Politics & Government

Madison Gets A Bit More Than Last Year From State, But Not By Much

Madison will get only $1,879 more in fiscal year 2014 from the state than it did in fiscal year 2013, said First Selectman Fillmore McPherson Monday. 

Madison is slated to receive about $2,541,301 in fiscal year 2014, or about 0.1 percent more than fiscal year 2013, when it received $2,539,422, according to the CCM analysis. 

CCM officials said their analysis was based on certain key grant programs, and that the estimates were based on available information. They noted that actual grant amounts may differ and that a more detailed analysis is underway.

While McPherson said he's glad the town isn't getting less, he said is dismayed that the town did not do as well as some of its neighbors, including Guilford. Monday afternoon, he spoke with both state Rep. Noreen Kokoruda and state Sen. Ed Meyer about the amount the town is receiving from the state. 

Kokoruda said she would look into it, to make sure the numbers provided were accurate. Meyer agreed that was a good idea, but he also noted that the good news is that the town did not receive less money than last year. 

"We might be missing the good news here," Meyer said. "And that is, going into this session we thought we might have to make significant cuts to municipal aid."

Guilford will be getting $103,600 more than it did in fiscal year 2013, according to town-by-town impact statements provided by the Connecticut Conference on Municipalities (CCM). Guilford received money a Municipal Aid Adjustment of $75,000 and an MRSA Bonded Distribution of $60,989. Madison received no Municipal Aid Adjustment, and an MRSA Bonded Distribution of only $6,391.

Meyer said Guilford has traditionally done better than Madison when it comes to certain state formulas, but he said he would be hard-pressed to explain exactly why. He said the formulas tend to be complicated. 

"I'm told there are only two people in the state who understand those formulas, and I'm not one of them," he said.

McPherson said Madison was one of only two towns with four-figure increases. The other was Plainfield, with an increase of $1,190. In addition, there were six towns that "broke even," McPherson said, including Cheshire, Fairfield, Greenwich, Mansfield, and Torrington. McPherson said he will be talking with the town's state representative and state senator to find out how it might be able to fare better in coming years. 

Killingworth, Clinton, and Westbrook also did better than last year, McPherson said. Killingworth got $63,184 more than last year, Clinton $49,006 more, and Westbrook $90,684 more. 

McPherson noted that even some "Gold Coast" towns in Connecticut fared better than Madison. Darien got $37,378 more. New Canaan, $42,856 more. Weston, $62,339 more. And, Wilton, $83,856 more. 

Woodbridge got $71,323 more than last year as well. 

Jim Finley, the executive director and CEO of CCM, said it appears as though the General Assembly and the governor worked hard to keep municipal aid "as whole as possible." 

"CCM sincerely appreciates those efforts, particularly during these extremely difficult fiscal times,” Finley said in a prepared statement. He said budget highlights include retention and level-funding of the Payment In Lieu of Taxes [PILOT] State Property, PILOT Colleges and Hospitals, and the Pequot-Mohegan Grant. Increased funding for the Clean Water Fund is also a real plus, Finley said.

“CCM also appreciates the hard work of the House Speaker and the members of the M.O.R.E. Commission,” Finley said in his prepared statement. “Establishing a tax incidence analysis capability to evaluate changes to our state-local revenue system; and providing affordable access to, and an adequate municipal voice on, the state Nutmeg Network (which can be the platform for increased information sharing and regional cooperation) are of great benefit to towns and cities."

Finley said CCM would continue to work with legislators on addressing the inequities of the state's property tax system and providing more relief from unfunded state mandates.  




 

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