Letter: Tax Phase-In is a Responsible Choice, Not a Free Lunch

To the Editor:

RE: Real Property Tax Phase-In Redistributes the Tax Burden But Is No Free Lunch

I read with disdain a recent letter from Javier Avilés and Scot Prudhomme criticizing First Selectman Mica Cardozo for not phasing in taxes after last year’s state-mandated property revaluation. To be clear: a phase-in is not a free lunch. It means that those whose property values rose less would have to subsidize those whose values rose more. Would Javier and Scot really have supported that kind of redistribution? We know that Javier did not-after all, he was and is on the Board of Finance and voted in favor of the very budget of which he now complains. Let’s face it, if Mica had implemented a phase-in, the campaign complaint would be that he was being “socialist” and unfairly shifting the tax burden.

They also argue that “other towns did it.” True—but context matters. Take Orange, for example. Only about 60% of its taxes come from residents, so phasing in allowed the town to temporarily shift part of the burden onto commercial taxpayers, whose property values hadn’t jumped as much. Redistribution, yes—but smart politics, since only residents vote and businesses do not.

Woodbridge is different. Nearly 93% of our tax base comes from residents, and our small commercial sector runs on thin margins. Shifting the tax burden from homeowners to local businesses would have been disastrous. Some would likely have closed, shrinking our tax base even further and raising taxes for everyone—a lose-lose for the town.

Mica and his team diligently pursued any strategy that might work for Woodbridge. They studied the numbers, spoke with residents, business owners, and both state and municipal level experts, and, in the end, made the fiscally responsible choice for Woodbridge. I only wish the so-called Common Ground Republicans—who claim to be whatever they need to be for campaign purposes—had remembered the math before complaining.

Thoughtful leadership is not about chasing sound bites. Mica made the difficult but right call. The Board of Finance unanimously thought so.

Susan L. Jacobs, Former Chair/Member, Woodbridge Board of Finance