Country/City Taxes
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
The governor's proposed property tax relief bill in its present form (capping residential property tax at 1 percent of valuation) is going to penalize people who don't live in the city. I live outside the city, and my property taxes are a little over 1 percent of my assessed valuation. If I lived in the city, my taxes would be a little over 1-1/2 percent of my assessed valuation. The 50-percent increase would go for things like garbage pickup, better fire and police protection and other city services. Under the governor's plan, I would save $40. If I lived in the city, I would save $764.
I pay $322 a year for garbage pickup. Homeowners insurance is more expensive if you don't live near a fire station and a good water supply. Most of the money I save by not living in the city I have to pay directly out of my pocket for things city dwellers get free. The cost of providing city services is not going to go down, so the lost city taxes will have to be made up by an increase in sales and income tax. I would be paying the same property tax as a city resident, but still have to pay for all the services they get free, plus the new sales and income tax.
I don't mind paying my fair share, but unless the county starts picking up my garbage free and puts a fire hydrant in my yard, I will be subsidizing the city services.
Call your state representative and ask him or her what they plan to do about this inequity.
Dick Jaynes
Warsaw, via e-mail[[In-content Ad]]
The governor's proposed property tax relief bill in its present form (capping residential property tax at 1 percent of valuation) is going to penalize people who don't live in the city. I live outside the city, and my property taxes are a little over 1 percent of my assessed valuation. If I lived in the city, my taxes would be a little over 1-1/2 percent of my assessed valuation. The 50-percent increase would go for things like garbage pickup, better fire and police protection and other city services. Under the governor's plan, I would save $40. If I lived in the city, I would save $764.
I pay $322 a year for garbage pickup. Homeowners insurance is more expensive if you don't live near a fire station and a good water supply. Most of the money I save by not living in the city I have to pay directly out of my pocket for things city dwellers get free. The cost of providing city services is not going to go down, so the lost city taxes will have to be made up by an increase in sales and income tax. I would be paying the same property tax as a city resident, but still have to pay for all the services they get free, plus the new sales and income tax.
I don't mind paying my fair share, but unless the county starts picking up my garbage free and puts a fire hydrant in my yard, I will be subsidizing the city services.
Call your state representative and ask him or her what they plan to do about this inequity.
Dick Jaynes
Warsaw, via e-mail[[In-content Ad]]
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