APCC Executive Director Andrew Gottlieb
MASHPEE – Mashpee town officials are considering asking taxpayers to approve a new surcharge on their tax bills for wastewater cleanup.
Currently Sandwich is waiting for approval on a town-wide vote that would make use of a wastewater account that accrues a 2 percent real estate-tax surcharge for sewer and other water-quality projects.
The surcharge on Sandwich property taxes would also be reduced from 3 to 2 percent for the Community Preservation Act.
“I think from a reason perspective, you’ve got towns looking at what’s worked differently in different communities to cobble up a program that works for them,” said Mashpee Selectman and Association to Preserve Cape Cod Executive Director Andrew Gottlieb.
If approved by taxpayers, the Mashpee 2 percent surcharge for wastewater would accrue nearly $1 million a year.
The town has a 3 percent surcharge for its own Community Preservation Act (CPA) account which has funded trail maps, Habitat for Humanity homes and other projects.
But they could vote to stop funding their CPA account in 2020, and instead look to wastewater.
Selectmen haven’t taken action on the surcharge yet, but have asked its finance director Dawn Thayer and her team to compile several options to fund the first phase of their sewer project as well as a finance plan.
“We’re very much in the formative stages, we’re just looking to see what the options are and then we’ll have a broad-based community discussion on which, going forward, makes the most sense for the broader community,” said Gottlieb.
By JUSTIN SAUNDERS, CapeCod.com Newscenter
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