The Tax Rate for Fiscal Year 2010 is $5.27 Visit the Assessor's Online Database Quarterly Tax Billing Information Applications for an abatement must be filed in writing on an approved form from the Board of Assessors. The filing deadline is 30 days after the tax bills were mailed. You may be eligible for an exemption or deferral on your tax. | Disabled Veteran | Clause 22 | | Elderly (over 65) | Clause 41c | | Blind | Clause 37a | | Deferral (over 65) | Clause 41a |
Deadline for filing, 3 months after the date tax bills were mailed. Call Assessor's office for eligibility requirements. You may be entitled to a refund or abatement: - When vehicle is sold or traded;
- When vehicle is registered in another state;
- Upon theft of vehicle.
Documentation in all cases is required, no excise may be reduced to less than $5.00. No abatement of less than $5.00 will be granted and no refund of less than $5.00 will be made. What is Proposition 2½? How does it limit property taxes? Proposition 2½ is the initiative petition adopted by voters of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1980. Its principal features relate to the total amount of property taxes which a city or town can raise each year. Other parts of the initiative limit state agency assessments on cities and towns, prohibit unfunded state mandates, and repeal school committee fiscal autonomy and binding arbitration for certain public employees. In addition, it reduces the motor vehicle excise tax and allows renters a deduction on their state income tax. Proposition 2½ contains two limitations on the amount of property taxes a city or town can raise: The property tax levy (the amount raised) can never exceed 2½% of the full cash value of all taxable property in the city or town. This is known as the “levy ceiling.” The property tax levy cannot increase from year to year by more than 2½%, with certain exceptions for new growth, or through overrides and exclusions as adopted by the voters. This is known as the “levy limit.” How does Proposition 2 ½ affect my tax bill? The levy limit provision of Proposition 2½ affects the total amount of taxes to be raised by a city or town. It does not apply to an individual tax bill. How does Classification work with Proposition 2 ½? The Classification amendment, allows cities and towns to categorize real estate into four classes and to distribute the tax burden among these classes. Proposition 2½ affects the total amount of tax that can be raised. Classification affects what classes of taxpayers will pay for what specific share of the total amount of tax. How does Proposition 2 ½ affect the tax rate? Proposition 2½ sets the maximum amount of property taxes (the levy) that a city/town can raise. Once the amount to be raised is determined, a tax rate is calculated by dividing the amount to be raised by the total valuation of the city/town. Whether the tax rate for a community will increase or decrease from the prior year will depend upon the levy decided and whether the property values appreciate, depreciate or remain steady in a particular community. | 
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