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DEL.ICIO.USThe downside of a $140 million property tax break
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just ran into a knot of county tax officials at the state Capitol, and they were uniformly unimpressed by the budget deal between the House and Senate struck this week, which would return $140 million or so to Georgia property taxpayers.
By check, issued by 159 counties to property owners.
Phillip Hogsed, chief appraiser for the Cobb County Board of Tax Assessors, said postage alone will cost county government $55,000. Paid for by county taxpayers.
Pam Register, tax commissioner for Schley County, said the distribution doesn’t make much sense to her. The law calls for her and other county officials to make the payments to those who own property in 2006. But the land might have changed two or three times since then, she said.
Who gets the check?
Betty Story, tax commissioner of Sumter County, said it would make better sense to distribute the money as property tax credits in next year’s bills.
Ah, but then taxpayers couldn’t see the tax break they’re getting. And the proper politicians wouldn’t get the credit.
UPDATE: We just learned that the House and Senate are discussing the possibility of adopting Ms. Story’s suggestion, and putting the tax break in the form of a tax credit applied to this year’s property tax bills, which are usually issued in late summer.
Comments
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By jane
April 12, 2007 7:34 PM | Link to this
I hope the peolpe in Gwinnett actually see this one. the Barnes tax break was absorbed with property reevaluation. I installed $15 worth of peel and stick tile in my laundry room and my property value went up $15,000.
By Bill Kecskes
April 13, 2007 1:26 PM | Link to this
We taxpayers want our excess taxes refunded to us - immediately! It is our money - not legislators. Quite frankly, we do not trust the General Assembly with our money! You guys have more than demonstrated your wasteful piggy ways!
I’m also afraid the $100 refund is a diversionary tactic to distract taxpayers attention while the General Assembly loads up HB 95 (FY 08) budget with personal pet pork projects of legislators.
$2,000,000 to build a parking garage in Hall County is not necessary unless the residents of Hall County want to pay for it themselves. $1,500,000 for a library in Speaker Richardson’s hometown is not necessary unless the residents of Paulding County want to pay for it themselves. $355,000 for a gold hall of fame museum in Augusta is not necessary unless the residents of Augusta want to pay for it themselves.
Also, why is the House hiding $6,000,000 in personal pet pork projects? Why is this list of pork projects being kept secret until the last day of the session? Taxpayers deserve to know everything that’s in the budget before their legislators vote!
Again, we don’t trust you with our money! Cut out the crap and quit porking hard working Georgia taxpayers!
Georgia Taxpayers go to work every day and we don’t have time to play the legislator’s Porky Pig Gold Dome game of hide the sausage! Legislators can play hide the sausage all they want but not with my hard earned money!
By ForgivingGrammar Matters
April 13, 2007 3:15 PM | Link to this
All of you know by now that tax assessors who don’t want to keep all of our tax dollars “ain’t worth their salt.”
By the way, some of us enjoy finding your grammatical errors: “The law calls for she and other county officials to make the payments…”
By Joe Warner
April 13, 2007 9:12 PM | Link to this
Hey Bill what about the 3 mil in bonds for the University out there for “Equipment” and the 1.9 mil for “infrastructure”? What does that mean? Sounds like you guys are getting plenty of pork!
By Bill Kecskes
April 13, 2007 9:40 PM | Link to this
Joe - Could you clarify - I really am not familiar with these two items. As for pork out here - true enough, it exists in HB 94 & HB 95; parking lots, libraries, vans for seniors, etc. None of it should be in the State’s budget. If the seniors in Tallapoosa need a van that much, let the City of Tallapoosa buy it. The library in Whitesburg was always supposed to be a citizens initiative. I still can’t find out who was to get a $15,000 parking lot and roof. As for the $15,000 appropriation to Sandhill Elementary - this should not be a DCA/LAG - it should either come from the DOE or the Carroll County BOE.
By Bill Kecskes
April 13, 2007 10:01 PM | Link to this
Joe - let me extend my argument further. Of the many pork items I see in HB 94 & now HB 95, quite a few are good and worthy projects but only benefit a very limited group of citizens; i.e. a parking garage in Hall County or a library in Paulding County. If the need for a parking lot is that great or if the desire for a library is that strong, shouldn’t the citizens of those respective communities pay for these items without relying on everybody else in Georgia who will not use or benefit from these limited scope items?
Then, there are items that are clearly pork and have no business in any government budget anywhere; i.e. $35,000 to the Big Pig Jig or $18,000 to purchase weight lifting equipment or $100,000 to renovate a municipal golf course that is undercutting and competing with private golf courses.
My greater argument is that a majority of legislators routinely campaign for office promising to be fiscal conservatives and promise to be watch dogs of the public purse. In reality, they are neither.
This afternoon, the House did vote to approve the pork laden HB 95 by a vote of 156 to 7. I can’t wait til morning to find out who this group of honorable “7” is.
By Joe Warner
April 14, 2007 9:51 AM | Link to this
That was a long “no answer”. I guess you don’t consider those items pork. As to clarify, they are in the budget. Only the people out there will benefit from those items.