The Town Council considers a 5.25% tax increase for FY2026 in #MiddletownRI, meaning an expected $291 increase on the tax bill for a median residential homeowner and $394 for a median nonresident homeowner.
PUBLIC HEARING SEES 5.25 PERCENT PROPOSED TAX RATES
MIDDLETOWN, RI (MAY 22, 2025) – Middletown property owners are looking at a 5.25 percent tax increase across the board.
During a lightly attended public hearing Wednesday in Town Hall, the Town Council received the preliminary tax rates for the first time publicly for the proposed $93.3 million Fiscal 2026 budget. That’s about $1 million more than the current $92.3 million budget.
According to the proposed numbers, owner occupied residential taxpayers could expect a tax rate of $9.12 per $1,000 of assessed value for Fiscal 2026. Non-owner occupied real estate owners were projected to pay $11.85 per $1,000 and $13.66 per $1,000 for commercial.
In real dollars, town figures showed the median owner occupied residential homeowner ($634,150) could expect a $291 increase in their upcoming annual tax bill. The tax bill for median non-owner occupied real estate ($667,700) was projected to go up $394 and $596 for median commercial properties ($876,500).
To view the computer slideshow budget presentation from Wednesday night, go to https://www.middletownri.gov/DocumentCenter/View/19249/First-Public-Hearing-FINAL-Presentation-05212025 online.
A second public hearing on the proposed Fiscal 2026 budget is slated for May 28 at 6 pm in Town Hall. For more about the preliminary numbers, visit https://mdl.town/FY26-Budget online.
Before the tax figures are finalized, the council must adopt the budget and Tax Assessor George Durgin must certify the tax roll. The council is expected to adopt the numbers at its second budget public hearing.
Wrapping up the first public hearing, council President Paul M. Rodrigues said the close to two hour hearing generated good conversation and there were areas the group had to make decisions. Among those included an ongoing discussion about mental health in the community, funding for the library and related issues.
At the same time, Rodrigues said while Middletown continued to want to move forward in a positive direction, everything has a cost and the ability of taxpayers to pay must be considered as well.
“We need to make some decisions,” Rodrigues said to his colleagues. “If you’re not happy with the budget and you want to see some things, we need those recommendations and we’ll vote on them. You have to remember that you want certain things…that’s going to increase (the bottom line budget), unless we come up with separate ways of decreasing things.”
Town and school officials agreed, saying there were no easy decisions, but the council would do what’s right for Middletown — and the entire community.
“As a taxpayer, I do understand that we have an interest in minding every nickel spent here in Middletown and holding folks accountable for that money the town allocates to different departments,” Superintendent Billy Niemeyer said.
Local leaders said the town would not need to seek permission from the state Division of Municipal Finance for the new tax rate. That’s because the 5.25 percent increase is on the tax rate, not the tax levy. In Rhode Island, communities looking to go over the state’s 4 percent tax levy cap must get approval from the Division of Municipal Finance to do so each year.
They also said the 5.25 percent tax rate had to be applied equally to each of Middletown’s three tax classes — resident, nonresident and commercial. The only time the town can manipulate the tax rates and make them higher for one group than during another — like with the current Fiscal 2025 budget — was during a property revaluation year.
Town officials said it was important to note the proposed Fiscal 2026 budget included all payments and related expenses associated with the new school, library and other debt. That means no extra payments or increases to the tax rate would be necessary in Fiscal 2026 as a result of those projects.
As for the town’s enterprise funds, the proposed sewer rate was slated to increase to $19.39 per 1,000 gallons, or $1.34 more than the current rate. All told, town figures indicated the average user should expect their sewer bill to go up close to $84 a year, or about $890.
On the “Pay-As-You-Throw” trash and recycling front, town officials said the fee for the mandatory bags would remain as is. However, the annual cost of the curbside trash and recycling program would go up $5 to $185 if the proposed budget was approved. The reason was to help offset rising costs and to build a fund balance in the program.
Town officials said the price tag for seasonal and daily parking at the beaches would be unchanged for Summer 2025. For more about the upcoming beach season, visit https://mdl.town/BeachBasics online.
Shortly after the current budget Fiscal 2025 budget was adopted by the council last summer, work started on the proposed numbers for Fiscal 2026, which begins on July 1.
Town and school officials projected a difficult budget season, saying a forecasted $661,000 loss in state aid and uncertainty on the national level would make things challenging.
In March, Superintendent Billy Niemeyer presented a 4 percent budget increase for education, which covered the $661,000 loss in state support without any major cuts or reductions in school spending.
Most of that was done by not filling positions opened by retirements and making strategic decisions on personnel in the schools. Previously, Niemeyer and other school leaders have said none of the moves brought on by the loss of state aid would impact teaching and learning in classrooms across the district.
During an all-day workshop in late April, council members closely scrutinized the budget, asking questions of each department head, finance staff and the town administration.
More than 70 different recommendations emerged out of that session, with town and school staff working hard to find solutions and suggestions without adding too much to the bottom line.
Besides the $661,000 loss in state aid, town officials said Wednesday a large part of the $1 million increase for Fiscal 2026 was a migration of more properties from the nonresident tax rate to the resident rate under the town’s Tiered Residential Tax Program.
That program was instituted by the council in late 2021 to help make Middletown more affordable for residents. Since then, thousands of homeowners have capitalized on the program, saving approximately 30 percent on their current tax bills.
Town officials said another reason for the $1 million increase was addressing the final year of the four-year School Deficit Reduction Plan. In 2022, the council approved an aggressive plan to correct issues with the School Department’s budgeting to balance the financial books using a mix of federal American Rescue Plan Act money and local tax dollars. Other changes — like combining town and school financial offices — were also adopted to make sure similar concerns never happened again.
“We want to leave things in better shape than we found them,” Town Administrator Shawn J. Brown said. “The residents are the same way, the way they take care of their property. That’s the pressure that myself and every department head feels. Billy said it. Every penny is sacred and we try to manage them as best we can.”
Document Link: https://mdl.town/NYCU-FY26-PH1
About Middletown
The Town of Middletown is a vibrant municipality located on Aquidneck Island, known for its scenic beauty, historic landmarks, diverse economy and strong sense of community. For more information about all we have to offer, visit MiddletownRI.gov online.
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