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UPDATE: Residents sound off on tax hike
Published October 30, 2009
UPDATED 1:40 p.m. Oct. 30
Gwinnett County residents are no happier about a proposed tax hike now than they were in the spring when the matter was first raised.
The new proposal would increase the millage rate 21 percent instead of the 30 percent first proposed.
Officials from Gwinnett County were on hand for Thursday night's town hall meeting to hear residents express objections and attempt to answer some of their questions. A show of hands at the start of the meeting quickly revealed that while most were prepared to accept a small increase to avoid proposed cuts to public safety, the vast majority were not happy with an increase to support other services such as libraries and parks.
Freedom Works and Citizens for Responsible Government, the organizations that sponsored the meeting, had been meeting with officials from Gwinnett County and invited several of them to the forum, including CFO Aaron Bovos, Board of Commission Chairman Charles Bannister, District 4 Commissioner Kevin Kennerly and District Attorney Danny Porter.
Bovos gave a brief presentation outlining the services that would be restored should the increased millage rate be approved Dec. 21 and assuring attendees the county is not in a budget crisis but is trying not to compromise the level of services it's committed to delivering to residents.
But few people were convinced. Time after time Bannister assured residents cuts had been made in other departments and not just to services where people would feel it most. He offered to take residents through the county government offices to show where the cuts had been made. A few people questioned county's involvement of the Gwinnett Braves stadium.
"Why don't you sell the stadium to the Braves?" said attendee Ben Archer, adding the county could use the funds from the sale to restore some of the essential services.
Bannister acknowledged there had been problems with the stadium but said legal contracts and other challenges prevented any sale - at least for the time being. However, Bovos said that didn't mean it couldn't be sold at some time in the future.
Another issue raised was whether funds from the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax could be used. Officials said as it stands at the moment, state law prevents that from happening. Funds from SPLOST can be used for the construction only, staffing and maintenance costs relating to any SPLOST development has to come out of the county budget. Officials acknowledged the constraints SPLOST puts on the budget and encouraged residents to contact their state representatives in an effort to change the law to allow some SPLOST funds to be used to maintain and staff SPLOST construction.
Chuck Carey, a Gwinnett resident who joined the Loganville contingent in the Washington D.C. Freedom Rally last summer, said he would rather commissioners consider a 1-percent sales tax instead.
"Gwinnett County only has 6 percent - Fulton County has 8 percent," Carey said. "It's a consumption tax but at least we would be able to get some participation from those who come to Gwinnett and participate in the entertainment and facilities. We could tap into those funds."
David Jones of Lawrenceville said he was disappointed in the leadership shown.
"It isn't like this happened overnight - they've been operating a deficit budget for a while," Jones said. "They held off and held off so they could be re-elected. These decisions should have been made before we got to this point. I can't operate my household budget under a deficit - We shouldn't have tried to operate the county that way either."
There will be three public meetings before the vote on Dec. 1. - 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Nov. 23 and 7 p.m. Dec. 1 before the vote.
Further information on the tax debate can be found at www.savegwinnett.com.
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The on again, off again proposed tax hike in Gwinnett County is back on again but at a 21-percent increase instead of the 28 percent proposed in the spring.
Taxpayers are not expected to respond any better to the new plan than they did the last, with Freedom Works and Citizens for Responsible Government immediately called for a town hall meeting Thursday night at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center in Lawrenceville.
Officials spent the summer making cuts after taxpayers made it known they were not happy with the original tax hike, but many of the cuts were not popular either. At a meeting earlier in the month, District 4 Commissioner Kevin Kenerly asked county staff to take another look at what would be required to keep some of the public safety, parks and recreation and social services programs where cuts were not well received. Officials announced the new proposal Oct. 23, to be funded by a 2.28-mill increase in property taxes.
County Administrator Glenn Stephens said the country would hold three public hearings on the proposed increase, the first two Nov. 23, one at 10 a.m. and another at 6 p.m. Then on Dec. 1 there would be another hearing at 7 p.m., which was expected to be followed by a special called meeting where the commission would vote on the proposal.
“Based on discussions with commission members, they will consider the proposal at the Dec. 1 meeting, and we have been asked to take the necessary steps to make Gwinnett County’s citizens and taxpayers aware of the proposal well ahead of that decision,” Stephens said. “Between Oct. 23 and Dec. 1, staff will make presentations and answer questions as requested. The Board of Commissioners wants to hear from taxpayers and will monitor public comments and input.”
The proposal outlined by officials would add $31.3 million in service-related additions to the 2009 budget and provide, among other items, funding for the district attorney, courts and constitutional officers, the addition of 58 new police officers, the opening and staffing of three new fire stations and the continued operation of all county libraries — including the new Hamilton Mill branch opening next year — at equal service levels. It would also add $4.8 million to the recreation fund to, among other things, set youth athletic association fees at a more affordable level for families, restore grounds maintenance personnel and restore seven-day operations at all aquatic centers. The proposal also will address a deficit in 2010 and compensate for a reduction in the commercial and residential property tax digest.
For 63 percent of county homeowners, whose homes are assessed at $200,000 or less, the resulting tax increase would be less than $13.36 a month; for the additional 30 percent of Gwinnett homeowners whose homes are assessed at between $200,001 and $350,000, the monthly tax increase would be between $13.36 and $24.76. Combining the two groups, 93 percent of homeowners would see a tax increase of less than $25 per month.
If the proposed tax hike is approved by commissioners, a second set of 2009 tax bills, at a cost of $240,034 would be mailed to property owners on March 15, 2010, due May 18. Tax bills were issued to property owners last August under a temporary collection order, which allowed the board of commissioners to set a temporary millage rate while the county continued its dispute with cities over the service delivery agreements.
But if this goes through as planned, Gwinnett County taxpayers are going to be hit with a double whammy next year when they will be on the hook for this year’s shortfall in May and then have to turn around and pay the 2010 taxes in September and November.
Commission Chairman Charles Bannister said he supported revisiting the millage rate question.
Officials, however, are indicating even this won’t go far enough. The proposed rate increase is said to respond to 2009 and 2010 needs, including the maintenance of adequate reserves, but still leave many identified needs unfunded past 2010.
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