Biddeford extends property tax due date

The City of Biddeford has extended the property tax due date to Nov. 18, as property tax bills were sent out late.

On Oct. 15, the City Council voted to extend the tax bill due date from Nov. 1 to Nov. 18.

City Manager Jim Bennett at the Oct. 1 City Council meeting said that the city initially had less new property tax revenue than anticipated, as it was discovered it had not factored $10 million in abatements to commercial big box properties granted by the previous assessor.

Bennett said under the guidance of the new assessor, the city discovered there were enough new property improvements that had not been properly assessed to cover the $10 million. This process took the city three to four weeks, which caused a delay in property tax bills, but gave the city the ability to keep the mil rate at $14.22 per $1,000 of assessed value.

“My sense is that, having a choice to pay more in taxes and to have your bill earlier, versus having it three or four weeks later, was probably a pretty simple answer for us to decide,” said Bennett.

Saco Bay News Publisher Liz Gotthelf can be reached at newsdesk@sacobaynews.com.