“Property tax protest deadline nears” plus 3 more

Property tax protest deadline nears
Property tax renewal for drainage is on the Oct. 2 ballot in St. Tammany Parish
Property tax info is on website
Property tax, water rates to increase

Posted: 14 Sep 2010 01:20 PM PDT

Palm Beach County landowners have until 5 p.m. Thursday to challenge their preliminary property tax notices. Petitions must be filed with the value adjustment board either in person at the county clerk's office or online at www.mypalmbeachclerk.com. It costs $15 to file a petition.

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Property tax renewal for drainage is on the Oct. 2 ballot in St. Tammany Parish

Posted: 14 Sep 2010 12:39 PM PDT

Published: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 2:27 PM Updated: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 2:32 PM

St. Tammany Parish voters will head to the polls next month to consider renewing a parishwide property tax for drainage work that will generate as much as $32 million over the next 10 years.

The 2.17-mill tax is expected to generate $2.7 million in 2010, though that amount could increase to $3.2 million per year, according to the proposition that will be before voters in the Oct. 2 election. The tax, which is set to expire this year, is the only parishwide fund dedicated to drainage improvements.

St. Tammany parish uses the funds to improve, maintain, bridge and build drainage ditches, channels and canals. Specifically, the money goes toward equipment such as pumps and excavation machines as well as work related to retention ponds.

In 2010, the parish has used the money primarily for construction projects, including work to beat back erosion at the Lowe Pond Canal, and general drainage improvements along Robert Road and Brown's Village Road in the Slidell area, and in Timber Branch, Greenleaves and The Woodlands in western St. Tammany, said Suzanne Parsons Stymiest, the parish's spokeswoman.

The tax would yield far less money than the parish's 2-cent sales tax, which is expected to generate roughly $31 million this year for road and related drainage work in the unincorporated areas, Stymiest said.

Should voters opt to renew the drainage tax, the owner of a $100,000 home would pay $5.43 per year, while the owner of a $200,000 home would pay $27.13 and the owner of a $300,000 home would have a bill of $48.83.

The owner of a home worth less than $75,000 would pay nothing because of the state homestead exemption.

Christine Harvey can be reached at charvey@timespicayune.com or 985.645.2853.

Property tax info is on website

Posted: 14 Sep 2010 09:58 AM PDT

The Sandoval County Treasurer's office added a feature to its website allowing the public to conduct property tax research.

Homeowners, real estate companies and lenders can access assessed property values for previous years, record of payments, legal/situs address, current and delinquent tax charges, interest and abatement, miscellaneous charges and special assessments.

The address is etweb.sandovalcountynm.gov/treasurer/web/.

Property tax, water rates to increase

Posted: 13 Sep 2010 10:48 AM PDT

Updated: Monday, 13 Sep 2010, 7:43 PM CDT
Published : Monday, 13 Sep 2010, 12:37 PM CDT

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Property taxes and water rates will increase, while the Trail of Lights fizzles out this year after budget cuts force it to the end of its road.

The Austin City Council completely wiped out the $325,000 for the Trail of Lights from its budget during a rare Monday meeting focused at approving a more than $1 billion budget -- which took less than two hours to approve.

They will instead repurpose the Trail of Lights money to help with park maintenance.

The tradition's elimination comes 10 months after the November 2009 announcement to scale it back , turning it into a walking path with highlights as part of a new festival in December 2009.

The 152-foot Zilker Christmas Tree, however, is not affected and will still be around during the holidays.

In addition, there will be a tax increase.

Although it's not official until City Council approves it later this month, the average homeowner who owns a house valued at $185,000 will pay about $4.37 more per month in City of Austin taxes.

The vote to approve the budget didn't take that long, though one of the most controversial parts of the budget was the water rate increase. The average water customers will see a $4-per-month increase in their bill.

Most of this money will go toward making sure the city can still provide quality drinking water to all of its customers.

However, a portion of the money will also help pay for the very controversial $500 million water treatment plant .

"The $4 a month increase is just this year," said Bill Bunch, with Save Our Springs. "So you pile on the increases that are already scheduled through 2015, and your talking about $200- to $300 a year per household."

Critics, such as Save Our Springs Alliance and Livable City , maintain that constructing another water treatment plant is the wrong priority. They contend more money should be spent replacing aging water lines that burst, instead of a new plant that isn't needed yet.

The plant proposal passed on a council vote of 4-3, and proponents such as Mayor Lee Leffingwell said it will be cheaper to build the infrastructure now rather than later. Conservation methods simply won't be enough to keep up with growth.

They also said Austin could face a water shortage in a few years without it.

Still, critics point out that thanks to conservation, Austiin's water demand has remained the same for a decade, even as the city has grown in population.

The budget takes effect Oct. 1.

Property Tax

Tuesday, September 14, 2010