Post date: Oct 10, 2018 5:28:0 PM
From: Beth Bandy <beth.bandy@ruralcommonwealth.org>
To: beth@ruralcommonwealth.org
Cc: Toby Gould <toby.gould@ruralcommonwealth.org>
Bcc:
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2018 10:45:43 -0400
Subject: Request for letters of support
To: Rural Selectboards, Finance Committees and Town Administrators
As representatives of towns with state owned lands, we are asking you to write letters to various state officials to request changes in legislation and policy.
Over the last two years, more than 75 municipal leaders from 35 small towns in all four Western Massachusetts counties have attended Small Town Summits. These events, which are coordinated Rural Commonwealth, have given rural community officials opportunities to work on issues of common concern. At each of the 12 Summit meetings held so far, payments for state-owned land have come up as a major problem for small towns in Massachusetts. This issue is complex and will require action in different parts of state government to be resolved.
With representatives from towns in Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties, last Thursday’s meeting of the Small Town Summit at the Peru Town Hall received a report on the paucity of payments from the state for the state owned land within so many rural communities. The report, Parks and Restitution: State-owned Land Causing Financial Pain in Rural Massachusetts, was released by Rural Commonwealth earlier this month and is available on the organization’s website:
http://www.ruralcommonwealth.org/research/parks-and-restitution/
Noting that some western Massachusetts towns have over 50% of their land owned by the state and the state payments in lieu of taxes is drastically lower than the property taxes rate in those towns, the Summit calls on the legislature and the governor to create a fair payment for these towns. We have attached letters to Matthew Beaton, Secretary for Energy and Environmental Affairs and Sean Cronin, Senior Deputy Commissioner, Division of Local Services, Department of Revenue requesting more transparency to the towns when the various state entities acquire land in their community.
Recommendations
All hearings about state-owned land should be held in the communities where the parcels in question are located.
Assessors, Select Boards, Finance Committee members, and Town Administrators should receive single-topic notifications about any proposed or actual changes to the state-owned land compensation procedures.
Each rural town should be reimbursed for state-owned land on a consistent annual basis using a formula that is based on the town’s current residential tax rate and the number of acres owned by the State during that year.
The Legislature should explore and support ways to make it easier for farmers to obtain mortgages on agricultural properties that exceed 20 acres.
The Summit has asked all impacted rural towns to contact the Governor, Lt, Governor, their legislators, Secretary Beaton, and Senior Deputy Commissioner Cronin requesting action on this issue. Rural Commonwealth will follow up with the various state entities to measure progress on remedying these inequities.
We have attached letters for your action. If you decide to send these letters from your board or committee, please copy me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Beth Bandy
Co-Director
Rural Commonwealth
49 Conway Street, Building 1
Shelburne Falls, MA 01370