I strongly caution against directly connecting tax reform impacts to financing of a new Hildreth Elementary School. The property (and other) tax cap of $10,000 will mostly affect those who itemize, which have generally been higher income households. Other pieces of tax reform (example: doubling of standard deduction) may, in fact, benefit lower income and elderly filers who do not have higher incomes to itemize. In short, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) is complicated, and direct impacts on this project (and lots of other things) are not yet clear. Also, economically, the risks of tax increases do not rise when the economy has a downturn, and there is no empirical evidence to that effect. In fact, during the 2009 downturn, legislation was intended to provide economic stimulus, jobs, and assistance, not higher taxes. I am not a tax professional, but I am a chartered financial analyst. Financial analysis of any project should be generally contained to the most relevant variables. Economic context should be considered, but “scope creep” can be overly distracting.
My children do not attend HES. I support the project because I am willing to support all others in this town, including young families, seniors, charitable groups, Harvard ambulance, and town sports. My husband and I contribute in ways that don’t directly benefit our family because we feel that it is important to do so. Harvard is a smart and giving town and not a negative “us versus them” community. By not participating in the difficult HES committee work myself, I have, de facto, delegated that task to those committee members, and I respect their recommendations, which were accepted at Town Meeting last year in June. I hope that you will reach out a hand and join me on both May 5 and May 8 in voting yes for the elementary school project.
Robin Foley
West Bare Hill Road
