The Select Board on Tuesday voted to keep a single tax rate for residential and commercial/industrial properties and for the Boston Marathon bib allocation policy in respective 4-1 votes.

Principal assessor John Neas explained the options to the board. He recommended that the board not vote for an open space discount, noting that the town does not have any applicable property. This passed unanimously.

Neas also suggested that the board not approve a residential exemption or a small business exemption, as the town has not done so before. Only 21 of the state’s 351 communities use the residential exemption, while 14 use the small business exemption.

Approving these exemptions would not change the amount of money the town receives, he added. It would shift the tax burden from residential to commercial properties. The board voted unanimously against the small business exemption.

Neas pointed out that the town’s total valuation is more than $7.8 billion. An average single-family home’s assessed value is $1,053,350. The average assessed condominium value is $805,350. The property tax levy will provide about 70% of the required amount of revenue for the general fund for the budget.

The town needs to raise about $109 million, said Neas.

“This is just a reminder to the residents that the assessor doesn’t set the tax rate,” he added. “You know, it’s really the residents through either their participation in Town Meeting and various committees or their non-participation in Town Meeting that sets the tax rate.”

The proposed tax rate for the upcoming fiscal year is $14.36 per $1,000 of assessed value for commercial, industrial and personal property and $14.38 for residential property. It is considered a single rate rather than a split rate. The residential tax rate was impacted by means-tested circuit breaker senior exemption and the new school construction exemption, Neas explained.

Neas noted that the town has not implemented a split rate for residential and commercial/industrial properties for the duration of his tenure of about 15 years on the Board of Assessors.

Members Brian Herr and Joe Clark stressed that it would not be wise to have a split tax rate. Because Hopkinton is seeking to be more business-friendly, increasing commercial taxes could drive some businesses out of town and prevent others from wanting to locate in Hopkinton.

“I feel like I must be living in a different tax bracket than the rest of the board here,” said Kizner.

He noted that the town should seek every opportunity to provide tax relief to residents. As an example, Kizner said 20% of residents and families are “within two paychecks of interruption from the streets.”

Member Amy Ritterbusch noted that “the businesses are hurting as well” with the increased cost of supplies and diesel.

Chair Shahidul Mannan said he would like to see some future modeling about split tax rates. He noted that older residents and others have told him they are “really under distress.”

Town Manager Elaine Lazarus explained that while the commercial base has grown in recent years, the residential base “has far outpaced” it.

Members voted 4-1 for a single tax rate, with Kizner against. Kizner also voted against implementing a residential factor and against a motion not to have a residential exemption.

Marathon invitational policy remains

The board voted 4-1 to keep the same policy for awarding Boston Marathon bibs to town departments and charities by random selection. Kizner voted against the measure, asking for an explanation on how to judge the worthiness of some requests when there are more applicants than bibs.

Random selection would occur at a future meeting. To qualify, a department or organization must perform functions related to the marathon or public service to the town. Town departments with Town Meeting budget appropriations are not eligible to receive entries unless the bibs will be distributed to registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations that undertake public service activities within the town.

Each organization may request up to two invitational entries, according to the policy. The Select Board will announce a cap of invitational entries that an organization can receive on the day of the random selection. This date has not yet been announced.

Organizations that receive invitational entries through the random selection may distribute bibs directly to individual runners who agree to raise money for the receiving organization. The entries cannot be transferred to other organizations or individuals.

Kizner said the board reviews the applicants as “need blind.”

“I don’t know that I believe that every group should be equal before us,” he explained. “I would really like to understand the purpose of [the] charity, [the] depth of fundraising.”

He added that he’d “really like to understand the value of the town department versus the value of the charity.”

“The Boston Marathon is the crown jewel of this town,” he stressed. “From my perspective, it is the single biggest event of the year for both the state and our little corner of paradise. I’d really like to take it as seriously as the participants do.”

Other members preferred the current method because it is random and more efficient.

Clark noted that it is the largest fundraising opportunity annually for some charities.

Lazarus explained that the town is receiving 52 bibs this year, up from 50 last year. The Boston Athletic Association, which runs the Boston Marathon, is not obligated to offer any bibs to Hopkinton. It does so as a courtesy to each community along the route.

Technical difficulties delay meeting

The meeting started about 35 minutes late due to technical difficulties. It was broadcast by HCAM-TV at that point with intermittent sound for about 10 minutes. The meeting could not be accessed by Zoom until about 6:45 p.m.

Because the meeting lasted until almost 10 p.m., the board voted unanimously to postpone its vote on continuing the town’s intermunicipal agreement to obtain water from Ashland’s supply.