what is on this blurb
test content
what is on this blurb
test content
Welcome to the Thornton (NH) Taxpayers Group website.
A group of concerned citizens got together as a result of the March 20233 issue of the school board trying ram a $17 million project for additions to the school. We decided that our town needed a watchdog group to pay attention to the town’s finances and to make these issues quickly and easily available to the townspeople.
We set up this site because navigating the financial entities for the town is cumbersome and confusing. There are three main components that drive your property taxes:
- Town operations – roads, police, fire, etc
- Thornton Central School – on Route 175, grades K-8, there are about 190 students there as of late 2023
- Plymouth Regional High School – in Plymouth, this is where we educate grades 9-12
At the outset, we are focusing on the town operations and the Thornton Central School operations. Eventually we will include Plymouth Regional High School.
But, there is one more component to your property taxes and that is who your elected officials are. Other than road signs and maybe a Facebook profile, there is no central place where candidates can tell you about themselves. That’s why we’ll added a Candidates page prior to the March elections. Any candicate can submit a 500-word or less bio about themselves, their background and qualifications, and why they want to run.
The data here are mostly drawn from the Town of Thornton 2022 Annual Report. Note that the 2022 annual report was actually produced in the first quarter of 2023.
Important links
- Town website: www.townofthornton.org
- Calendar of all meetings for the town (not including the schools. Calendar: Public Meeting | Thornton NH (townofthornton.org)
- Thornton Central School website: Thornton Central School (pemibaker.org)
Click here to get a list of all town meetings
The town and the school district are considered separate entities. Click here for a list of town meetings, Board of Selectmen, Planning Board, etc.
Click here to get a list of all Thornton Central School meetings
The town and the school district are considered separate entities. The school board of the Thornton Central School normally meets on the fourth Monday of each month at the school at 5.30.
Click here to get a list of all Plymouth Regional High School meetings
The town and the school district are considered separate entities. The school board of the Plymouth Regional High School normally meets on the first Tuesday of each month at the school at 5.00.
Candidate Profile – Matthew Peltier, Board of Selectmen
My name is Matthew Peltier, and I am running for the one-year Selectboard member term. I was born and raised in NH. I lived in Lincoln and moved to Thornton when I was 19 years old. At the age of 21 I joined the military, serving all over the world including Iraq,...
Candidate Profile – Laura Hopkinson, Board of Selectmen
This candidate has been contacted but so far has not chosen to submit a candidate profile. We will leave it up to the voters to see if this is important or not.
WRITE-IN Candidate profile – Bob Hatcher, Town Moderator and Planning Board
Many of you know me as I've been around town politics and activities for several years. A Thornton resident and taxpayer since 2000, I've seen the town both thrive and struggle. My goal in running is to make our town run smoother, to keep the small-town flavor, to...
Angry about your new property tax bill?
The town collects property taxes each year. How you pay your tax bill is discussed HERE. The rest of this page discusses the property tax process. The total amount collected is the sum of four entities. The town itself, police, fire, roads, etc. The school system,...
We welcome your comments
As a reply to this post, please give your comments and suggestions either for the information and structure of the website, but also on any relevant topic. (We reserve the right to delete rude, inappropriate or non-relevant posts.)
Thinking about the March 6, 2025, School District Annual meeting
The people have spoken... Despite our best efforts to bring sanity to the ever-rising school budget, at the School Board annual meeting on March 6, 2025, the townspeople rejected our proposals. Congratulations to the parents, teachers, administrators, and long-time...
What are the proposed Warrant Articles?
There are three articles on the School District warrant that will be voted on, on March 6, 2025. There has been some Facebook discussion that amounts to disinformation. Here is what they really are. Budget Cap In New Hampshire, a school district budget cap is...
How to apply for a property tax abatement
Applying for a property tax abatement in New Hampshire involves a few steps. Here's a general guide to help you through the process: 1. **Determine Eligibility**: Ensure you have a valid reason for requesting an abatement, such as an error in the property assessment,...
We’re fighting back against the out of control spending – why it needs to be reined back.
Many of us were surprised and angry at our recent property tax bills. Your schools comprise over 70% of your tax bill. The Thornton Taxpayers Group has decided to fight back to change the way our money is spent. We have developed three “Petition Warrant Articles”...
How are your property taxes calculated?
You can look up your tax bill and its history on the Town's website HERE You can see the same data on Avitar's site HERE The username "townofthornton" and the password is "thorntontwn" There are important documents for you to look at to understand how your property...
How Property Tax Payments are Calculated
In New Hampshire, property taxes are typically billed twice a year. Here's how the process works: First Payment: Estimated Bill: The first bill is an estimate based on one half of the previous year's total tax. This bill is usually mailed out near the end of May. Due...
School Energy Upgrade Updates
This is the second weekly report sent from Siemens - Brian Rancourt Hi All, After the second week solid progress continues (see below pictures) and attached updated schedule. New equipment curbs have been located and placed on the roof. Earthwork and concrete for the...
Heather Baldwin wants to allow illegal aliens to drive in New Hampshire
New Hampshire recognizes drivers' licenses from other states. Many of those states grant drivers licenses to illegal aliens. SB358 would have not recognized licenses issued to illegal aliens. Heather Baldwin voted against this bill and thereby allows illegals to...
Heather Baldwin votes AGAINST parental notification
HB 1312 Requiring parental notification of student health or well-being and certain curricula by school districts. Read the text of the bill HERE The purpose of this post is to inform you of how your state rep, Heather Baldwin has voted over the past year. We...
Angry about your new property tax bill?
The town collects property taxes each year. How you pay your tax bill is discussed HERE. The rest of this page discusses the property tax process. The total amount collected is the sum of four entities. The town itself, police, fire, roads, etc. The school system,...
We welcome your comments
As a reply to this post, please give your comments and suggestions either for the information and structure of the website, but also on any relevant topic. (We reserve the right to delete rude, inappropriate or non-relevant posts.)
Thinking about the March 6, 2025, School District Annual meeting
The people have spoken... Despite our best efforts to bring sanity to the ever-rising school budget, at the School Board annual meeting on March 6, 2025, the townspeople rejected our proposals. Congratulations to the parents, teachers, administrators, and long-time...
What are the proposed Warrant Articles?
There are three articles on the School District warrant that will be voted on, on March 6, 2025. There has been some Facebook discussion that amounts to disinformation. Here is what they really are. Budget Cap In New Hampshire, a school district budget cap is...
How to apply for a property tax abatement
Applying for a property tax abatement in New Hampshire involves a few steps. Here's a general guide to help you through the process: 1. **Determine Eligibility**: Ensure you have a valid reason for requesting an abatement, such as an error in the property assessment,...
We’re fighting back against the out of control spending – why it needs to be reined back.
Many of us were surprised and angry at our recent property tax bills. Your schools comprise over 70% of your tax bill. The Thornton Taxpayers Group has decided to fight back to change the way our money is spent. We have developed three “Petition Warrant Articles”...
How are your property taxes calculated?
You can look up your tax bill and its history on the Town's website HERE You can see the same data on Avitar's site HERE The username "townofthornton" and the password is "thorntontwn" There are important documents for you to look at to understand how your property...
How Property Tax Payments are Calculated
In New Hampshire, property taxes are typically billed twice a year. Here's how the process works: First Payment: Estimated Bill: The first bill is an estimate based on one half of the previous year's total tax. This bill is usually mailed out near the end of May. Due...
School Energy Upgrade Updates
This is the second weekly report sent from Siemens - Brian Rancourt Hi All, After the second week solid progress continues (see below pictures) and attached updated schedule. New equipment curbs have been located and placed on the roof. Earthwork and concrete for the...
Heather Baldwin wants to allow illegal aliens to drive in New Hampshire
New Hampshire recognizes drivers' licenses from other states. Many of those states grant drivers licenses to illegal aliens. SB358 would have not recognized licenses issued to illegal aliens. Heather Baldwin voted against this bill and thereby allows illegals to...
Heather Baldwin votes AGAINST parental notification
HB 1312 Requiring parental notification of student health or well-being and certain curricula by school districts. Read the text of the bill HERE The purpose of this post is to inform you of how your state rep, Heather Baldwin has voted over the past year. We...
Please join our mailing list:
We won’t bombard you with emails, just important stuff that you will want to know about.
On November 28, 2023, the property tax rate for 2024 was announced. Here is a comparison to last year.
| 2024 | 2023 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| County | $1.71 | $1.59 | +7.5% |
| Schools | $13.53 | $12.92 | +4.7% |
| Town Operations | $3.82 | $4.23 | -9.7% |
| State Education | $1.70 | $1.27 | +33.9% |
| $20.76 | $20.01 | +3.75% |
In a nutshell, here are the operating budgets for the three entities for 2023
Town operating budget
$4,237,039
2022 Annual Report, page 86
Thornton Central School Budget
$5,728,362
2022 Annual Report, page 141
Plymouth Regional High School Budget
$2,336,058
2022 Annual Report, page 103
Remember that the above are operating budgets, the expense side of the equation. Each entity also has revenue streams other than property taxes. For example, the town receives money from car registration fees and the like, and the schools get reimbursements from the state and federal governments. This next table shows the net amount each entity needs to collect via property taxes.
| Entity | Amount | Amount per thousand | Percent of total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town operations | $1,915,410 | $4.10 | 20.5% |
| Thornton Central and Plymouth Regional schools | $5,866,560 | $12.92 | 64.6% |
| County operations | $722,438 | $1.59 | 7.9% |
| Contribution to state education fund | $566,910 | $1.27 | 6.3% |
| Total | $9,071,318 | $20.01 | 100% |
These data were from mid-November, 2022. The new rate will be published in mid-November, 2023.
The town reports are HERE. Remember that the reports are labeled for the previous year. For example, the 2023 report is for fiscal/calendar year 2022.
If you are interested in how the town assesses your property, see this document from 2019. This “Revaluation Manual” is updated every five years and is being updates in Q4, 2023
The town funds operations via various sources of income including taxes and fees but the bulk of them are raised via property taxes.
The calculation is simple. Just take the total dollars the town needs, for example in 2022 that was about $9.1 million and divide it by the town’s total taxable property. Here the info for the total taxable property Q4 of each year:
Q4, 2023 = $462 million
Q4, 2022 = $440 million
Q4, 2021 = $427 million
This information is contained in a document entitled MS1 and is filed with the state. As of November, 2023, see HERE. These data are included in the town’s annual report.
There is a page for each entity that provides more detail.
This website is brought to you by the Thornton Taxpayers Group. We welcome thoughts and suggestions for the site. Send suggestions to info@thorntontaxpayers.com
We welcome comments on this site and suggestions on improvement. Please contact us: