Goes to Governor for signature
By Will Collette
This bill gives the Charlestown Town Council the authority
to craft an ordinance so those of us who make Charlestown our home can get a break
on our property taxes in what’s called a “Homestead Exemption.” The
legislation allows the town to exempt up to 10% of your assessed value.
For a house assessed at $500,000, that would knock the
assessment down by $50,000. At the anticipated July 1 tax rate of $5.93, that
would save around $300.
Many coastal communities offer permanent residents this tax
break because we pay year-round for an infrastructure that can accommodate
absentee landowners and other summer people.
Summer people also take their toll on our nerves through
increased traffic, trash and noise. Other than their taxes, they contribute
little to Charlestown’s economy other than the occasional meal at our few local
restaurants and grocery shopping at Rippy’s and the Mini-Super.
Out of state landowners have been buying up Charlestown
beach properties at unheard prices. Most recently, 18
Ninigret Avenue just sold for $5.5 million to a buyer who lives on Park
Avenue in Manhattan. They paid more than $2.2 million above the home’s assessed
value of $3,292,600.
So far this year, almost a dozen posh homes have sold to non-residents
all at premium prices well over their assessed value. While none match the $2.2
million premium paid for 18 Ninigret Avenue, all but two of the other
high-rollers paid more than $350,000 above assessed value. In second place
after Ninigret Avenue are the Massachusetts buyers of 14 Highland Road who paid
$718,900 above assessed value.
These folks seem to have money to burn.
Here’s the complete list of $1 million+ Charlestown sales in
2025 from our Tax
Assessor’s office. Note that Starett Road is a duplicate entry:
 |
| Eight buyers live in Massachusetts and Connecticut (4 each). New York, New Jersey and Florida each had one. |
During the years the Charlestown Citizens Alliance (CCA) ruled Charlestown, they stifled any notion of giving local homeowners any tax break that would come at the expense of non-resident landowners.
The issue crested in December 2011 and ended in what I
dubbed “The Riot of the Rich.” Town Hall was packed with rich
non-residents, CCA devotees, right-wing nuts like Jim Mageau and Harry Staley
and a few sadly misinformed locals who denounced the Charlestown Democratic
Committee proposal for a Homestead Tax Credit as the opening salvo in a class
war.
It was unfair to the wealthy, they said, and claimed that raising their taxes would drive them to move out, make them boycott local businesses and not give to local charities. They said all this with a straight face.
Since absentee landowners provide a substantial portion of the CCA’s election fund, there was no way the CCA leadership would support the idea. They stomped the homestead credit to death for the duration of their reign.
Then the CCA was finally beaten by
Charlestown Residents United (CRU) in 2022 and in 2024 when an all-CRU Town
Council slate was elected. That made it safe to talk about issues banned by the CCA.
The Council is currently chaired by Deb Carney (D) who was
one of the few brave voices to speak out for the homestead credit in 2011. It
was after her Council resolution that state Representative Tina Spears (D) introduced a
bill modelled on the recently passed South Kingstown legislation.
Here’s the official timeline for the bill’s quick passage:
House Bill No. 6247
BY Tina Spears
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION -- LEVY
AND ASSESSMENT OF LOCAL TAXES (Grants the town council of the town of
Charlestown the authority to enact a homestead exemption ordinance.)
04/23/2025 Introduced, referred to House Municipal
Government & Housing
04/25/2025 Scheduled for hearing and/or consideration (05/01/2025)
05/01/2025 Committee recommended measure be held for further
study
06/06/2025 Scheduled for consideration (06/10/2025)
06/10/2025 Committee recommends passage
06/13/2025 Placed on House Calendar (06/16/2025)
06/16/2025 House read and passed
06/16/2025 Placed on the Senate Consent Calendar (06/18/2025)
06/18/2025 Senate passed in concurrence
06/18/2025 Transmitted to Governor
Once McKee signs, the action shifts back to the Town Council who must craft and present a new ordinance for public hearing. They will need to decide whether to do it (and I hope they will) and if so, at what percentage of assessed value. If they act quickly, we could have an ordinance in place when the legislation kicks in on December 31, plenty of time for applying the exemption to next year's tax bills.
The legislation details what properties are eligible.
Here’s the text of the bill:
AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION -- LEVY AND ASSESSMENT OF
LOCAL TAXES
Introduced By: Representative Tina L. Spears
Date Introduced: April 23, 2025
Referred To: House Municipal Government & Housing
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Chapter 44-5 of the General Laws entitled
"Levy and Assessment of Local Taxes" is hereby amended by adding
thereto the following section:
44-5-89. Charlestown homestead exemption.
(a) The town council of the town of Charlestown is
authorized to annually fix the amount, if any, of a homestead exemption, with
respect to assessed value, from local taxation on taxable real property used
for residential purposes or mixed purposes, defined as a combination of
residential and commercial uses, in the town of Charlestown, and to grant
homestead exemptions to the owner, or owners, of residential real estate, or
combination residential and commercial real estate, in an amount not to exceed ten
percent (10%) of the assessed value. The exemption shall apply to property used
exclusively for residential purposes, and improved with a dwelling containing
less than five (5) units, or real property used for a combination of
residential and commercial uses. When real property is used for mixed purposes,
the percentage of the assessed value shall be a prorated amount. The prorated
amount shall be the percentage of square feet of the parcel used for
residential purposes, multiplied by the percentage of the homestead exemption.
In order to determine compliance with the homestead exemption as outlined in
this section, the town council shall provide, by resolution or ordinance, rules
and regulations governing eligibility for the exemption established by this section.
(b) In the event property granted an exemption under this
section is sold or transferred during the year for which the exemption is
claimed, the town council of the town of Charlestown, 19 1 upon approval of the
town council, may provide for a proration of the homestead exemption in 2 3 4
cases where title to property passes from those not entitled to claim an
exemption to those who are entitled to claim an exemption.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on December 31,
2025.
