NORWICH – The Town of Norwich Board voted unanimously to pass a proposed $1,535,837.89 budget Thursday night after receiving no comments during a public hearing.

Supervisor David Law said he hoped some in the town might turn out with a few questions, but admitted he wasn’t surprised that none did since the 2011 budget only calls for a 12 cent increase in local property tax per $1,000 of assessed value.

He explained that this would mean a $5.49 increase to the town’s average homeowner in the coming year.

Law told the board that all other expenses burdened by the town were absorbed through careful budgeting and the municipality’s sales tax revenues.

The Town of Norwich received just over $350,000 in sales tax revenue in 2010 and in 2009. Law said those figures were down from the $400,000 the town had received in previous years.

Despite dropping revenues from the sales and mortgage taxes, the town is expecting to expand its total budget from $1,342,172.58 in 2010 by about $193,665 in 2011, nearly a 14.43 percent increase in spending.