BELLOWS FALLS — Municipal Manager Willis “Chip” Stearns II has provided the exact tax-rate changes proposed in the “Plan of Merger” presented in October [“Man with a plan,” Town & Village, Nov. 11].
The town manager explained the calculations, using the spreadsheet of the financials of the plan that were submitted to the joint board last month (also available on the town website).
At present, the town tax rate (rounded to the nearest cent) is 94 cents per $100 of valuation, and the Village of Bellows Falls rate is 67 cents, with a combined rate of $1.61.
Stearns clarified that “if the merger plan passed today,” the single tax rate for Rockingham and Bellows Falls would be $1.31 per $100, marking an increase to town-wide taxes of 37 cents. Villagers' tax rates would decrease by 67 cents.