Commenters on the AJC Get Schooled blog had a range of reactions to a guest columnist’s suggestion today that financially strapped Cobb County eliminate the school tax exemption now given to homeowners 62 and older. Here is a sampling of the comments under the poster’s chosen screen name.
Crystal: I am almost 59, and I would have no problem paying for school taxes. I would rather have kids in school than roaming the street causing trouble.
Centrist: Seniors have options where they retire. Most states and counties compete for their disposable income, sales tax dollars and property taxes. They don't use nearly as much infrastructure or cause crime as the younger populace. Politicians and educated voters understand this.
Numbers: I believe it is truly a shame that we have an aging population that we have to turn to make up for cuts in education. The road ahead looks unpaved.
Double: Paying school taxes is everyone's responsibility, regardless of age. I've never had to have use of a jail, yet I gladly pay taxes to keep this important government entity functional. Too few realize the correlation between a well-funded public school system and our prison population. It's kind of like, "Pay me now or pay me later."
Robert: Sounds good until you look at the financial situation of some seniors. Many have been receiving no interest income the last few years and can't handle the continual rise in property taxes.
Astro: Politically speaking, the elderly vote in a much, much higher proportion that the public at large (61 percent of the above-65 crowd turned out for the 2010 elections, the last national survey we have). That means raising these people's taxes, by eliminating their exemption, is political hara-kiri. The older voters are organized. They network. They are catered to. They have political clout (and not just at the national level; just try sneaking something related to retirement past the legislature in Florida). They are also a little more jaded and cynical — distrustful, if you will, of the education establishment's constant clamor for more funding. They know that any increase in tax monies will just go to fund more assistant principals, area superintendents and diversity administrators. They are not stupid and not easily gulled.
DS: Everyone should pay a fair share of taxes to help make this happen. We can discuss what a fair share might look like for various segments of the population, but we shouldn't give anyone a full exemption. No freeloaders.
Devildog: In DeKalb, we pay school taxes until we're 70, and look what we get for it.
Cream: The county made a pact with elderly residents and should keep it. Far too many Americans look at the elderly, who have worked and paid their "fair" share of taxes all of their lives, as cash cows. They saved for their retirement with the incentives offered them. Now, because of spendthrift governments on all levels, some want to stick it to them. Leave them alone, and the rest of us have to tote the water from here.
