Rhode Island's proposed Senate Bill 0037 and House Bill 5756 aim to let cities impose an extra tax on high-end home sales, particularly impacting Newport, where homes average $1.3 million. The Newport City Council unanimously opposed the bills, claiming they would unfairly burden the town, where nearly 38% of homes exceed $900,000. Additionally, Newport already surpasses the state's affordable housing mandate of 10%, maintaining 15.6%. Mayor Charles Holder emphasizes that the city contributes its fair share and critiques the inflexible restrictions on tax fund usage.
Nearly 38% of properties in Newport fall above the $900,000 threshold, and in the last year there was an 18% jump in high-value home sales.
Newport already does more than our fair share," Newport Mayor Charles Holder told The Newport Daily News, challenging the notion they arenât contributing to housing solutions.
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