Flat Tax Costs to You

Here is what the flat tax costs you the local property tax payer. The % is the amount your taxes will need to go up to make-up for the proposed general fund monies no longer to be received. All this for less than 15 wealthy individuals (19 in Newport, 22 in Portsmouth)). End or freeze the flat tax & aid will be restored. Seems like a no-brainer to me. Sorry, this tax NEVER made any sense given R.I. economic position for the past several years.

Our property taxes should be going down, not constantly upward. How much longer before local residents say "No More" & place a good portion of the blame where it should be- the State Lege & the guv. Our tax system needs to be fairer and we should be eliminating breaks which have no proven positive effect to the citizenry- we, the people. Not, we the few.

Middletown: 2.185%

Newport: 2.508%

Little Compton: .951%

Tiverton: 1.753%

Portsmouth: 1.386%

Newport's "Shared Sacrifice"

I had asked both Newport & Middletown community leaders their reaction to the Governor's supplemental budget. I rec'd this from Mayor Napolitano:

"The city will be sponsoring a resolution next week regarding some of the Governor's supplemental budget articles which administration has indicated will be very beneficial to the City, if adopted. We do not endorse the recommendation of cutting aid to cities and towns, but realize going forward is a give and take proposition, where there will be 'shared sacrifice.'"

It will be interesting seeing what specific budget articles receive their support. No word from M'town- but that's why Jeanne is Mayor of Newport and ... they're not.

I haven't heard anything about this in the news, but I do believe that tax caps do not apply when the Gen'l Assembly cuts local aid.

Taxes, taxes, taxes

Projo ran an interesting article the other day wherein they mentioned the Guv's wanting to eliminate income tax. Instead he wants to tax expenditures because... he does. Oh, wait a minute. It will grow jobs, yeah, more trickle-down economics which has worked so well not only for the state, but the entire country as a whole. I thought that this was why we enacted the flat tax for R.I.'s wealthiest tax payers (over $250,000) & reduced the capital gains tax? So...where's the jobs?


This year alone, the state’s income tax is expected to generate $1,124,235,000 for the state and the corporate income tax $161 million."


So 42 states have no income tax: "New Hampshire (which taxes investment interest and dividends only), Tennessee, Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wyoming." Yes, we have a lot in common with those states.


"Rhode Island ranks 24th-highest in the percentage of personal income gobbled up by personal income taxes and by the same measure, 28th-highest in corporate income taxes and 38th in sales taxes."


R.I. often ranks highly in various tax surveys that lump all taxes together because of our property taxes. It's not the sales tax, or the income tax, or the corporate tax- it's the property tax, stupid. And this doesn't appear to offer any help here.

The problem now of collecting taxes will fall on...guess who- small business. You'll need extra bookkeeping, of course. And suppose you can't collect? And who is going to enforce all this? How are you going to trace it out, let alone base revenue projections accurately? Yeah, the devil's always in the details. How much extra will small business end up charging to cover all this new overhead cost?

Sounds good until you actually get to the how-to's. So, how much are we all going to save? How much is all of this going to cost? Europeans generally tax both- income & expenditures. I just don't see how you can keep gov't functioing by taxing only the later. But maybe, that's the point. Am I favor of tax reform? But what poses as a simplistic solution is anything but. If it sounds too good to be true...

Thanks to Projo reporter Katherine Gregg for all the info

Saving Financial Markets vs. Good Schools

I'm having trouble with this. It's a-ok to throw money at troubled markets with little oversight. It's not okay to do this with schools. How many times have I heard it said that throwing money at education wouldn't solve any problems? Sure it would. We give them hardly any federal $, few state dollars, & bury the local property owner with taxes. Then we inundate our schools with benchmarks, testing, & standards. We punish them & place schools on public lists for non-performance. But for financial markets, we just hand show them the $- immediately.



I'm confused. What are our priorities as a nation? Well, clearly if there was ever any doubt, we know what they are now. The only good news as I see it is that it will be difficult to keep funding two wars & this many finally spell out its demise.



Let me recommend an excellent book for you readers out there who wonder how we got outselves into this mess. I rec'd the heads-up from Bill Moyers who frequently has him on his show to explain all matters financial. It's not an easy or quick read, but extremely informative & I enjoyed his observations.



It's by Ken Phillips, a former Nixon financial advisor- remember the reverse tax? The gov't paid you $ if you earned below a $ amount. Yes, this was a Republican proposal- oh, for the good old days. The book is "Bad Money." If you're fuzzy of some of this financial stuff, give this a read. I sometimes now explain things to my hubby & he's a whiz at all-things financial. I need to give it a quick re-read with all the current buzz. This guy was looking through his crystal ball & was right on the money (no pun intended).

Both political parties have no-where to hide on this one. Both can & should be held accountable. But John McCain??? Please. Just more foxes in the henhouse. Gee, isn't that a book, too. "Fox in the Henhouse: How Privatization Threatens Democracy." Next on the list. Try the public library or your local bookstore.

Middletown's Re-evaluation

Projo's Meaghan Wims has all the details.

"In the coming weeks, Vision Appraisal will begin visiting residences and businesses in town to measure property exteriors and review interiors to note the number of rooms and bathrooms, the quality of construction and the like, Shorey said. If no one is home, the appraisers will leave behind contact information that property owners can use to set up an appointment.

This will take a few months, there will be an appeal process, & this new appraisal will be reflected in next year's tax bills. You can refuse to let the appraiser on your property. Vision Appraisal is doing the job although they were not the lowest bidder.

Carcieri Owes Taxes in Florida- Update

****Updated Update**** You're welcome Projo for my background info (and that of Pat Crowley of http://www.rifuture.com)/. You did a great follow-up job, but missed an important question. Hey, I know something about real estate dealings having done this most of my life with my hubby doing this ALL of his.

It seems the tax office in Marin Co., Fla. had a great laugh over the guv's excuse that he never rec'd the billings for 2 yrs. of unpaid taxes on one of his exclusive waterside condos.

However, the litigation and collections manager for Martin County said yesterday that the office sent the bill to the correct address last December after a clerk did a little research and found Carcieri’s current address on Kenyon Avenue.

Oooh, liar, liar, pants on fire. Is there a mortgage involved here? Has anyone asked? They would certainly know in the county records office.

Here is a Florida media link and here is one from the Assoc. Press. It's been all over Florida television.

****UPDATE**** News at 4- Channel 6 http://www.abc6.com/ did a story on this. Oops! Guv made a mistake. He sent the $ in last night. He says that the bill went to the wrong address (5 Pearl St., E. Greenwich) & his bill payers did not pay it. Funny, he does own the property that it went to. Funny, you usually have to sign for these things.

I can just hear the postman now: "Where is this Donald Carcieri? Where is Suzanne? They used to live here, now where-in-the- heck can I possibly locate them?"

Funny, it was never forwarded. All-in-all, seems to be a rich man's problem. No, Channel 6 doesn't have to thank me or Pat Crowley of http://www.rifuture.org/. You're welcome.

Gee, guv, if you hadn't paid the $ you would have lost the property in a tax deed sale which you'd never know anything about. Hmm, a wk. or 2 in Jan. in Fla. sounds mighty good to me. I won't hold my breath, but if you're looking... I'm in the book.




The guv's Florida condo (he owns two) has gone up for property tax sale- twice!

No, I'm not joking & just to be sure of my initial facts, good ole Pat Crowley of http://www.rifuture.org/ checked it out firsthand with the Tax Assessor's office in Stuart, Florida. The guv & his wife own two condos. On one they pay taxes & on the other they have not bothered for two years. Consequently, "certificates" were sold to two different bidders for the same property over a two year period.

In two years you either pay those taxes back to the certificate owners with interest, or they have the right to take it to a tax sale auction to purchase a "tax deed." They then own the property. That's the long and & short of it.

For want of less than $12,000, our multi-millionaire guv has not seen fit to pay his property taxes to Stuart, Florida. What a guy!

Hello, media. I found this out in less than two hours of research which I passed on to Pat. And I'm just a li'l ole retired librarian.

Do I have the proof? You bet! "Entrust Admin. SVCS FBO Richard" owns one &" MTAG custodians for Marguerita Asset" owns the other. We're waiting for the Guv's response. And we could have had Fogarty. Go figure. Yeah, ethical. It's all a matter of public record. Gotta love those online public records!

Stay tuned for more!

Fo r those interested, here are a few links:

http://clerk-web.martin.fl.us/ClerkWeb/courts/taxDeedSales.htm

http://clerk-web.martin.fl.us/ClerkWeb/courts/taxDeedSales.htm

http://tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/article623995.ece

http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:GfPw7bp9MoAJ:www.cctaxcol.com/images/deed.pdf+tax+deed+florida&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us

Enjoy!

Teaching Contract Situations in R.I.

**UPDATE** Middletown teachers return Tues. Of the 14 teachers laid off, 11 are still laid off. The "Teach of the Yr." has been assigned to teach one class. I still have not learned the names or the areas effected by their leaving. So sorry for them. A truly difficult situation for them all.

**UPDATE** I have a copy of the letter that Tiverton's Supt. Rearick sent to staff on Tues. apologizing for his admonition to them to "Sit down and shut up." Yes, as he states, a poor choice of words in a highly charged arena. I know him & his mother. He was a Soc. St. teacher here and was the leader of the Middletown Teachers Union. Having sat on BOTH sides of the bargaining table, I can appreciate what it's like being in his situation (although he is far better paid than I ever was).
If ever you need a cool head & a constant reminder to yourself to "Shut up," this is it. Words once said are impossible to take back. He realizes at this point, if not sooner, that any good will he's spent time building up over the years with his staff is now gone.
This old style adversarial bargaining just doesn't work anymore. So stop already!


It happens yet again. Teachers in Burriville not returning for the school year. Why don't we change this craziness? We could enact legislation that forces all districts not only to first submit to State mediation but, ultimately, to State mandated forced arbitration when the former does not work. I've blogged on this before. It works in Conn.

Teachers in Tiverton are returning but with no contract looming, expect further action. State mediation is generally useless with neither side being forced to do anything but show up, eventually. Layoffs in Middletown (?14), I've heard about layoffs in Smithfield (?8) with no decrease in school population.


We know the cause - not enough $, an over-reliance on property taxes to fund education, & a tax-cap. We all want a good education for our kids - it benefits ALL of us. But pitting seniors, against parents with kids in school, against parents with kids in private school, etc., etc. is not only wrong, it just plain doesn't work.


State-wide contracts, state health insurance, blah, blah, we need something NOW. When school committees & workers' unions don't even speak to teach other, we all pay the price. School committees don't like to cut programs & lay off people but their hands are tied. Teachers don't like to strike, or work-to-contract, but they have families to support, too.


It's beyond curious when the Guv awards a higher percentage aid increase to charter schools than public schools, when a bipartisan Lege committee states that schools need MORE funding, when the Guv supports more $ for only SOME towns/cities, and when the Lege decides to freeze aid. ARRRGH! And let's not forget a federal gov't who thinks a war is more important than anything else.


And who will take the hit when elections rolls around - local school committees & councilors who have the least control over any of this.


I see no relief in sight, although a new Prez with a people-centered agenda would help. Leadership on a part-time basis (lege) is at least partially to blame. But there is plenty here to go all around. While Union leaders are always advocating, I see few members working the polls, attending events, supporting candidates, joining town committees, etc. And with few willing to run for school committe (here, at least), and often no party platforms anymore (non-partisan), perhaps we have gotten what we deserve.


Beyond sad. Strike, lay-offs, work-to-contract - been there, done that. More than delighted that I don't do that any longer. I wish that no one else had to either.

Middletown Council Plays Nice But Not Yet at the Hand-Holding Stage

I'm not going to cover the entire Council Agenda from Mon., June 19. I'll leave this to others. I'll hit the highlights.

The Council discussed an amendment to the sign ordinance. A 15 min. disussion of what constitued a "balloon" ensued. The only dissension was offered by Councillor "Mother" Theresa Santos to "tacky" political signs. She equated loving Middeltown with disliking signs (if she'd had a local flag handy, I do believe that she'd wrap it around herself). They are allowed now for two days after an election. Any longer renders you liable to execution. And the candidate, too. I think they're fun.

A 3-member Special Assessment Review sub-committee was formed consisting of Barrows, Silveira, and DiPalma. The Chair made a point of NOT appointing "Mother Theresa." Too bad some of her many assignments are not spread around to Silveira who has few (now up two 2).

Councilman's discussion of the Town Administrator's new policy regarding copying to the Council Prez any info given to Councillors or the public was discussed again. Silveira, The White Knight, wants this policy sent up to the A.G.'s for review BEFORE enforcement. He also wants the reference to the "general public" excluded. Of course, one wonders when a Councillor is just that & not also a member of the "General Public." Councillor Mello objected to the use of the word "Policy" instead insisting it is a "practice" (enough already!) & the Council "shouldn't be interfering with Kempen." Seems to me that they tell him what to do/not do all the time. That's why I refer to him as "The Man between a rock & a hard place." However it was unanimously approved. I'll will await the Attorney General's view of the legality of this policy with interest.

The next topic was Silveira's resolution to return to the taxpayer extra monies now in the undesignated reserve fund (appx. 4.5 mil). He wants this fund limited to 8% of the total budget (it is now 8-15%). This would almost negate ANY tax increase.

The Councillor was then complimented for the thoroughness of his presentation & research by both the Prez Roderigues & Sylvia. This must be a first! And the rest of the night went on like this. Everyone was polite, well-mannered, and thoughtful. Hurrah! Step one - check!

Sylvia thought this was a "short term solution to tax relief" and "not prudent." His concern is that our bond rating would be lowered resuling in higher vendor bills from those who base their costs on our Moody bond rating. We now have one of the highest in the state.

Councillor Mello thought we "should stay where we are," and "doesn't see where this puts us in a good place at all, and will "mortage our children's future." The latter statements around some non-complimentary under-remarks from the audience (about fifty). The comments were centered around the fact that our children would never be able to afford to live here if we can't.

Councilman DiPalma compared this to the tobacco funds on the State level being used to balance the budget for a one-time fix. "What happens next yr.?" He thought this was a "difficult decision to make" and that it might be prudent if we "spent funds to infrastructure."

The Prez asked the Finance Director to comment. I found him too soft-spoken and excessively verbal - in other words hard to understand. There are a total of 28 "reserve" funds. Many of these are restricted as to what they may be used for. He recommended no policy change but that the % we keep in the fund could be examined. Pretty neutral! Wise man.

Councillor "Mother Theresa Santos" said, "It hurts me to pay taxes." But she always does on-time & also pays her own medical. This elicted under comments from the audience - she gets Social Security & only pays a few bucks a month. This, of course, reminds me of teachers who DON'T. She thought the money excess is a "blessing."

Silveira then responded that we were"not blowin the kitty." "How many of us have this [28 reserve funds]? "How much is enough?"

The Prez is concerned with "What's right" and "fiscally responsible." He appreciated that the White Knight is "thinking outside the box." He thought this was "a band-aid fix." He was concerned he'd face "real mad people next year" when the tax rate rises. He then allued to a meeting with Kempen & Brown (Finance Dir.) to discuss the possibility of using some of these monies to fund reducing debt.

Roderigues also reminded everyone of the tax assistance offered by the town to those who can't afford their taxes (has anyone has ever made use of this. If not, the value is only theoretical.)

It was also mentioned that while the town is exceeding expectations in tax amounts, collections are behind. One might wonder why. Councillor Barbara Barrows is concerned about state cuts" and wants a buffer.

Ron Santa spoke & was clearly exasperated, "Sometimes I wonder if anybody listens." He says that this fund pulls in 1 - 1/2 mil a year and wants to "stop the growth." He wants one year of tax relief - "you'll still grow the account." He always makes it a point that he came up with this idea two weeks before the White Knight. He is rightly concerned! Somehow his brain waves are reaching the White Knight's - Spooky!

The White Knight could sense defeat (but the crowd's support!) & wisely had his own motion tabled until the figures in this fund are firmed up by June 18 (audit). I was shocked that no one offered to amend. Politics is ALL about making deals. But no one did. Evidently this is worth going to the wall for? Or is it just that you know that you have the Council votes? Ah, but the public is the ultimate voter.

The second topic went on much like the first. It concerns the PPV fund - this is the money that GMH gives us to cover police/fire costs. It's close to a million a year & has not yet been used. The White Knight wants the restrictions of how it can be spent removed & these monies returned to the general fund resulting in no new taxes this year (when combined with the previous resolution).

"Mother Theresa" Santos then was quite agitated & proceeded to hammer the White Knight. It was the second time that night & the Prez stopped it with "Let's get back to Council business." Happy feet! No more of this baiting, insulting, shooting zingers. Let's get back to business, indeed! Cheers! One things I've learned from watching. If she ever asks if she can ask you a question (on a topic you know that she's likely against) - say NO! It's a set-up.

Paul, the Prez, then explained this fund. If you build up this fund yearly, by 2010 you will have funding for a new fire station & other offices. No bond needed. He's going to "stick to my guns" and this is "fiscally responsible."

Silveira then countered (with DiPalma contributing info) that the future is difficult to read. The town plan calls for a new fire station but that doesn't mean it can't be on a pay-as-you-go system. School Sup't Kraeger had just restored some funds to the school budget when Blue Cross costs came in lower than estimated.

Silveira then got the Council to back him resubmiting his resolution eliminating the part calling for funds to be restored at least partically (for sports) to the School's budget. So stay tuned.

The next discussion was on DiPalma's resolution to gain more control over issues affecting us. He referred to the town being told that a heloport was to be located here, the recent bill to render Newport helpless in the new Casino proposal, and the recent location of a group home in the Coggesshall neighborhood (off Oliphant La.) with no notice to neighbors. In fact, a small crowd (12?) were involved with the latter. While no Coggeshall area residents spoke, the Chair of the Planning Board, Art Weber spoke in favor of more local control. Also speaking in favor was Zoning Board Secretary, Lucy Levada, and a neighbor of another group home. The consenus was to speak to the town's Lege reps (and get some lege submitted). This is going to be a difficult one. Let's see what happens, but I doubt the State is EVER inclined to give up any power to anyone.

And then, dear Reader, I departed while some meeting was still going on. It was a long night. It was wonderful to see local Democrats at least making an effort to get along. How the Council is going to nix Silveira's proposals is going to prove interesting. Silveira will win either way. By trying to isolate & marginate him, you awarded him the opportunity to be the White Knight. The White Knight is on a roll now as anyone can see. So when are you going to begin holding hands & crossing the street together? C'mon. You learned that in K'garten. Play nice. Then we'll ALL win!

PS. It was nice to see former Daily News reporter, Meaghan Wims there. Read her article in Projo . Read Ron Santa's newsletter. I'm sure that he stayed to the end & will give you more details with a slightly different slant. I'm sure that the "Daily News" will have its own take tomorrow with reporter Mike Sheley.

Middletown Council Mon. at 7 p.m.

Afraid of losing your home to taxes? You should be. Budget issues are on the agenda. That's what the last Council election was all about (I think). Councilman Silveira, the White Knight, wants to take those MANY extra unreserved funds & use them to LOWER your taxes this yr. (now here's an unusual idea)


Middletown has the highest Moody bond rating of any town in the state. This is a good thing if we want to borrow as we get lower rates. However, this is EXTRA monies, yours, being held for emergency reserve use. Towns usually hold 8 % percent of their budget for these funds. 10 - 12 % is considered excellent. Middletown has substanstilly MORE than this needed percentage, far more than most towns/cities. So what do you want done with them? It's YOUR money after all.


Middletown also has been collecting seperate, extra funds from the Landings (the old Anchorage Housing) which was supposed to be used for the extra police/fire coverage needed. It hasn't been used for that & is quite a substantial ongoing fund. So the question is, do you want these monies returned to you to lower your tax rate or do you want them held in reserve for ?? a new fire station, whatever, for which you will have No SAY (but a bond issue wouldn't be needed). What do you think?


Remember, there are OTHER reserve funds - inc. the schools. The White Knights' resolution also gives money to the Gaudet School for sports, although the Council cannot actually tell the schools HOW to spend their monies. In one budget hearing the School Committee seemed to say that any extra funding would go towards staffings, etc. with sports at the end of the list. Parents were angry. But the second hearing they seemed to say that sports would be #1. So, ya takes yer pick.


The Knight also wants to examine the new town policy wherein anytime anyone asks for public records regarding the Council or ANYTHING ELSE, it gets copied to the Council Prez & he decides what to do with it. Privacy? This is exactly what I heard the Town Admin. say & the Town Solicitor never contradicted this. Is this a good thing or of little importance? What do you think?


Councilman Lou, "Avis" ("He tries harder"), DiPalma wants to discuss why the towns/cities can't yank some control back from the State. Hey, he couldn't even get the Council to back him on more monies from the State raised by the local community being returned from whence it came. Talk about being marginalized!

He wants our State Lege officials to lead on this task of control? Good luck. Has Rep. Long even re-located back to his own district yet? He's been relegated to the fringes of the Rep. Party. Sen. "Sometimes I just can't make up my mind" Gibbs certainly doesn't have much clout either. The most important bill she got passed this term was to make any offense on the Pell Bridge a traffic offense requiring a fine, rather than a Bridge Authority responsibility. Good luck, Lou, forever the optimist.


The State Lege nixed Middletown's request to lower what the acceptable arsenic levels are (read increased Police Station costs) . Frankly, with the some of the Lege representation we have, Middletown doesn't count for much. God bless Rep. Rice (my rep). She stood up to the Lege against her own party & voted to get school funding increased. But no go. Good thing she's on our side. Rep. Jackson also represents our district, but only a small portion. He was the one chairing the arsenic committee on this topic and it's still ongoing. They may yet come up with a helpful solution.

Councilman, "The Inspector," Sylvia has two resolutions for consideration- to spend ?half a mil on renewing storm drains and talk about the dump. I'm interested in hearing more info on the former. Let's finally solve the latter problem and then discuss other topics - say beach pollution, the new police station, controlling health insurance costs, affordable housing, problems with the current methods of property assessment, decreasing pension costs by changing the State's amortization schedule (you should be screaming for this bill to pass resulting in lowered costs $ for the town) etc., etc.

There will be an appointment for the Library Board good only until this Sept. Vergil Blaschke has applied 3-4 ? times for openings. He's a decent, hard-working guy, who keeps an open-mind, and has been Chair of the Friends of the Library for awhile. He's attended most library board meetings for at least 3 years. He's familiar with contracts & that would be good since a new Director will hopefully be hired soon (I'm rooting for Ass't Dir. & Childrens' Librarian Barbara Camedeco if she applied). He's a registered Republican.

I also know the other applicant, Paul Lamond. He helps do all the beautiful gardening around town & the library. Good guy, too. Retired phone co. exec, I think. I served with him years ago on a school bond issue board for which he was Chair. I had some of his beautiful 4 ? daughters in school, too. Good candidate. Also is on the Tree Commission. He's a registered Democrat. I believe he even ran against Sen. June "sometimes I can't make up my mind" Gibbs.


So who will get it? What are these board requirements? This is NOT a partisan board. The White Knight brought up a good point recently. How do you decide? Who would you appoint? Why?

Another appointment is to the Personnel Review Board. This is a partisan board (only a few of these). The Republican Chair DeRuggiero has no name to place in consideration for the appointment (both local party chairs are asked to submit names). The likely fact is that his Party name would not win a vote anyway, but you never know. The Democratic Chair, Indian Ave. resident Don Lavine, "nominates Barbara Sylvia." This is the wife of Councilman "Detective" Sylvia. I also think she is the daughter of former Councilwoman Nunes and former State Rep Larry Nunes (R). Good people.

ANYONE could apply for this opening, though, but no one did. The odd thing is that the local Dem. Chair "nominates" her. Oops, mistake in wording. Only a Councilperson can do this. Local political parties DO NOT control board memberships or agendas! Wasn't this a bone of contention in the last election?

I like Mrs. Sylvia (I think that she forgot to also submit an application, too). Should a close relative of an elected official be appointed to a board? These boards often control personnel, funds, agendas, etc. What do you think? This certainly isn't unusual & I don't wish to imply that it is. Should a person not be allowed to serve because of their birth/marriage?

The letterhead from the Dem. Chair also lists Arlene Kaull as the V. Chair. She is also the Dir. of the Senior Center & her bro. is the Council Chair. Unfortunately this makes it seems as if she is also partly responsible for nominating board/committee members. Again, what do you think? How much do blood/marriage relationships count?


Antone Viveros is also addressing the Council. I like him. We don't always agree, but you have to give the guy credit for trying, speaking up, & never quitting. He's a Republican, but as I've said before, I don't pull the Party lever (or draw the connecting line).

It promises to be a lively session. Too bad the Council never take up a resolution/discussion on Rep. Long who no longer lives here, among other problems.

Be there or be square. Democracy in action. Say hello!

R.I. Tax Cuts & War Costs Translate into Higher Property Taxes

As I read the newspapers & the Hard Deadlines blog (links at left) regarding the financial problems faced by Portsmouth, I am reminded of the effect that property taxes have on all of us (as if paying my quarterly bills doesn't serve as enough of a reminder). As Portsmouth goes, so go we all.

Focus is primarily on School Boards & Town Councils. They set or determine the rates and as a result any increases focus on them. I see little responsibility aimed at the federal or state governments for these taxes and yet that's where it should be. The state has taken its responsibility for towns/cities and turned it over to local communities. It mandates how taxes are to be raised and for what purpose and how they are to be used. It's a state tax.

While reasons for declining revenues into state coffers receive the primary focus, little discussion is given to the primary culprit - tax reductions by the state & federal governments. The federal government has severely cut back on state support while putting forth more mandates which it doesn't fund. Every time the state cuts taxes, it leaves a hole in the budget which has to be filled somehow.

This has translated into more & more financial responsibility falling on local officials who have few ways to increase their income. Hence rising property taxes and fees. As the state-imposed cap declines every year, it's going to prove more and more difficult for local communities to pay for what they must.

Voters should take a harder look at their state legislators and ask them what they plan to do about this. Merely saying that they are seeking a new and "fairer" school aid policy just doesn't make it. Without saying where they plan to obtain these funds, they are just pandering to public sentiment & quick sound bites. The Lege could approve a much higher rate than they are now sharing but if they don't have the income, guess what? They will simply underfund. Heard that tune before? Think "No Child Left Behind."

While the guv bemoans high taxes and cuts many for the wealthy & corporations, he does zilch for property taxes. And this is what brings our overall taxrate up. It's the property taxes, Supid! Not the sales tax, or the estate tax, or the whatever tax.

So the next time you focus on your local council/committee member, ask the SAME questions to your local Sen./Rep. And don't let it stop there. Ask your fed'l Sen./Rep., "where's the beef?" This war we're currently fighting means minus funds for all of us here. We've lost funds from almost every segment of the federal budget that focus on we the people. And I, for one, would like it back!

FAIR Property Taxation

I've blogged many times on the basic unfairness of the property tax & the method in which it is assessed. I'm in favor of examining how it's currently done & taking a look at some other methods. Well actually, what I'd like to do is get rid of it, but barring that... California has another similar system which Dr. Harvey Waxman of North Kingston has long been promoting for R.I. Recently, he was interviewed by Bill Rappleye of Chan. 10.

Dr. Waxman has a blog and his Right Tax site. He's been trying to capture the Lege's attention, but has yet to catch the eye of any prominent Dems. Having Republicans sponsor your legislation is like a death knell.

This is basically how it works. Take your property taxes now. They would stay the same as long as you own your proerty. The only increase you would see is what the % change is. When you sold your house it would be reassessed. That's it. This idea has many advantages. You would basically always know what your taxes are. No surprises and little likelihood of your having to leave because you could no longer afford your tax bill. No expensive reassessment costs either.

Some details remain to be ironed out. For example, how would trusts who own properties be handled? These can go on for generations. The rest sounds darn good to me. Keep plugging away, Dr. Waxman!