ORANGE — The Selectboard voted last week to adopt a single tax rate, citing that there is not enough commercial and industrial property in town for a split tax rate to make sense.
The Nov. 4 meeting included a tax classification hearing. Those in attendance heard from Adam Hemingway of Regional Resource Group Inc., which contracts with Orange to provide assessing services.
“Towns like Orange just don’t have a significant commercial [and] industrial tax base,” he said in Orange Town Hall’s Ruth B. Smith Auditorium.
A single tax rate means the same rate is applied to all classes of property. A split tax rate is a structure that applies different tax rates based on property classification. The actual rate is approved by the state Department of Revenue.
Hemingway explained that the estimated tax rate is $15.29 per $1,000 valuation for fiscal year 2027, but the Department of Revenue must still conduct its final review. The fiscal year 2026 tax rate was $16.60 per $1,000 valuation, according to the DOR website. He added that Orange will raise nearly $16.35 million in property tax revenue, and the tax levy has increased by $607,769 (3.86%) over last year’s levy of $15.74 million.
During the time for public comment, resident Ann Reed said she wanted to remind Selectboard members of what she tells them during every tax classification hearing: “Please go as easy as you can on the local taxpayer when you formulate your decision.”
