By Dave Mullane
Stratford Residents,
This upcoming 22% increase in the WPCA (Water Pollution Control Authority) bill is really going to take away from that great mill rate reductions the RTC (Republican Town Committee) crows about. My taxes under Hoydick have gone up 7% on my home and now the sewer use is going up 22%.
The mayor’s office prepares both town and WPCA budgets so it appears they did nothing with WPCA for 4 years in order to make it seem they were really getting it done on property taxes.
In reality if WPCA does need to be increased, this should have been done gradually over the past 4 years. I can afford the $87 increase but there are others who really cannot and some people are years behind in their payments and could eventually lose their homes.
My own tax history shows that under Hoydick her first budget in 2018 saw my taxes decrease $13; 2019 it decreased $6; In 2020 with revaluation it increased $588 (a couple department heads in town saw their taxes decrease $3,000 and $1,500 that year).
Last year for election time another Mill rate reduction this time I went down $35. This year I should see another $3 decrease, why bother just leave the bill the same and put it towards the giant bonded debt we have.
For 6 years, the WPCA bill was $396 how was the town able to do when everywhere else prices are all over the place?
The $450 due WPCA in 2014 has now become $1,014 and even when the rate was lowered to $396 in 2015 the customer couldn’t pay that either that is now $823. Over on SGA (Stratford Get Answers) Gavin Forrester stated the WPCA has $8 million in arrears. What is being done about it?
For a more detailed information please read the Pew Charitable Trust article:
Where Unpaid Water Bills Can Mean Losing a Home | The Pew Charitable Trusts (pewtrusts.org)
