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ExPRESSions
Levy local option taxes, now

The Board of Selectmen is divided on the question of whether Harvard should levy the local option meals tax, while holding their breath waiting for more cuts in local aid. They shouldn’t hesitate; they should schedule the necessary special town meeting, and let voters decide. But the question should not just be the 0.75 percent addition to meals tax, it should also be the available 6 percent addition to the rooms tax, and Harvard should expect to collect its share of taxes on meals and rooms in all of Harvard, including the part that lies within the Devens Regional Enterprise Zone. There are more than 100 rooms now, and more on the way. Even the most conservative occupancy projections could generate tens of thousands of new revenue annually, and there is no reason Harvard should not have this new income source.

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Ron Ricci   Report this comment   
Tuesday, October 13, 2009 at 5:57 PM
The premise of this editorial is that if the Selectmen acted, Harvard could be getting tens of thousands in new revenue annually because of the local rooms tax on the 100 rooms now on Devens. Unfortunately the reality is that Harvard can not collect a nickle in revenue from either the meals or hotel tax.

There is a slight problem called Chapter 498 Section 21 which in part states "The towns shall not be entitled to assess any fees or taxes on property, persons or businesses located in Devens..." See http://www.devensec.com/ch498/dec49821.html

In considering the merits of the local option meals tax, I already checked into this. If there were a good source of new revenue for the town that came from other than Harvard residents, I would seriously consider it.

We should all be looking at new ways of funding our town's operations that do not further burden the residents. I do applaud the author of the editorial for trying.
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