2016-12-00 Community Preservation Plan: A Needs Assessment.rpt

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Town of Lexington Community Preservation Plan Overview The Community Preservation Act In March of 2006, the residents of Lexington voted to adopt the Community Preservation Act (CPA), a statute which communities across the Commonwealth may adopt to fund eligible and worthy projects in four categories: community housing, historic resources, open space and recreation. In order to fund these expenditures, CPA communities impose a surcharge on their own property taxes of up to 3%. The CPA statute also created a statewide Community Preservation Trust Fund as an incentive for communities to adopt the Community Preservation Act. In addition to the monies raised through the local surcharge, the trust fund provides annual distributions to participating cities and towns at a certain percentage, commonly referred to as the `state match.' The CPA also requires each adopting community to establish a Community Preservation Committee (CPC), tasked with studying the needs, possibilities, and resources of the city or town regarding community preservation. The Community Preservation Committees are also required to make recommendations of eligible and worthy projects to their respective legislative bodies. The CPA statute requires that at least 10% of the CPA funds received in each fiscal year be spent or reserved for each of the CPA's three main purposes: open space, historic resources, and community housing. CPA funds may also be also used for the acquisition, creation, preservation or the restoration/rehabilitation of recreational resources. CPA funds that are not expended in one year may be "banked" or carried over to subsequent years within each main designation. The remaining 70% of CPA funds received in each fiscal year are available to be appropriated or banked, according to the community's discretion. Up to five percent of the CPA funds raised annually may be used for administrative activities related to the work of the CPC. The Community Preservation Act, signed into law by Governor Cellucci in September 2000, provides a steady source of funding for expenditures that may otherwise be overlooked in favor of the essential, daily operating needs of cities and towns. The CPA provides communities with a tool to preserve their own unique character and quality of life. Since the CPA was signed into law, 172 cities and towns across Massachusetts have adopted the statute. The Community Preservation Act in Lexington Lexington voters adopted the maximum 3% surcharge on property tax bills upon the adoption of the CPA in 2006. Mindful of the burden on homeowners, however, the Town also adopted provisions which exempt the first $100,000 of home value from the surcharge and grant a total exemption from the surcharge to lower income residents.