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All politics are local, especially taxes
In Washington County, all three of the municipalities are considering raising their sales taxes. In the recent past, the Washington County Commission put a 1 percent sales and use tax on the ballot and voters soundly defeated it. Washington County is deeply in debt, and has for the past several years borrowed $400,000 annually to complete the fiscal year. Perhaps, folks in Washington County agree with Winston Churchill who said, "I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle." Or perhaps voters would like a bit more open accountability about how their tax monies are spent? Taxes are also a hot item in Montgomery these days, too. In 2003, the state revenue commissioner ordered counties to stop doing reappraisals of homes every four years (by Bob Riley's executive order) and began switching to annual reappraisals. All Alabama counties have now instituted the annual reappraisal except Conecuh, Choctaw and Washington which are scheduled to begin in 2008. Alabama voters don't much like "renting" their homes from the state; and annual reappraisals became a major issue in last year's state elections. Many legislators made this part of their campaign rhetoric promising a return to the four-year reappraisal. Therefore, when the current legislative session began on March 6, lawmakers introduced several bills to switch back to four-year reappraisals. Business property and cars would continue to have annual reappraisals. However, the bills to switch back to four-year reappraisals are languishing in committee. When Paul Hubbert, AEA head, was asked why all the talk last year and so little action this year, he answered, "They got re-elected, I guess." AEAis opposed to going to the four-year reappraisal. (Montgomery Advertiser, May 3) And according to Washington County Commissioner Willie Dixon, the Alabama County Commissioners Association, of which he is a board member, also supports the annual property reappraisal. Perhaps legislators know the state may soon need the added tax revenue to cover the 62 percent raise they voted themselves? Sen. Pat Lindsey and House Member Marc Keahey both voted for the raise.
Rather than add an editorial comment here, I'll let one of my favorite American authors speak: Mark Twain (Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) said: "No man's life, liberty or property is safe while the legislature is in session."
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