Council Majority Leader Terrence M. Hassett (Ward 12) today urged the General Assembly to move forward with its review and vote on legislation that would allow cities and towns to assess impact fees upon large, tax-exempt institutions. “When the Assembly reconvenes after its recess, I hope these bills will have a speedy hearing and vote by the respective committees, and subsequently, the entire Assembly,” Hassett said.

Twin bills—H6214, sponsored by Representatives Slater, Costantino, Almeida and Diaz, and S946, sponsored by Senator Goodwin—stalled in the House and Senate finance committees after hearings in June.  Hassett said that the proposed legislation would allow the City to assess a fee of up to 25% of Providence’s tax rate. “In recognition of their status and their contributions to our community, the rate would be a small fraction of that assessed to every other property owner in the city.” He added that, “While we do recognize the contributions of the universities and hospitals—both tangible and intangible—much of the revenue they generate goes directly to the State’s coffers, bypassing the City altogether. As a result, we must rely upon property taxes paid by individual homeowners and small business owners to generate revenue for all our City services and our schools. The burden is too great on our residents.”

Hassett chaired the Commission to Study Tax Exempt Institutions from 2000-2007, established by the Council to examine the impact of tax-exempt institutions on the city of Providence tax base. After the City entered into a memorandum of understanding in 2003 with Brown University, RISD, Providence College and Johnson and Wales, to establish voluntary payments to the City through the year 2023, Hassett said that the Council “largely halted its efforts to pursue additional payments from them, in keeping with the MOA.”  Hassett noted that the Council did periodically call for reviews of the tax-exempt status of various institutional uses, including hospital property utilized for private practices and other uses that may not be considered tax-exempt.

The councilman observed that while some institutions’ plans for expansion have slowed down due to the economy, “as the economy recovers, so will their plans. That will mean even more of the city’s property coming off the tax rolls. We need a fair solution, and I think the legislation pending at the General Assembly represents a fair solution.”

Hassett is hopeful that the bills will be scheduled for committee hearings at the State House when the General Assembly reconvenes.