Requesting Certification to Exceed the Statutory Tax Limit Due to an Emergency Situation

If a municipal entity plans to levy a property tax in excess of the limit as defined in Rhode Island General Laws (RIGL) Section 44-5-2 entitled "Maximum Levy," it must obtain certification from either the Department of Revenue or the Office of the Auditor General (OAG). The conditions under which a municipal entity must request certification are described in the General Laws. If a municipal entity experiences an emergency situation which may require it to increase its tax levy over the prior year’s levy by more than the statutory limit, the municipal entity must apply to the Auditor General to certify the emergency. The Standards and Procedures are available for requests of the Auditor General to certify the existence of an emergency situation.

In order to facilitate an application with the Office of the Auditor General, the finance officer of the municipal entity should submit the following:

• A letter signed by the chief executive officer of the municipal entity, requesting to exceed the property tax limit;
• Schedule A and Schedule B completed to support the amount of the total override requested from the Auditor General;
• A detailed budget document for the current fiscal year, (if proposed emergency situation exists in school budget, include detailed line item budget for both town and school);
• A detailed proposed budget document for new fiscal year with each emergency situation clearly identified in budget document, (if proposed emergency situation exists in school budget, include detailed line item budget for both town and school);
• Information supporting the emergency nature of each item requested (e.g., current and projected student population data for 3 or more years as evidence of significant growth in student population);
• A signed certification by the municipal entity (including school district, if applicable) as to the financial facts in support of the request to the Auditor General and also that there are no other line items in the budget that can be reduced; and
• Other information deemed relevant to your request.

Please submit your request to the Office of the Auditor General, along with all required documentation, at least 30 days before the date that you require a response.

This procedure only applies to requests to this office for certification to exceed the property tax limit due to emergency situations. If you need an override for other conditions described in the general laws, you must petition the Division of Municipal Finance under the Director of Revenue. Phone (401-574-9900). Web page https://municipalfinance.ri.gov/financial-tax-data/property-tax-cap.