Baldasaro proposes town tax cap

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May 14, 2008

By Julio Tejeda

LONDONDERRY — As a state representative, Al Baldasaro has been a vocal advocate of limits on state spending. He'd like to see the same thing happen on a local level.

Last week, Baldasaro introduced a citizen's petition to Town Manager David Caron that would amend the town charter by putting a cap on town tax increases.

According to the petition, future tax increases would be tied to and limited by the Consumer Price Index.

Baldasaro said he introduced the petition to Caron because he is concerned that the town has some expenditures coming up next year that taxpayers can't afford to pay.

"The gas and food costs are going up and this is a way to look down the road to protect the interest of the taxpayers," Baldasaro said. "It is something that should be kept an eye on because we got too many people in town struggling."

He said the proposed amendment to the town charter is the best way to protect the interest of the taxpayers in town even though he believes the Budget Committee did a good job on cutting back spending at the most recent Town Meeting.

The proposed amendment would not impact school spending, which makes up about 60 percent of the total municipal budget.

Baldasaro is a member of the New Hampshire Advantage Coalition, a citizen-led organization that, according to its Web site, recognizes the importance of personal liberties. He said every time the tax rate and town spending increases, it is taking away from each individual family that lives in town.

"This is something personal to me because I have been working with the New Hampshire Advantage to keep the state going forward and not lose our quality of life in Londonderry with all the spending," he said.

Similar tax caps are being proposed in several New Hampshire communities, including Merrimack and Rochester.

Caron said he couldn't comment on the petition because he has not read it carefully yet and it needs to be reviewed by the town attorney for the best interest of the town.

"I believe no one in the community wants to pay more taxes than what they are paying right now," Caron said. "But I can't comment on it right now because it first needs to be reviewed by the town attorney."

There is no cap limit on the town's budget now. The town's spending is determined by voters approval at the town meeting, according to Caron.

The petition process has several steps before it makes it to the November ballot.

Once the petition is introduced to the town manager, he must then hand it to the town attorney who then renders an opinion on its legality. It then goes to the Town Council.

If the council approves the petition, it is given back to Baldasaro, who must collect signatures from approximately 2,400 registered voters in order to be placed on the ballot.

Baldasaro thinks the petition will make it to the November ballot because it puts the town spending in the taxpayers hands.

"I see it on the November ballot because it gives the town a good flavor on their spending," he said.