North Branford's 2021 Grand List, filed with the Town Clerk on January 28, stands at $1,372,706,140 and shows a net taxable increase of $42,186,041 or 3.17 percent over the 2020 Grand List.

Largely fueling the 2021 list's growth is one category that's jumped by $33,579,183 – motor vehicle assessments. North Branford's 2021 net grand list for motor vehicles, after exemptions, comes in at $166,651,995. The motor vehicle increase represents what Town Assessor Dave Ambrose called an "incredible" 25.23 percent jump above the 2020 figure of $133,072,812.

"The big-ticket item this year is the motor vehicle grand list [which] has increased by a mind-numbing $33 million or 25.2 percent. It's absolutely incredible. I've never seen this, in my 34 years in the business," said Ambrose, speaking to the Town Council on Feb. 15.

And North Branford is not alone. Ambrose said motor vehicle owners across the state should be prepared for sticker shock this year when receiving their motor vehicle tax bills from their towns, with the median increase among towns across the state at 27 percent.

The reason for the increase? In his cover letter submitted with 2021 Grand List details to Town Manager Michael Paulhus and shared with the Town Council on Feb. 15; Ambrose called it "...a perfect storm of variables combined to inflate the motor vehicle market."

As the pandemic caused tens of millions to cancel vacation plans, people gravitated toward private transportation, creating an unprecedented demand for cars. Meanwhile, also due to Covid, factories nearly suspended production to keep autoworkers safe. In addition to major supply chain issues, car manufacturers were additionally faced with a microchip shortage for new vehicles. The lack of new vehicle inventory created a high demand for used vehicles, causing trade book values to rise exponentially.

By state law, CT's Office of Policy and Management (OPM) is mandated to recommend town assessors value motor vehicles using National Auto Dealer Association (NADA) New and Used Car pricing guide on an annual basis. As Ambrose noted, NADA gives the retail value; not the market value, for vehicles it lists. In North Branford, the NADA values that added up to a net annual increase of over $33 million for motor vehicle tax bills.

"Because the number is so mind-numbing, we decided to measure three times and cut once. We applied a lot of QC [quality control] to this list," said Ambrose.

In his letter to Paulhus, Ambrose noted North Branford's Department of Assessment verified values received from the Department of Motor Vehicles. Over three consecutive weeks, the assessment department reviewed 1,200 passenger vehicles with an assessment increase over $2,500 assessment dollars; and 1,000 passenger vehicles new to the Grand List, with an assessment greater than $18,000. Of those, 95 percent matched NADA numbers; and 5 percent were updated to mirror NADA.

As Ambrose also noted when speaking with the council on Feb. 15, while town assessors are bound by state mandate to use NADA's retail values, there is a mechanism for residents to request mitigation of the bill; through the Town's Board of Assessment Appeals.

"The board of appeals will meet this September for motor vehicle appeals," said Ambrose. "They can take into consideration things that we can't," such as high mileage; blemishes, dents, etcs.

The council and Ambrose also discussed including a message in this year's motor vehicle tax bills explaining the reason for the increase. Ambrose said it was especially important as elderly home owners will be coming back in to make payments for the first time since 2019.

"I want to include a supplement to the bills explaining what's happened with motor vehicles. I think that will be very helpful," he said.

In addition to motor vehicles, North Branford's net 2021 Grand List (after exemptions) anticipates tax bills totaling $1,157,037,546 for real property, up $3,219,793 or 0.28 percent over 2020. It also shows a net total of $49,016,599 for personal property, up $5,387,065 over 2020 or an annual increase of 12.35 percent.

North Branford's top 10 tax payers (after exemptions) on the 2021 Grand List are: Evergreen Woods,  $49,823,921; Regional Water Authority, $44,469,891; Tilcon Inc., $10,768,940; United Illuminating Company, $9,051,061; April Acres LLC, $8,750,000; Totoket Woods Realty Co. LLC, $7,000,163; Honeywell, $6,073,535; Southern CT Gas, $5,077,619; Marshfield Ncm LLC, $4,933,884 and Town of Wallingford $4,827,147.