Boston City Council Committee Advances Property Tax Shift Petition Toward Full Vote

BOSTON -- October 29, 2024, Boston City Council committee advances revised property tax relief petition, with a full vote expected October 30. The Committee on Government Operations, chaired by District 1 Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata, held a four-hour public hearing Tuesday on Docket 1612, Mayor Michelle Wu's revised home rule petition asking state legislators to temporarily raise the maximum commercial-to-residential property tax shift ratio from 175 percent to 181.5 percent in fiscal year 2025, stepping down to 180 percent in FY26 and 178 percent in FY27. The petition also seeks authority to triple the personal property tax exemption from $10,000 to $30,000, which the city's assessing commissioner said would exempt roughly 4,700 of the city's approximately 9,500 businesses from the tax, and to provide up to $15 million annually in direct relief grants to small businesses. Chief Financial Officer Ashley Groffenberger said no Boston mayor has ever declined to collect the full levy under Proposition 2.5, and that doing so would threaten the city's triple-A bond rating. Boston Municipal Research Bureau Interim President Marty Walls, speaking on behalf of four business and watchdog organizations that negotiated the compromise, urged a yes vote: "After eight and a half months of study, proposals, conversation, and compromise, the Research Bureau respectfully asks that you vote in favor of the Home Rule Petition." Coletta Zapata said she intended to bring the measure to the full council the following day, noting that third-quarter tax bills must be mailed by late December.