taxes Archive

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Extend the tax credit

– October 23, 2009Posted in: Outlook

With all the nonsense going on in government in Albany, Atlanta and Washington, D.C., it’s easy to overlook government gone good. One such example is the $8,000 homebuyer tax credit – a true economic stimulus if there ever was one. Because the tax credit in place, consumers are returning to the market, the inventory of unsold homes is being reduced, home values are stabilizing, and tens of thousands of desperately needed jobs have been created.

The tax credit is set to expire soon. We encourage our readers to call and write your United States senator and representative today and tell them to extend the homebuyer tax credit – perhaps Congress’ most legitimate job-creation tool, to date.

Tags: taxes
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Should churches pay taxes?

– October 22, 2009Posted in: Jeff Sexton, Outlook

Doug Rea, the pastor at Connections Albany, is one of the most genuine men I’ve ever met, in any walk of life – much less as a Christian and pastor. Considering the company I’ve kept over the years, that is truly one of the highest compliments I can give a person, and I mean every word of it.

Much like other pastors I’ve looked up to – such as Jeff Hill at Calvary Baptist in Ball Ground, Chris Altman and John Sullivan somewhere in northwest Georgia, and even Albany’s Tony Haefs of Gillionville Baptist – Doug has made me think about things in a way I really never had before, and I will be forever grateful for that.

Doug leads a church that is so organic and genuine that they don’t even like to use the word “church” to describe themselves due to the word’s abuse over the last couple of millenia. So much like Ted Dekker’s “Circle”, they call themselves simply a “Gathering”. They don’t have a “sanctuary” or even church offices – their entire building is one room, in the same building as Charlie B’s – which led to some interesting times with the Albany City Commission, which Tom Knighton wrote about back in April. (Hard to believe, but that post was actually among Tom’s first!)

Doug and Connections challenge traditional Christianity, and turn much of it on its head. I plan to interview him soon – more than likely AFTER Election Day – about these, but he condensed the basics down into a few Twitter comments to me a couple of weeks ago, and given our recent discussions in other thread, I thought I would bring them out for discussion here:

These Tweets specifically regard the tax exempt status of churches:

1. govt and church should not be in business together

2. obviously they are not using the tax code 2 benefit society — they’d never build those cathedrals if they had to pay taxes on em

3. it’d halt the tax benefits for “religious” organizations that are not US friendly

I’ve talked to him a bit about this already, and one key thing he said sticks with me: Churches, like many “charities”, spend the vast majority of the money they bring in on salaries, buildings, and basically “looking good”. Meanwhile we have people starving in the streets because the church MIGHT spend 10 percent of its total revenues on actually reaching out to people.

So I put the questions out to y’all:

1. Should churches pay taxes?

2. What would happen if a church was treated just like any other business?

jeffsexton

Jeff Sexton.

Written by Jeff Sexton. Jeff Sexton co-owns the political blog SWGAPolitics.com and is a candidate for the Leesburg City Council.

Tags: taxes
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House greenlights tax hike for transport

– March 3, 2009Posted in: Headlines

By Maggie Lee
Georgia Online News Service

ATLANTA – The Georgia House has overwhelmingly approved a bill to create a statewide sales tax hike of 1 cent to fund transport projects throughout the state.

The bill itself passed 149-18. A second resolution, which would trigger the required referendum on the tax, passed 151-15.

Bill author Vance Smith (R-Pine Mountain) told the House that it is time to fund transport in a “bigger and bolder” way than simply the fuel sales tax plus federal funds.

“We have crippled ourselves by not providing that ground transportation in our state,” Smith said, adding that the lack makes Charlotte and Nashville more attractive for business.
Another supporter, Calvin Smyre (D-Columbus) also said it’s good for business.

“Highways don’t guarantee economic development, but I can guarantee without highways you won’t have economic development,” he opined.

The statewide sales tax would go into a new Transportation Trust Fund.

It would have 23 years to spend either $25 billion or whatever it collects in its first 10 years. It must spend the smaller amount.

But, based on the language of the bill, most of the money will go for capital construction programs that must already be funded or contractually committed within 11 years of July 2011.
The only other choice for the spend is operation and maintenance costs for certain projects listed in the bill by 2032. Some of the projects are so-called flex fund grants for local transportation projects for 33 communities statewide. Those grants, for communities of 15,000 people or less, could total up to $1,000 per person on any project the community wants, from roads to rail. The other choice is planning or maintenance funds on yet-unbuilt mass transit projects mostly in metro Atlanta.

The 33 statewide projects or the transit projects would start in the order that they are permitted. Per Smith, the metro area projects were selected by the Atlanta Regional Commission with the input of the 10 area county commissioners. The projects in the rest of the state were chosen to ensure continuity of major state roads and upgrades for port areas.

The House vote came in the afternoon, after the Rules Committee scrambled to add some last minute Democratic amendments in the morning.

The first amendment also specifies that the so-called “fourth cent” of the 4 percent statewide fuel tax must be earmarked for any transport purpose – that could include roads, bridges or mass transit. Previously the fourth cent went to Georgia’s general fund, while the other three went to transport. The fourth cent is worth about $180 million annually, according to the amendment sponsor, Rep. DuBose Porter (D-Dublin). Cosponsoring the amendments were Reps Smyre and Smith.

It’s that fourth cent that makes one bill opponent so angry.

“For the first time we’re going to take a user fee to pave and widen roads and fix bridges … it’s now going to be a subsidy for public transit if you pass this amendment,” said Rep. Steve Davis (R-McDonough). He called the amendment a subsidy on the 99 percent of people who drive for the one-half percent of people who take the train.

That amendment is actually attached to House Resolution 206, the companion to the Act, which provides for the referendum during the 2010 midterm elections.

As for the actual bill, a new amendment allows the House and Senate minority party leaders to choose the two members of their own party to join the Fund Oversight Committee. The governor appoints three Committee Members and the lieutenant governor and House speaker each choose four, though one of each of the latter two will come on the advice of the minority party.

The second amendment only specifies that the Fund would work with an “authority” – the state-designated recipient of federal transport funds. Right now, that’s the Georgia Department of Transportation. But the Senate is soon set to consider a bill, preferred by it’s mover, Gov. Sonny Perdue, that would reorganize state transportation funding, and create a new State Transportation Authority to take over most GDOT functions.

Both Smyre and Porter distanced their bill from the governor’s bill, emphasizing that theirs does not change state transport governance.

Smith needs Democratic support because the whole plan — the so-called Georgia 2020 Transportation Act — requires a change to the state constitution and thus, supermajority support for a statewide referendum.

Maggie Lee specializes in quality of life topics, Atlanta’s international communities and general reporting. She covers Georgia economic development and the Chinese community as a stringer for China Daily and chronicles life in Georgia’s most diverse county for the DeKalb Champion.

Tags: politics, taxes
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Taxpayers, Revolt!

– October 11, 2007Posted in: Headlines

Putney-based endeavor should merge with initiative that sprung after Albany’s failed attempt to raise the ad valorem rate in 2006

About 90 people – most of whom are elderly residents of south Dougherty County – packed a church hall this week to get details on property tax relief opportunities that they are missing out on.

Meanwhile, a separate taxpayer’s group is steadfastly attempting to convince the Dougherty County Commission and Board of Education to resist the temptation to raise taxes this fall. Better yet, the taxpayers’ group is holding on to hope that Dougherty County leaders will discard the property revaluation report that cost us $900,000, yet spit out arbitrary assessments.

For the first time in at least a decade, taxpayers throughout the county are revolting.

Just think if it were an election year.

And just think if these folks were organized.

The opportunities here are tremendous: Two-way communication between local governments and their constituents; honest, open government; and lower taxes.

Just imagine!

It apparently doesn’t take much to get me excited: When I walked into the massive annex at the First Baptist of Putney on Tuesday night, I almost had chill-bumps. Lee County’s Bob Rehberg was sharing information with folks I had never met about opportunities for property tax relief that are readily available to communities – those with leadership moxy, anyway. Then they started passing around petitions; I could barely contain myself.

“If I lived in Cobb County, my 2006 taxes would have been $516 rather than $1,586 in Lee County,” said Rehberg, a senior citizen.

Indeed, in nearly 100 of Georgia’s counties, homesteaded property is subject to exemptions far and beyond the state-mandated exemptions already available to us. Dougherty and Lee counties aren’t on that list.

Why?

Because we choose not to be.

That’s right. By not insisting that our politicians carry out our agenda – rather than theirs’ – it’s our choice not to reduce the amount of taxes we pay.

“If you are serious, you need to put your name on the petition. It’s going to take every one of us,” Putney resident Lonnie Smith, an organizer of Tuesday’s gathering, told the crowd. “We have got to stir them up. The politicians are not listening. They are giving us lip service, and they are telling us some things that are not true.”

Sounds like a call for a revolt, to me.

As I sat on the edge of my chair through the enthralling Putney meeting, my prevailing question was: Why is it that citizens have to learn from their peers – rather than the government officials who work for them – about the tax-saving opportunities available to them? It seems to me that such a proactive approach from our city and county commissioners and school board members would virtually ensure their re-election.

My other thought Tuesday night was that Rehberg and Richard Thomas, who is leading the concerned taxpayers group these days, need to get to know each other.

Richard, Bob’s number is 436-1619. Give him a holler; if your goal truly is for government to operate as efficiently as possible, y’all have a lot to talk about.

Tags: taxes