Posted: 17 Jul 2010 11:54 PM PDT

HOLLY HILL -- City Manager Oel Wingo is recommending a tax rate higher than last year's, but it still will not generate as much revenue because of a decline in property values.

At their regular meeting Tuesday evening, city commissioners proposed a tax rate of 6.56 per $1,000 dollars of assessed value following a presentation by Wingo about the serious financial situation the city faces.

The rate is considered the rolled-back rate because it should generate roughly the same revenue for the city as the current rate of 5.62. But according to Wingo's chart, the rate will still leave the a shortfall of about $172,000 from last year's $3,704,154.

At the current rate, the city would receive $3,082,593 because property values have dropped nearly 17 percent.

At the root of the problem, Wingo said, is an increase in spending over the last 10 years that was only partially offset by using enterprise funds and other reserve fund balances rather than increasing taxes and fees.

"Not a strong situation when you're looking long term -- three to five years out -- for strong fiscal responsibility and a sustainable budget," Wingo said. "In addition, there's been a strong resistance to increasing fees to cover actual costs."

Wingo told commissioners she's never worked in a city where building permits were "assisted" by general fund tax dollars. She also reminded commissioners the city water systems are on an EPA watch list because there have been no capital improvements and no funding for ongoing maintenance and repairs.

As an example, Wingo said the city had a broken pipe that had to be repaired at a premium "emergency" rate.

"It cost us five times as much as it would have cost had we had a program in place to repair those pipes as we went," Wingo said. "We can no longer fund our capital improvements and our infrastructure on an emergency basis."

With fund balances no longer a source of dollars, city officials must reduce spending by about $1.5 million, most of which will involve personnel-related actions. According to Wingo, at the rolled-back rate, they'll need some combination of a staff reduction, salary freeze, salary reductions, reduced benefits and use of part-time employees who are not eligible for benefits. The city's labor force has been reduced by 14 so far this year.

The rolled-back rate shouldn't have an adverse affect on local taxpayers. Commissioner John Penny, who supported the rate, said his calculations indicate the rate would produce a reduction in his taxes on both his home and his business.

"It sounds scary that you're increasing the millage rate but you have to concentrate on the bottom line -- what do you pay, what do the citizens pay," Penny said.

The meeting was lightly attended and only two people from the audience participated in the discussion.

Commissioners approved the rolled-back rate of 6.56 by a 4-1 vote, with Commissioner Mark Reed dissenting. Officials may lower the rate during future budget meetings but cannot go above the approved rate.

In other business, commissioners approved the second reading of an ordinance to redefine "motor vehicle."

The ordinance modifies the definition to include scooters only if they exceed 50cc. The law now specifically designates bicycles, mopeds, all-terrain vehicles and dirt bikes for off-road use only.

The 5-0 vote resolves a problem for Hawk Scooters, 1116 Ridgewood Ave., which was prohibited from selling scooters. Existing car lots along Ridgewood Avenue are exempt from the ordinance.

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No property tax hike in Lake County?

Posted: 18 Jul 2010 05:12 AM PDT

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NJ Senate Takes Up Property Tax Measures

Posted: 18 Jul 2010 11:00 AM PDT

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NJ Senate Takes Up Property Tax Measures

CHATHAM, N.J. (CBS) ―

Click to enlarge: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
CBS

The New Jersey Senate on Monday will begin considering nearly three dozen bills designed to help towns, counties and school districts contain costs and hold property tax increases to 2 percent a year.

Gov. Chris Christie announced the so-called "toolkit" measures in May after proposing a $29.4 billion budget that cut more than $800 million from schools, suspended property tax rebates and trimmed or eliminated hundreds of programs for students, the disabled and businesses.

Christie said it's all part of his effort "to get New Jersey's governmental spending under control at every level. The cap is part of it, the toolkit is part of it. It's a holistic picture," Christie said at a news conference in his outer office on Friday.

New Jerseyans pay the highest property taxes in the country, averaging nearly $7,300 per household. The tax burden often is cited as a reason residents and businesses don't locate here, or a reason they leave.

Christie proposed 33 bills to deal with escalating property taxes, the centerpiece of which was a cap on how much local governments and school districts could increase spending and property taxes each year. He signed a 2 percent tax cap bill into law on Tuesday that contains some exceptions, and urged the Legislature to pass the 32 remaining bills by summer's end. Christie said reforms are urgently needed to rework contract arbitration for police and firefighters and civil service rules.

Senate President Steve Sweeney, a Democrat who controls the state Senate, said he and Christie agree that reforms are needed, but disagree on the details. For example, Sweeney said police and firefighters who are barred by law from striking need an arbitration process that allows them to negotiate a contract in good faith. He also said civil service rules were put in place because of concerns over cronyism and corruption; any attempts to reform civil service protections must be completed with the original mission in mind, he said.

Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver has not set a schedule for considering the toolkit reforms, but she has assigned the bills to 12 Assembly Democrats, who will review them during the summer for discussion and possible action in the fall.

The Senate Budget Committee is scheduled to review four toolkit proposals on Monday that are expected to stir little controversy and to hold discussions, but take no vote, on three potentially more contentious measures.

Of the three discussion-only bills, one would limit the amount of unused sick and vacation time school and government employees could carry forward. Another would bar nongovernment employees from enrolling in the state pension system; and the third would clarify the role of the head of the Civil Service Commission.

The bill on unused sick and vacation would cap retirement payouts at $15,000 and would limit the amount of sick time employees could take in the 12 months before retiring. Employees would be limited to six sick days in their final year of employment without medical needs documentation.

Christie was sworn in on January 19, 2010.