RALPH FIGY
WESTFIELD – The City Council rejected two local option tax hikes Thursday by large majorities, declining to adopt either the room occupancy excise tax or the meals tax.
The council’s Legislative & Ordinance Committee, which brought the two tax options out for debate, was equally divided on the option given to local communities by the state.
Ward 2 Councilor Ralph Figy, the L&O chairman, said the two tax options have been in that committee since early last summer, but that the committee brought out the two motions because the 2016 fiscal year budget is currently being assembled and the council could take action to increase city revenue.
The city currently collects a 4 percent room occupancy tax and the motion would have raised that to 6 percent, while the meal tax, now at 6.25 percent would have increased to 7 percent.
“It’s hard to ask the state for more money when the city has not exhausted all of the local options to raise revenue,” Figy said. “This would address what (additional revenue) we’ve been leaving on the table.”
CHRISTOPHER KEEFE
Ward 1 Councilor Christopher Keefe, an L&O member who voted against the tax increases, said he was opposed to having those funds go into the city’s general revenue account.
“It could go into a different purpose, such as a technology account,” Keefe said. “I think we ought to keep this in our back pocket.
At-large Councilor David A. Flaherty also argued that action on those issues is premature.
“We do need wiggle room, but I don’t want to raise taxes unless we apply (that tax revenue) to true needs such as OPEB or the airport. I don’t see any need for this right now,” Flaherty said.
At-large Councilor Dan Allie said that room tax revenue has been “trending downward over the past couple of years.”
DAVID FLAHERTY
“I reject the argument that we shouldn’t complain to the state about getting more aid. All of the lottery money was suppose to go cities and towns for education when the lottery was originally approved by voters,” Allie said. “We’re told not to complain, but that’s our money which is not going to its intended purpose. We have to put more pressure on the state to do the right thing.”
Ward 3 Councilor Brian Hoose said that people want municipal services such as good roads and schools but that “there’s no money fairy. There is no money unless we take care of it ourselves. There is no help from the state. This is money that would be raised and that would stay here.”
“The state is reluctant to give aid unless we exhaust all of our own resources, so either we raise revenue or cut back on projects like improving roads,” Hoose said.
The room occupancy tax failed on a 5-8 vote and the meals tax on a 3-10 vote.
The council did vote to send a motion by Ward 6 Councilor Christopher Crean, which would raise revenue, to the L&O and Law Department for further review.
Crean’s motion is “to implement legislation that will allow the Westfield Police Department to enforce non-criminal disposition infractions for recreation and marine patrols.”
“This ordinance will allow money from infractions to go to the city rather than to the state,” Crean said.
