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Today's Poll!JC Fire Department looks to pass sales tax
Friday, February 17, 2012
The Jefferson City Fire Department is looking to consolidate its funding sources, hoping to make a switch from property taxes to a dedicated sales tax.
At the Finance Committee meeting Thursday, Assistant Chief Lonnie Brandt presented a Fire Department improvement plan, which he said the city has been working on for a number of years.
As part of the improvement plan, Brandt said the department is proposing a reduction in the city property tax and the establishment of a dedicated sales tax. If the tax is passed, the department would no longer receive funding from the five-year capital improvement sales tax, which would allow more public safety funds from the tax to go to law enforcement.
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Comments
herewego 1 year, 3 months ago
Guess someone didn't learn anything from "Transition", huh? Good luck on a new tax. AND fat chance of our property taxes going down, the city will just find a place to waste the money that used to go to the FD.. No tax reduction, just reallocation, and then we're stuck with a new sales tax... When is Jefferson City going to learn... NO MORE TAXES!
LuvJC 1 year, 3 months ago
if it's voted to lower the property tax then they have to lower it, they just can't keep collecting it. Sounds like you're someone that's either not paying allot of taxes or live in the county.
herewego 1 year, 3 months ago
Nope, you're wrong. I Pay my dues to good ole JC machine. Just don't want to pay anymore. Is this like when they said all the lottery money goes to the schools? Luv, you must be on the dole of the city, huh?
Sequoia 1 year, 3 months ago
I'd much rather pay a higher sales tax than a higher property tax. It spreads the burden around to everyone instead of just property owners. Renters don't want their apartments to burn down, either, I assume.
All this debate, including Transformation, highlights the way our tax system hurts local governments. Absent radical tax reform, I would like to see federal agencies redistribute the public wealth downward by doing more CDBG-type funding so that local communities can apply for grant funding for local projects.
LuvJC 1 year, 3 months ago
Couldn't of said it any better Sequoia. Lowering my property tax is a big plus for me on my home and auto's.
LuvJC 1 year, 3 months ago
So they'll have money to buy more cig's, beer and live off the system is what your saying Graceful?
BLACKDD 1 year, 3 months ago
Tell me why a person that does not live in Jefferson City should pay the sales tax and support a fire service that they don't even use. Just another reason why I don't live in Jefferson City and do my business in Columbia or Fulton. And you people in Jefferson City that support the sales tax either have more money than sense or just plain dumb.
Sequoia 1 year, 3 months ago
If you drive all the way to Columbia or Fulton just to avoid a sales tax, then you're the one with more money than sense.
LuvJC 1 year, 3 months ago
Speaking of dumb, Go Shop in Columbia in the high taxed TDD's, Duhhhhhh!!!! and with gas prices. Who's dumb now?
JCsleeper 1 year, 3 months ago
JCFD does respond to fires, accidents and emergencies outside of JC. They are also there when someone from outside JC has an accident or emergency while in JC.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
Well, there is their additional revenue source right there. The JCFire department should not be providing services to persons outside their area unless they are collecting a fee for services that equals or exceeds the amount they spend to provide those services.
viktorkowski 1 year, 3 months ago
sounds to me like law enforcement is looking for more funds to pay for those gas guzzlers they are now driving.
"If the tax is passed, the department would no longer receive funding from the five-year capital improvement sales tax, which would allow more public safety funds from the tax to go to law enforcement."
viktorkowski 1 year, 3 months ago
nice try hank. one does not need to like or dislike something just because they do not agree with it. this is a money grab pure and simple. I had to find the full minutes to know what was going on.
"The fire department improvement plan would consolidate expenditures from several different City funds into one funding source. This would free those funds for use to other City departments, infrastructure needs or additional tax relief. Additionally, the fire department would opt out of the next five year capital improvement sales tax, freeing up all public safety funding to be used for law enforcement."
TraceyT 1 year, 3 months ago
...and, of course, it's not possible that the FD "introduced" the change because the city management wanted them to. I'm sure the FD management spends all of their time thinking of ways that they can share their funding with other departments instead of keeping as much as possible to ensure that they can successfully perform their mission.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
Why should a person have to pay a city abulance tax when the city doesn't have an ambulance service but they keep collecting the tax anyway?
This one is so dead on arrival.
JCsleeper 1 year, 3 months ago
JC collected the ambulance property tax assesment in anticipation of administering the ambualnce service. They did stop collecting it sometime after Cole County approved the half-cent sales tax for EMS. The problem is that JC kept the $850,000 collected from JC property tax for 'Public Safety' purposes instead of refunding it to the property owners. Hope this issue haunts the tax increasers for the foreeable future. Can they be trusted to lower property taxes accordingly if a sales tax passed? Will JC businesses see reduced sales as a result of a sales tax increase?
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
They need to make do with what they have. That is what the rest of us have had to do in this awful reccession.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
BTW: the bank says the value of my property has dropped about 15% but my property taxes have not dropped at all. Why is that?
JCsleeper 1 year, 3 months ago
Taxing entities are now realizing that property taxes derived from property that is diminishing in value is going to result in reduced revenues, once enough people take them to task for valuations. This is why they are wanting to move toward sales taxes, not to mention they can collect funds from folks not residing in the city limits of JC.
readerofnews 1 year, 3 months ago
Finally, someone with logical sense understanding why a sales tax is needed.
online_editor 1 year, 3 months ago
Remember that property valuations are adjusted in a way that impacts each property owner up or down, but the reassessment process across the board would not increase or reduce the overall revenue of the taxing entity. The law permits the tax levy to correspondingly be adjusted up or down so that the end result can be revenue neutral. Only new construction (like a new home or factory adding valuation to what was a vacant lot) results in extra revenue.
tonto_goldberg 1 year, 3 months ago
Not quite. A local government is - generally - able to increase revenues by new construction/additions/improvements plus an allowance for inflation. There's a ceiling on the levy rate based on the higher of the highest rate charged since 1980 or the highest voter-approved rate. The local government can levy up to that ceiling. Section 137.073 RSMo. The State Auditor's Office has a decent explanation of it all in their anual review of property tax rates.
online_editor 1 year, 3 months ago
You're right. (Thank you.) It's more complex than my explanation, including the existence of the ceiling I failed to mention.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
So, even though the property values go down in an area, the tax is set up so that the taxing entities still get full value taxes? What a great scam that is! So basically the local government can allow the area to go down the toilet, but they still get their money! What a deal!
tonto_goldberg 1 year, 3 months ago
That's where the tax levy limit comes in. Most local governments have only a small range to move in and they could not make up for a large drop on valuations. Go get that appraisal if you really think your property value has gone down.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
Yeah, spend $400 to lower my taxes $100 makes no sense to me...
tonto_goldberg 1 year, 3 months ago
This claim has been made before. If you really believe it is true, you can get an appraisal and the assessor will reduce the valuation. If you and the bank are wrong, you would be out the cost of the appraisal with no tax reduction.
hudson 1 year, 3 months ago
JUST SAY NO !
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
Don't our city leaders realize that we are in a rcession and people are hurting? Very low wages and no raises for years. Higher gas prices, utility bills, health insurance that doesn't cover much, etc.
Just say NO to more taxes.
City hall and all these tax and spend liberals are so out of touch with ordinay people.
readerofnews 1 year, 3 months ago
I have a hard time understanding why people don't like paying taxes, yes...I know that governments sometimes exploits the use of these funds wrongfully. But, even our fore fathers who fought the British because of taxes, eventually came to the conclusion that taxes were needed to have a functioning society and government. Don't get me wrong, I too, hate paying taxes when I view situations on a day to day basis, where my tax money is being spent for ideas, people, or items which I am complete against! Yet, at the same time I comprehend that a tax is needed for essential services.
The basic headline in this news story is a proposal, that an entinty wants to switch from one tax base and to another. In the fine line of things, it's probably an even split in overall cost to a citizen of Jeff City. If a increase of 3/8% on a sales tax puts me in the red of my budget, than I probably should not be paying for internet to post my opinion on the Newstribune blog or purchase other luxuries, but focus on the necessities of life.
I myself, move to Jeff City from the country to have the services of a big city. Yes, the country life might be cheaper and its definitely in taxes, but there is another side of this story too. If you don't have a problem waiting 20 minutes or longer for the sheriff's department to show up, or when you call 911 for an ambulance and it arrives 10 minutes later, or in this case the fire department. Yep, they may be there in 10 minutes too, but may have only 3-4 guys show up. Choose your battles wisely, I personally see this as a fair proposal.
JCsleeper 1 year, 3 months ago
Most folks dont mind paying reasonable taxes when the see a good return on their payments.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
The purpose of switching to a sales tax is that it will result in ever-ncreasing revenue, as prices for goods and services keep increaseing due to inflation, Thus sales tax revenues will keep increasing too, and the city will get more money without having to ask for a tax increase repeatedly.
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JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
Taxes are neither good or bad, you just have to look at the package as a whole. Are we in a low-tax area with few taxes? Or are we loaded down with many taxes paying as much as other folks, but not getting the same value in services from our government? The voters have to decide what they want from their government, how much value they are currently getting from their government, and whether or not they trust their government for the future.
I think the Transformation election results spoke loudly that local taxpayers do not value increased taxes for services that will not benefit them. It seems to me that we are already being well-taxed, and we are not getting our money's worth yet. I'd like to see our local government become more efficient and effective with what they already have. I'd like to see some realistic long term planning for our community, instead of every other week a new group comes up with a new tax proposal.
Meanwhile the roads, the sewer mains, the water mains, the bridges and parks rot, and neighborhoods do not have sidewalks.
readerofnews 1 year, 3 months ago
I concur with your last two posts, the whole package deal in cities across the U.S. are hurting for revenue. Clint Eastwood stated it best in the Superbowl halftime commercial a few weeks ago, many cities are shutting down services they can't afford anymore and businesses are going elsewhere for cheaper labor (not a direct quote).
The problem as you stated "prices for goods and services keep increaseing due to inflation," all in all, this falls under consumers and the city too. I would hate to try to balance a budget for fuel expenditures with the drastic price increases we seen in the last few months. While that may not be the reason for the roads, sewer and water mains, etc...for not being repaired or upgraded. If a department has spent or overspent it allocated budget. Do you fixed or not fixed those items mentioned, if the money is not there?
What is funny in the whole scheme of things, governments will never make everyone happy and agreeable on every issue. And that is why we get to express our opinion by voting (hopefully) on important issues. I"m not going to get into the "Transformation" theme, I didn't vote and was 50/50 on the good and bad aspects for that tax proposal.
What I see in this proposal is the realization that property value revenue might not be increasing with future expenditures, and there is an attempt or idea on the agenda to seek a different mean for revenue.
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
I see a grap for additional revenue. The FD will continue to get their money (more as prices increase). Meanwhile the PD and city will get more money as the FD won't be needing that part. More money for everyone (except the taxpayers and business owners).
LuvJC 1 year, 3 months ago
The taxpyers and business owners are going to get a 17% reduction in property tax!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you not read the press release?
JCLifer 1 year, 3 months ago
And they will pay more dollars in Sales Tax!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! More tax dollars going to the city buracracy!
More tax dollars means bigger government!!!!!!!!!!!
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