Library moving from a town-entity to receiving their tax payments through the Massena school district.

The board members then said they are committed to not increasing the tax levy to make up for the reduction in collections should to the library no longer being in their budget, but didn't pass a formal resolution.

Voters in June will decide if the library moves to collecting their taxes through the school district. Town taxpayers currently fund the library through a portion of their annual tax payments to the Town of Massena. Under the proposal, the Massena Central School District would collect a library tax from all residents within their boundaries, which includes the Town of Massena and parts of the towns of Louisville, Norfolk and Brasher. The taxes would be turned over to the library to fund their operations.

"Massena is not going to continue to be the sole-source funder ... there are people other than Massena who use the library and there should be a commitment ... to support the library," Councilor Bob Elsner said.

Councilor Sam Carbone said the library budget would cause their tax levy to go down 23%, based on the 2020 budget.

That would bring down the tax rate from $4.82 per $1,000 of assess value to $3.70.

The taxpayers would have to pay a library tax to the school, but since the burden is dispersed across the boundaries of the entire school district, Massena taxpayers would pay less, Carbone claimed.

He said the owner of a $100,000 home would pay $88.84 in library taxes and $370 in town taxes, for a savings of about $23.

After passing the motion in support of the transition, the councilors and town supervisor each said out loud they would commit to not increasing taxes to make up for and reduction in the levy from losing the library fund.