Comptroller elected to board of national finance officers organization
Bristol comptroller Diane Waldron was elected one of five new members-at-large of the executive board of the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) at the organization’s annual business meeting late in May.
A GFOA member for the past 35 years, Waldron has served on its Committee on Retirement and Benefits for the past six years and as Chair for the last year. She also is a member of the Women’s Public Finance Network and served as its President-Elect and on its Mentorship Committee.
She was a speaker on health benefits in 2018 at the Annual GFOA Conference and participated in the GFOA’s Advanced Government Finance Institute at the University of Madison, Wisc. She has received GFOA’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting and GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award.
As comptroller, Waldron oversees the City’s budget, investments of a fully-funded $700 million pension fund, employee health and pension benefits, payroll, debt management and capital and strategic planning. She manages a staff of nine responsible for the accounting, budgeting and financial reporting for all City funds.
Waldron will serve a 3-year term on the GFOA executive board though 2026.
City Hall announces Fourth of July closings
City Hall and the Bristol Transfer Station will be closed on Tuesday, July 4. There will be no curbside collections (rubbish, recycle, yard waste) on Tuesday, July 4.
Monday curbside collection routes will take place normally on Monday, July 2. Curbside collections for Tuesday through Friday routes will be delayed by one day, with Friday routes being completed on Saturday, July 8.
City Hall and the Bristol Transfer Station will be open and operating under regular hours on Monday, July 2.
Tax bills will be mailed June 30
Tax bills on the Grand List of Oct. 1, 2022, will be mailed June 30, city tax collector Ann Bednaz announced recently.
The current mill rate is 30.35 per $1,000 of assessment on real estate, personal property and motor vehicle taxes.
Real estate and personal property bills over $100 are payable in two installments. The first payment is due July 1 and is payable on or before Aug. 1, without interest. The second payment will be due Jan. 1, 2024, and is payable on or before Feb. 1, 2024, without interest.
All Motor Vehicle bills are due July 1, in one installment payable on or before Aug. 1, without interest.
All payments must be received or USPS postmarked by Aug. 1 or they will be considered delinquent. Delinquent payments are subject to an interest charge of 1.5 percent per month starting with the July 1 due date. The minimum calculated interest charge is $2 per CT State Statute Sec. 12-146.
The Tax Office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday thru Thursday, and 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday. Payments are by check or cash in person at the tax office’s temporary location 150 Main St. (Webster Bank Building). Credit cards are not accepted at the counter.
To avoid long lines, mail payments to the Tax Collector’s Office, P.O. Box 1040, Bristol, CT 06011-1040. The entire three-part bill and a self-addressed stamped envelope must accompany the payment if a receipt is desired through the U.S. Postal Service.
Pay online at www.bristolct.gov through the Invoice Cloud online portal. Online payment options available will include ACH (check), Visa, Debit, Venmo, Google Pay, Apple Pay and will also include options to receive text message reminders and/or email reminders; just Opt In and register.
Current tax bills may be paid at any M&T Bank from July 1 through Aug. 1, at any branch, including those outside of Bristol. A current tax coupon along with payment of cash or check is required.
Please contact the Assessor’s Office at (860) 584-6240 for receipt of a bill for a vehicle no longer in possession and for questions regarding assessments and exemptions.
Affordable internet access through national connectivity program
Earlier this month, over 300 local and national organizations joined Civic Nation and the U.S. Department of Education to launch Online for All, a campaign that provides internet access, affordability, and equity for students, families, across the country.
To see requirements and apply, go to the Online for All site and follow the screen instructions. Click here. Or go directly to the FFC’S Affordable Connectivity Program website, to find out qualifications for reduced or free high-speed internet. Click here.
An estimated 28 million households in the U.S. do not have high-speed internet at home, and two-thirds of these households are offline because they need help affording an available internet connection, according to the release on the U.S. Dept. of Education website.
All TBE readers, supporters and donors
The Bristol Edition will be limiting the number of stories non-members and free readers may access each week. This decision is based on our financial projections and, most certainly, to remind people that TBE is serious about providing accurate, timely and thorough reporting for Bristol. To do this we have devised a financial support structure that makes unlimited access extremely affordable, beginning with a $6 monthly donation.
- Non-members will be able to access four (4) articles per week.
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Note: Donors may have to contact TBE if they find they are being limited, since we will need to set up a membership account for you. Email editor@bristoledition.org for instructions. Sorry for any inconvenience. People with financial difficulties may write editor@bristoledition.org to be considered for free access.