Same song (More Taxes); Second Verse (Another Sales Tax Referendum)
The City of Morristown is going to discuss a City-wide Sales Tax Increase Referendum at its March 18 meeting.
Click here to see the entire City Council Agenda for March 18. The last page lists items for the Council's Work Session on that day.
Item #1 Discussion of City-wide Local Option Sales Tax Referendum.
Item #2 Budget Review.
Wonder if anyone at the Council will add an item to the Work Session agenda?
Item #3 How to Live Within a Budget (Like the Citizens Do) by Making Painful Cuts (Like the Citizens Do) and Eliminating $100 Million Dollar Wish Lists.
Locals are aware that a countywide sales tax increase referendum was on the February 5 ballot and was narrowly defeated.
The countywide referendum was defeated despite the efforts of the City in using tax dollars to put up Vote YES signs and to send out mass mailings to Morristown residents urging them to Vote YES; despite County Mayor David Purkey and Commission Chair Stancil Ford (with help from the P-16 Council and the Tennessee Technology Center) sending out letters to county residents urging support for the referendum; despite the School Board's support; despite the Chamber of Commerce's support; and despite the unending free daily front-page advertising/articles in the Citizen-Tribune telling everyone how truly GREAT a sales tax increase would be.
When will the government decide it has enough of our money?
The current 9.5% sales tax is already HUGE and hits lower and fixed-income individuals with a vengeance.
Shortly after I paid our property taxes (February 29!), I ran into an acquaintance and we started talking about taxes. He, like so many others, is sick of taxes, taxes, and more taxes; fees, fees, and more fees. Then he said something that I've heard before but it bears repeating.
The government taxes us when we earn money and then taxes us again when we spend what little we have left!
Apparently, the City of Morristown is determined to increase the current 9.5% sales tax. With the failure of the first (countywide) referendum, my guess is that the City will schedule a citywide sales tax referendum and will say that if the increase passes: (1) they will reduce last year's city property tax increase by 15-cents; (2) they will give some of the increase to the schools even though not required to do so; (3) they will use some of the money to build up the city's reserves that have been drained by years of uncontrolled spending and borrowing; and (4) they will use some of the money for capital projects.
Now if I were a city resident, I would have a question about this. With the February 5 countywide referendum, the city expected to get $1 Million new sales tax dollars and said that it would use the $1 Million to reduce the city property tax rate by 15 cents.
With a proposed citywide referendum, the city expects to take in about $2 Million new sales tax dollars. If I were a city property taxpayer, I would expect that $2 Million to translate into nearly a 30-cent city property tax reduction!
This is nothing more than a desperation tax to cover years of uncontrolled spending, outlandish borrowing, and living high on the taxpayer's dollar.
And you can bet that the Citizen-Tribune will be behind this tax increase all the way with constant free front-page (advertising) articles and pictures---just like it did in pushing for the countywide tax increase.
I think I can even tell you in advance how this tax increase will be "sold" to city voters. The theme of the tax increase will be that out-of-towners will pay most of the new taxes.
Tax yourself so you can tax others at the same time.
But out-of-towners don't have to come here to shop any more. Major retailers have opened stores in surrounding cities. And with the price of gas, an out-of-towner would certainly think twice before traveling anywhere to shop.
The City of Morristown is going to discuss a City-wide Sales Tax Increase Referendum at its March 18 meeting.
Click here to see the entire City Council Agenda for March 18. The last page lists items for the Council's Work Session on that day.
Item #1 Discussion of City-wide Local Option Sales Tax Referendum.
Item #2 Budget Review.
Wonder if anyone at the Council will add an item to the Work Session agenda?
Item #3 How to Live Within a Budget (Like the Citizens Do) by Making Painful Cuts (Like the Citizens Do) and Eliminating $100 Million Dollar Wish Lists.
Locals are aware that a countywide sales tax increase referendum was on the February 5 ballot and was narrowly defeated.
The countywide referendum was defeated despite the efforts of the City in using tax dollars to put up Vote YES signs and to send out mass mailings to Morristown residents urging them to Vote YES; despite County Mayor David Purkey and Commission Chair Stancil Ford (with help from the P-16 Council and the Tennessee Technology Center) sending out letters to county residents urging support for the referendum; despite the School Board's support; despite the Chamber of Commerce's support; and despite the unending free daily front-page advertising/articles in the Citizen-Tribune telling everyone how truly GREAT a sales tax increase would be.
When will the government decide it has enough of our money?
The current 9.5% sales tax is already HUGE and hits lower and fixed-income individuals with a vengeance.
Shortly after I paid our property taxes (February 29!), I ran into an acquaintance and we started talking about taxes. He, like so many others, is sick of taxes, taxes, and more taxes; fees, fees, and more fees. Then he said something that I've heard before but it bears repeating.
The government taxes us when we earn money and then taxes us again when we spend what little we have left!
Apparently, the City of Morristown is determined to increase the current 9.5% sales tax. With the failure of the first (countywide) referendum, my guess is that the City will schedule a citywide sales tax referendum and will say that if the increase passes: (1) they will reduce last year's city property tax increase by 15-cents; (2) they will give some of the increase to the schools even though not required to do so; (3) they will use some of the money to build up the city's reserves that have been drained by years of uncontrolled spending and borrowing; and (4) they will use some of the money for capital projects.
Now if I were a city resident, I would have a question about this. With the February 5 countywide referendum, the city expected to get $1 Million new sales tax dollars and said that it would use the $1 Million to reduce the city property tax rate by 15 cents.
With a proposed citywide referendum, the city expects to take in about $2 Million new sales tax dollars. If I were a city property taxpayer, I would expect that $2 Million to translate into nearly a 30-cent city property tax reduction!
This is nothing more than a desperation tax to cover years of uncontrolled spending, outlandish borrowing, and living high on the taxpayer's dollar.
And you can bet that the Citizen-Tribune will be behind this tax increase all the way with constant free front-page (advertising) articles and pictures---just like it did in pushing for the countywide tax increase.
I think I can even tell you in advance how this tax increase will be "sold" to city voters. The theme of the tax increase will be that out-of-towners will pay most of the new taxes.
Tax yourself so you can tax others at the same time.
But out-of-towners don't have to come here to shop any more. Major retailers have opened stores in surrounding cities. And with the price of gas, an out-of-towner would certainly think twice before traveling anywhere to shop.
So will an added tax really mean more revenue or will it just be a negative that discourages people from driving to Morristown to shop?
No comments:
Post a Comment