To counteract cuts in state aid, Harvard should consider enacting local-option levies on hotel rooms and restaurant meals, as allowed under the budget passed by the legislature and signed by Governor Deval Patrick last month. Towns can now levy a hotel occupancy tax of 6 percent, and can add 0.75 percent to the 6.25 percent levied by the state on meals served in restaurants. Including hotels and restaurants within Harvard boundaries at Devens, this new income source could be significant in offsetting local aid reductions and declining local receipts.

According to the Boston Globe, the new taxes can be implemented as early as Oct. 1, and must first be approved “... in processes that vary by community.” In all likelihood, it would require a Special Town Meeting vote, which could be scheduled in September.

Such a move may call into question whether Harvard can levy taxes on businesses in the Devens Regional Enterprise Zone, but it may be the only way for Harvard to see any benefit from commercial development at Devens for years to come.

It’s worth considering.