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Boston Councilors Weigh Property Tax Surcharge
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Boston city councilors are considering whether to increase property taxes.
They're reviewing a proposal to add a 1 percent surcharge onto city property taxes — which would be part of the Community Preservation Act. That means the money would be used for affordable housing, open space, recreation and historic preservation.
City councilors held a hearing Tuesday about whether to put the proposed surcharge on this fall's ballot.
Guests
Joe Kriesberg, president and CEO of Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations. He tweets @JKriesberg
Greg Vasil, chief executive of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board, which tweets @GBREB.
More
The Boston Globe: Boston Is Losing Out By Not Adopting The Community Preservation Act
- "There’s been plenty of time to overcome initial misgivings that the law would chill the real estate market or harm large corporate property owners. Because the CPA also provides for a 30 percent state match for every dollar raised by local communities, some estimate that Boston has forgone as much as $300 million over the years."
Commonwealth Magazine: The Downsides Of Prop. 2½ And Community Preservation Act
- "In Massachusetts, this economic stratification that controls where people live and how they conduct their lives is being exacerbated by two big public policy measures we have put in place: Proposition 2½ and the Community Preservation Act."
Tufts University Study: The Community Preservation Act: Funding Impacts And Community Values
- "All communities studied expressed a desire to create affordable housing for valued residents such as veterans, the elderly, teachers and policemen. However, only two of the five case study communities successfully created affordable housing projects to their satisfaction."
This segment aired on March 29, 2016.