Public hearing, vote on Tax Anticipation Note resolution at Nov. 30 special meeting

posted on 11/28/2022

The City Council, at a Wednesday, Nov. 30 special meeting, will hold a public hearing followed by a vote on a resolution to authorize the city to borrow up to $10 million to meet its cash flow needs through a Tax Anticipation Note. A workshop will follow the special meeting. 

The potential need for a TAN is to make two significant payments for the FY2023 fiscal year next month before the city receives property tax revenue from tax bills. One is a $4,026,966 payment for mid-year debt service payments; the other is to the Strafford County government for $9,848,433. Strafford County residents pay a county portion of their property taxes to their local government, which is distributed to the county in a lump sum each December.

“Typically, we strive to have a certified tax rate from the Department of Revenue Administration and have tax bills mailed by mid-November with a due date for the first half tax payment no later than mid-December,” Joyal told the City Council earlier this month. “The timing for the receipt of the certified tax rate and our issuance of tax bills is critical to ensure we have sufficient cash receipts on hand to make a debt service payment on Dec. 15 and the county tax bill, due in full, on Dec. 16 of each year.”

Any interest costs for the TAN would be made from existing appropriations for bond issuance costs.

The city does not anticipate receiving a certified tax rate from the DRA until at least Nov. 30. If the DRA certifies the tax rate then, the first half of the FY2023 tax bill would likely be issued on Dec. 8 with a due date of Jan. 9, 2023. Typically, the bulk of property tax revenue arrives about two weeks after the bills are mailed, which would be after the two significant payments are due this year.

The city cannot produce and issue tax bills for the current tax year until the DRA certifies the city’s tax rate. The DRA cannot set a tax rate until a municipality submits all required documents to the state. This year, the School Department did not submit its last document until Nov. 10, about a month later than usual. Once all documents are submitted, the DRA puts the municipality into its queue to review the records and certify the tax rate.

The special meeting agenda is available here.

Mental health response crisis response study

At a workshop following the special meeting, members of a Dover Mental Health Alliance Task Force subcommittee, comprised of representatives from key health, education, and safetyrelated organizations in the Dover community, will present its preliminary findings of its yearlong study: Services Response to Mental Health Crisis in the City of Dover. Max Latona, the executive director of the Center of Ethics in Society at Saint Anselm College, will lead the presentation.

In its draft report, available here, “the subcommittee identified five significant barriers to improved mental health crisis services in Dover: insufficient communication and coordination between mental health care providers and social service agencies, inadequate staffing and support in organizations providing support services, a lack of tracking and data in key areas, continued social stigma and prejudice surrounding mental illness, and the absence of a dedicated facility providing round-the-clock mental health crisis services.”

Pavement condition assessment report

The consultant the city contracted with earlier this year to assess the pavement conditions of all city streets will present its findings at the workshop. The consultant, Stantec Consulting Services, Inc., of Burlington, Massachusetts, also analyzed the reflectivity of all city roadway signs.

The special meeting begins at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 30, with the workshop to start
immediately afterward. Both will be available on Channel 22 and online at dovernh.viebit.com.