With the approval of the revised budget on Tuesday, the County Commission has given $500,000 of your tax hike dollars to the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce. Read more…
I have received indications from reliable sources that the Commission will vote to adopt the full 2.28 mill tax increase after tonight’s public hearing.
The inclusion of 2010 budget items in this 2009 supplemental millage rate is UNPRECEDENTED and UNNECESSARY. As a result, the tax increase to be passed tonight will be 32% higher than it arguably should be, because of the 2010 items which total $19.8 million. Read more…
The County Commission spent approximately two hours on Monday hearing primarily from angry residents, most of whom adamantly oppose the proposed 2.28 mill tax increase. The third and final hearing will be held on Tuesday, December 1 at 7:00 pm in the auditorium of the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center.
As promised, what follows is my compromise proposal. It is based, in no small amount, on the mostly thoughtful feedback that I have received from the dozens of you. It is also founded, however, on a very hefty dose of political and financial reality, as well as my desire to move forward and make something positive out of a very bad situation. Read more…
Earlier this year, the public (correctly, in my opinion) revolted over a proposed 30% tax increase. The 2009 budget approved on March 3 (large file) contained expenditures that were unjustified in the current financial climate– a light rail study, GPS in county vehicles and $1.06 million for a “Go Green Initiative,” to name just a few of the items on the Commissioners’ wish list.
The increase was also going to pay, however, for some pretty important stuff– the equipping and staffing of three new fire stations; 58 new police officers and equipment; the reestablishment of the Quality of Life unit; and several prosecutors and investigators in the District Attorney’s office. (Pictured: Station 30 on Ozora Road in Loganville-Grayson; finished but empty)
Not only are those items in jeopardy, but the rejection of the earlier increase also necessitated additional service cuts beyond those already incorporated into the budget. For example, early retirements and layoffs have cut “back office” functions, like general administration and Planning & Development, to the bone, even after 108 positions had been eliminated in the initial budget. A planned pay raise has been abandoned as well. Read more…
Last month, I described how the foundation for Gwinnett’s current financial woes was laid years ago through a series of bad decisions and flawed financial strategies. One series of actions by the County Commission is, in my opinion, most relevant to the current state of affairs.
For the past four years, the County Commission has not raised your property tax rate. Believe it or not, that was a bad thing.
For a couple of decades, Gwinnett benefited financially from being one of the fastest growing counties in the nation. Gwinnett’s explosive growth built fire stations, libraries, a state-of-the-art water reclamation facility and more. A fairly stable millage rate applied to a growing tax base funneled tax dollars into county coffers.
There is, however, a continuing cost associated with the operation of public facilities– staff, maintenance, utilities and the like. Around 2005, the annual increases in the cost of government began to outpace the growth in the Net Tax Digest. The county’s tax base was “maturing” as the inventory of developable land decreased.
This maturation was anticipated by the county’s financial forecasters, but ignored by the County Commission. That year, the Commission under Chairman Charles Bannister embarked on a flawed, politically-driven financial strategy that would hamstring the county’s efforts to respond to the looming crisis. Read more…
The Gwinnett County Commission has again proposed a millage rate increase to fund the restoration of most services that were slashed from the budget in June when taxpayers revolted against a 35% hike. The second proposal, slimmed down but still substantial, will come up for a vote on December 1 after three public hearings.
Gwinnett taxpayers are in no mood for a tax increase. Little has changed from the summer when hundreds of citizens rallied in Suwanee to denounce it.
Over the next two weeks, I plan to analyze various aspects of the tax hike proposal– how we arrived at this place in time; what is included in the increase and what is not; what is right about it and what is wrong.
If you’re totally against a tax increase, you face an uphill battle. The reality is that there are already enough votes to pass the tax hike as proposed. Chairman Bannister has signaled that he will support it, as has Kevin Kenerly, who isn’t running for reelection. Shirley Lasseter is a sure second vote for Bannister; Bert Nasuti is also a lame duck but is open to reason. Only Mike Beaudreau is expected to oppose it. Read more…
This comment by Commissioner Kevin Kenerly is just the latest example of the public relations nightmare that has been our county government’s march toward a final 2009 budget and tax rate. Gwinnett Daily Post Editor Todd Cline opines on Kenerly’s comments in this editorial.
"I’m asking everyone … to sacrifice for the county on (a) movie ticket and one Diet Coke (a month) to protect every citizen of the county," Kenerly said last week. "To me, I think that’s a minimum price to ask to get us to where we need to be. … People have to get their head out of the sand and not just think about themselves all the time."
Recent audits of state user fees found that similar fees are inconsistent across the state and many have no relation to the actual cost of the service being provided.
When the users of government services pay for those services, there is a lesser need to use general fund dollars, paid by taxpayers who never use the service. User fees focus that portion of the cost of government on those who actually use the service.
There is a danger, however, when politicians consider raising fees across the board in response to a financial crisis:
“We shouldn’t just have a fee for a fee’s sake and call it a user fee and exploit it for something else,” said Benita Dodd, the vice president of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation. “Then it just becomes a tax.”
Georgia considers higher fees instead of taxes 111209 – The Augusta Chronicle
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