Change in town's assessment program will increase school taxes
by JESSICA L. FINCH Associate Editor

Administrators from the three school districts in Amherst have serious concerns about the change in assessment program for the town - but it appears those concerns have fallen on deaf ears.

A representative from Williamsville Central School District reported that Supervisor Satish Mohan has not responded to letters sent from the schools, including one in November, warning the town to maintain its current program of 100 percent assessment.

The most recent letter, dated Jan. 16, was sent to the supervisor as well as to council members. It was not addressed at the Town Board's work session and special meeting on Monday.

The letter, signed by the superintendents of all three districts, said reducing the equalization rate below 100 percent will adversely affect their budgets and result in an added cost to Amherst residents.

Mohan cut funding for the program in the town's 2007 budget that would have continued the New York State Office of Real Property Services 100 percent assessment program. The rate has been 100 percent for the past seven years.

"The cessation of the Town of Amherst's full value (market value) assessment program will result in the New York State Office of Real Property Services reducing the town's equalization rate," the letter stated. "The result of this action will negatively impact the ability of the town and school districts to control a fair and equitable levy allocation to the residents of Amherst."

The lowered equalization rate, anything less than 100 percent, affects how the tax levy is distributed.

Thomas Maturski, Williamsville's assistant superintendent of finance and management, said the change will cause a shift in the total tax levy. In Williamsville's case, Amherst residents living in the district will pay more than Clarence and Cheektowaga residents living in the district because of the reversal.

The most prominent change will be in STAR exemptions, for seniors and other residents. Maturski said everyone who receives STAR will be receiving less of a break. Each taxpayer will have to assume payment for the loss of STAR aid due to the lower equalization rate.

"The STAR rate is based on assessed value. The state decreases the STAR amount and residents see a drop in STAR (exemptions)," he said. "Residents are going to most likely be paying a larger share due to the fact the state is considering the total assessments in the town to be less than 100 percent value."

Amherst Central School District, whose residents all live in Amherst, is estimating, based on a 90 percent assessment, that the district's taxpayers will see a rise in their tax bill because the STAR calculation will decrease due to the lower equalization rate. The estimated STAR decrease is $55.

The cumulative total for all taxpayers in the Amherst Central School district will be more than $200,000 in 2007 and will double to more than $400,000 in 2008.

The largest portion of the Sweet Home Central School District is located in the Town of Amherst with a small section of the district in the Town of Tonawanda. The drop in equalization will bring approximately $400,000 from Tonawanda residents to Amherst residents.

This occurs when assessments for all properties cannot be adjusted appropriately to reflect the changed impact of the equalization rate. In addition to the shifting in the levy, homeowners in Amherst will see their STAR exemption drop from $30,280 to an estimated $28,766. The senior STAR exemption is estimated to decline by close to $3,000.

This results in the Amherst homeowner seeing an average tax bill increase of $30 to $50.

The Williamsville Central School District boundaries are mainly in the Town of Amherst but are also composed of portions of Clarence and Cheektowaga. A drop in equalization rate to 90 percent will result in Amherst residents being allocated an additional $1,000,000 of the district's tax levy.

The STAR aid is estimated to decrease for a home previously assessed at $100,000 by $29 for basic, and $48 for senior citizens under the enhanced STAR program.

In the school districts the changes will affect taxes in September. Maturski said county and town taxes will also be affected.

With the change already in place for 2007 the school administrators are urging the town to return to the 100 percent assessment program for 2008.

Maturski said the town can mitigate the problem and return the tax burden to the way it used to be.

The letter was signed by the three superintendents: Howard S. Smith, Williamsville; Geoffrey Hicks, Sweet Home and Paul Wietig, Amherst. Assistant superintendents and board members also went on record with their concerns.