Voters in Mass. communities increasingly reject overrides

The Boston Globe reports:

Voters in nearly 60 percent of Massachusetts communities considering property tax increases this year have turned them down, one of the worst approval rates in recent years.

From $5.2 million in Saugus to $78,000 in Topsfield, voters have turned down the pleas of town officials and activists, who say they need the tax hikes to cover increased labor costs and avoid laying off teachers and cutting services.

At least 54 Massachusetts communities have scheduled ballot measures this year seeking permission to permanently increase the local property tax levy, under the state's Proposition 2 1/2 law, which limits tax increases. Seventeen towns won approval for the tax-hike requests, 23 failed, and voters in two communities approved some ballot measures but rejected others, according to a Globe tally.

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