Fairfield Board Of Finance Sets Mill Rate At 19.19, As Accuracy Of Recent Revaluation Is Questioned

FAIRFIELD, CT — The Fairfield Board of Finance voted unanimously Tuesday to set the town's fiscal year 2026-27 mill rate at 19.19, concluding weeks of budget deliberations while also sparking a lengthy debate over the recent property revaluation and the high number of successful assessment appeals. The mill rate applies to the fiscal year beginning July 1 and ending June 30, 2027. At 19.19, the new mill rate is a significant decrease from the current mill rate of 28.39, but many homeowners will see an increase in the property taxes, because the recent revaluation showed that property values increased over the past five years. Ben Boveroux, Director of Financial Planning and Analysis, presented updated calculations based on the finalized grand list, Board of Assessment Appeals adjustments and a three-year average tax collection rate of 99.16 percent. The calculations reflected the Representative Town Meeting's restoration of a $10,000 appropriation for the Norma Pfriem Foundation and incorporated the finalized assessment data following the appeals process. Finance board members spent much of the discussion examining the impact of appeals filed after the townwide revaluation.