« What’s going on in Snellville? Nothing. | Main | Fireworks in Snellville (Not the Political Kind) »
County Chairman Candidates propose new tax initiatives, Citizens Beware!
By Jerry | June 27, 2008
It’s campaign season again in Gwinnett, and with the county commission primaries just a few weeks away, our mailboxes have begun to fill up with catchy fliers and flashy promises. It seems that tax reform in Gwinnett is a hot issue in this year’s election and Snellville Mayor Pro Tem Warren Auld is supporting Lorraine Green and her proposal for a Homestead Option Sales Tax.
All 14 Mayor’s in Gwinnett County are adamantly OPPOSED to this bad piece of tax reform! The following is a press release issued by Mayor Lois Salter of Berkeley Lake with the full support of every Mayor in Gwinnett.
NEWS RELEASE
June 27, 2008
Gwinnett Cities Support Careful Consideration of County-wide Tax Relief
The current election season has seen the candidates for Gwinnett County Chairman pitching an alphabet soup of new sales taxes, namely LOST and HOST. The elected leaders of Gwinnett’s cities support tax relief for all county property owners, businesses included, not just residential property owners.
“HOST [Homestead Option Sales Tax] would inflict great damage on Gwinnett County for years to come,” remarked Gwinnett Municipal Association (GwMA) Chair Lois Salter, mayor of Berkeley Lake. “Before making such major changes that will affect us all for a very long time, the responsible thing to do is to study what’s happened elsewhere. Only two counties, DeKalb and Rockdale, have implemented HOST, and in both instances, the HOST has failed to deliver on its hype. Neither county is now able to fully relieve homeowners of county operating taxes as once promised. Both counties have had to reinstitute homeowner property taxes to fund their shortfalls. Meanwhile, commercial property owners are taxed at even higher rates.”
“HOST is a failed tax policy experiment,” said Salter. “We hope Gwinnett County leaders will recognize in this economy, with gas prices topping $4 per gallon, that freezing out businesses that employ people close to home is bad public policy. We need to embrace businesses and good jobs, not create a hostile climate for them.”
Both DeKalb and Rockdale saw a wave of residential development as HOST was implemented. This accelerated a shift in their tax bases toward residential, compounding the tax impact on businesses. New families attracted in this way also increased the burdens on public schools. Additional infrastructure and services are required to serve new residents, but without the revenue necessary to fund this growth, the quality of life is lowered for all.
“We, as leaders of Gwinnett’s cities, are committed to ensure the long-term economic health for all County stakeholders,” emphasized Salter. “HOST simply shifts taxes around and encourages development that doesn’t pay for itself. That would be extremely harmful and would earn Gwinnett a reputation for being anti-business. None of us should be for that.”
Topics: Thoughts |