Details
Surcharge Calculation
The CPA surcharge is 1% of your tax bill, not an additional 1% on the tax rate! Furthermore, the first $100,000 of assessed value is exempt, so if your home is assessed at $600,000 the CPA calculation will be based on $500,000. Based on the FY24 tax rate of $16.95 per $1000 of assessed value, below are the CPA surcharges for different assessed values:
Annual CPA Surcharge
$84
$119
$153
$186
$220
Assessed Value
$600,000
$800,000
$1 million
$1.2 million
$1.4 million
Income Based Exemptions
As passed at the 2024 Annual Town Meeting, Sherborn’s adoption of CPA would allow for income-based exemptions at thresholds established annually by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The threshold for residents under the age of 60 is 80% of the area median income, and for residents age 60 and over it is 100% of the area median income.
Below are some of the thresholds for 2024 for Sherborn residents of various household sizes. The full table can be found here.
Household Size
1
2
3
4
Max Income (below 60)
$83,384
$95,296
$107,208
$119,120
Max Income (60+)
$104,230
$119,120
$134,010
$148,900
Potential Savings
Because of the State matching funds from the CPA Trust Fund, adopting CPA can save money for the town in the long run, potentially even reducing the tax rate. An analysis performed by the Town Administrator found that over the past 25 years, Sherborn has on average approved capital spending on projects that would have been CPA eligible at an average of $275,000 per year. Based on FY23 town valuation, it is estimated that adopting CPA as passed at the 2024 Annual Town Meeting would result in about $295,000 in total CPA revenue (including state matching funds), approximately equal to our historical spending trends.
If the town were to adopt CPA and spend the CPA funds on eligible projects at the same rate as it has in the past, the state matching funds would offset the cost of the projects thus saving money in the long run. As an example:
Based on the FY23 valuation, the average Sherborn household would have paid $160 in CPA surcharge, and the town would have received $295,000 in total CPA funds.
Imagine instead that same $295,000 was borrowed by the town, then bonded over 20 years with a 4.5% interest rate (in line with recent town bonds). Over the course of the 20 year bond, the average Sherborn household would pay $245.20 in debt service.
For the same $295,000 of CPA-eligible projects, the average household would pay 53% more ($245.20 instead of $160) by borrowing the money instead of using CPA.
