Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a question you do not see answered below email us at voteyesbraintree@gmail.com.
Proposition 2 ½ is a state law passed in 1980 that governs how local property taxes are raised. Under the law, towns may raise their total property taxes by up to 2.5 percent per year plus new growth, which usually works out to about 3 percent. Any increase beyond this figure must be approved directly by a majority of town voters. Because the cost of providing the same services often increases faster than 3 percent annually – especially when inflation is high – towns in Massachusetts regularly hold override votes to increase revenues to match expenses.
An operating override is a townwide vote that allows the town to increase the annual tax levy by more than 3 percent. When the Braintree Town Council asks voters to consider an operating override, the local ballot measure must specify exactly how much additional revenue is being sought.
If the override is passed, the additional amount approved is added to the the tax levy to create a new baseline. In subsequent years, rate increases are once again limited to 3 percent.
The Town Council voted unanimously to put an override of $8 million on a June 15th Special Election ballot. If approved by voters, this override will add approximately $454 to the annual tax bill for an average home value of $668,178. To calculate how much a successful override will impact your tax bill please see the calculator.
For more specific information based on your home’s assessed value, click here to utilize our calculator.
Shall the Town of Braintree be allowed to assess an additional $8,000,000 in real and personal property taxes for the purpose of funding the Town’s Fiscal Year 2025 operating budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1st, two thousand and twenty-four for the purpose of operating General Municipal Government ($2,500,000), the School Department ($4,000,000), and establishing a Stabilization Fund for Municipal Government and School Department operations ($1,500,000).
The proposed override is $8,000,000 to fund the Operating Budgets of the Town and Braintree Public Schools. If approved, the override would go into effect July 1, 2024.
The override will be split as follows:
Braintree Public Schools will receive – $4.0M to fund an operational budget of $79.5M (preserving programs and teachers) and in addition to the operational budget an allocation of $500K will be set aside in a town-side reserve to cover potential one-time school spending needs – putting the FY25 anticipated (with override) school side spending at $80M.
Public Safety will receive $1 .5M to preserve core Police Services and enable more forward planning. This allows departments to bring back programming elements that have been recently reduced and lost such as our traffic unit, and school resource officers on the police side.
Public Works will receive $1.0M, a bulk of which will preserve Town and School Maintenance efforts, maintain roadway and sidewalk maintenance projects, summer programming, sports field maintenance, and importantly building maintenance for so much of our aging school and town building infrastructure.
An Override Stabilization Account will be established and funded at $1.5M. The reserves will be deposited into the stabilization account to extend the benefit of the override through FY28.
June 15, 2024 from 7:00am – 8:00pm
Polling Places:
Districts 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B – Braintree High School, 128 Town Street
Districts 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B – East Middle School, 305 River Street
Districts 5A, 5B, 6A, 6B – South Middle School, 232 Peach Street
While an override secures a lasting tax increase aimed at sustaining ongoing operational costs, debt exclusions offer a temporary tax increase designated to cover debt service resulting from bonding for a particular capital project, like constructing a new school.
Under debt exclusions, the debt service expenses are incorporated into the levy limit solely for the duration of the debt’s lifespan, usually spanning between 10 to 30 years. Consequently, unlike overrides, debt exclusions do not contribute to the foundational calculation of levy limits in subsequent years.
A debt exclusion passed on Saturday, September 26, 2020 for $63M to fund building a new South Middle School, replacing roofs on four elementary schools and security improvements districtwide. By law, the temporary increase in property taxes may only be used to pay back the cost of the specific capital projects voters approved. The average tax increase was $188 annually. Once the 25-year bond payments are completed, the tax increase ends.
No. The total amount in property taxes that the town collects can increase by only 2 ½ percent each year, excluding new growth. When property values increase by more than 2½ percent in a single year, as they recently have in Braintree, the tax rate has to be adjusted so the total amount of taxes assessed town-wide only increases 2 ½ percent. As a result, the tax rate on properties can decline. In recent years, the tax rate per $1,000 of assessed value in Braintree has decreased from $10.54 in FY18 to $9.48 in FY24.
For a full list of positions which are on the line on June 15th go to this page.
From the Town of Braintree website
Massachusetts Senior Circuit Breaker Tax Credit
Certain seniors who own or rent residential property in Massachusetts, as their principal residence, could be eligible for a refundable tax credit on their Massachusetts personal income tax return. For more information please visit here or watch this Circuit Breaker Tax Credit Video.
Town Tax Exemptions
There are several programs established by the Town to defray a portion of seniors’ property taxes, including:
– $1,500 Property Tax Exemption
(see FY 2024 Exemption Types and Qualifications for eligibility)
– Exemptions are also provided for seniors who are veterans, widows/widowers, blind or primary caregivers (see FY 2024 Exemption Types and Qualifications for eligibility).
****The FY2024 Exemption Types and Qualifications, found here, can help seniors to determine if they are eligible based on the program.****
Work Off Program
The Town offers a program for seniors 65 and older whereby eligible seniors can work off property taxes via employment opportunities within the Town. Questions about this Work Off Program can be directed to Braintree’s Elder Affairs Office.
Trash Fee
In addition to tax programs, seniors are entitled to receive a discount on their annual Braintree trash bill. For FY 2024, the annual senior trash bill discount is $55.