Govt votes not to renew transfer of PA taxes

By TOVAH LAZAROFF AND LAHAV HARKOV

11/14/2011 20:46

The halt on tax transfers was put in place as a response to the Palestinian bid for membership in UNESCO two weeks ago.

What do transportation planners and futurists do when their 23-year-plan to build up Southern Californias roads, bridges, trains and bike lanes comes up as much as $155 billion short?

One proposed solution that is inevitably brought to the table is raising taxes.

And sure enough, that proposal was part of a Regional Transportation Plan released for comment by the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) earlier this month.

But to some on this six-county planning agency, revenue solutions such as a 30-cent hike in the state gasoline tax or the implementation of a federal vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fee that assesses each American driver 5 cents per car mile traveled were simply unacceptable.

One of those people was Azusa Councilman and SCAG Regional Council director Keith Hanks. He has repeatedly objected to the idea of SCAG lobbying Washington and Sacramento for higher taxes. He also received some support from Los Angeles Councilman Bernard Parks.

Hanks has called for a task force to examine alternatives and to find ways to reduce the cost of the $450 billion transportation plan. His objections, as well as those from Diamond Bar and Walnut to a truck lane near the vicinity of the 60 Freeway, has prompted a visit from SCAGs executive director Hasan Ikhrata to the San Gabriel Valley COGs Transportation Committee meeting Thursday in Irwindale.

I am not at all prepared to tell people we will raise their

JERUSALEM Israeli Cabinet ministers decided Monday to hold on to some $100 million in taxes owed to the Palestinians, an official said, despite warnings from Israels Defense Ministry that the measure could threaten the stability of the Palestinian government in the West Bank.

Israel stopped transfer of tax funds as punishment for the Palestinians successful bid for admission to the United Nations cultural agency UNESCO, which was part of a larger effort to gain admission as a state in the world body.

Israel believes creation of a Palestinian state must be achieved through negotiations and charges that the UN bid is one of a series of steps to bring unwarranted pressure on the Jewish state.

An Israeli official said the government did not change its policy, despite media predictions that Israel would give in to criticism of the move from the UN and others.

The official did not explain the rationale. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to disclose the contents of the closed meeting of ministers, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with security responsibilities.

Israeli defense officials have said funding cutoffs threaten Abbas moderate Palestinian Authority, which employs tens of thousands of people, including security forces whose work at preventing attacks on Israelis has won praise from Israel and the United States in the past.

In accordance with interim peace deals, Israel collects customs, border and some income taxes on behalf of the Palestinians and relays them monthly to their West Bank government. The transfers were suspended on Nov. 3 in reaction to the UNESCO admission.

The statehood bid has stalled, as the Palestinians have been unable to muster the required support of nine of the Security Councils 15 members. That leaves the Palestinians with an option of seeking a lesser upgrade to nonmember observer state.

Israel, backed by the US, opposed the statehood bid and suspended funding for UNESCO after it admitted the Palestinians.

NEWMANSTOWN – The Millcreek Township supervisors intend to raise property taxes from 8 to 9 mills to support a proposed $1.11 million budget for 2012, the board announced last week.

A mill is $1 generated for every $1,000 of assessed value. A homeowner whose property is assessed for tax purposes at $20,000 will pay $180, up by $20 over the current year. The supervisors said they will not raise any other taxes.

The supervisors said they intend to keep spending low by avoiding what they see as unreasonable road maintenance costs. The supervisors last week officially signed the long-awaited ordinance to prohibit trucks Class 5 and above (with the exception of official vehicles and local traffic) from using the section of Bethany Road between Memorial Boulevard and the Lebanon/Berks border.

The ordinance arose after Bethany Childrens Home announced plans to use the road as a transport route for heavy water trucks. Bethany Childrens Home planned to sell water from a spring on its property to raise money for its underfunded efforts to assist youth from disadvantaged backgrounds.

But with the backing of a core study by the Harrisburg-based engineering firm HRG, the Millcreek supervisors determined the stretch of Bethany Road in question is not fit for commercial transportation. The ordinance will go into effect this week.

In addition, council expects it will need to reserve funds to address the Cardinal Run Road water-drainage problem.

That thing has been a thorn in our side for 15 years, maybe longer, said Supervisor Donald Leibig, referring to the way water collects near the road.

The supervisors are considering spending $6,000 to hire a firm to do an initial topographical survey to determine if anything can be done about it. If the survey shows the water can be redirected to Mill Creek, an engineering study, costing about $40,000, would have to be conducted to create a plan, and the actual project might cost around $100,000.

In other business:

A prominent liberal advocacy group is pressing the deficit-reducing supercommittee to not waste any time in raising taxes on the rich.

MoveOn.org, responding to reports that the 12 lawmakers on the panel were considering pushing back decisions on how to raise new revenues, is calling on its members to personally lobby supercommittee Democrats on the issue.

In an email to supporters, MoveOn.org made a nod to the current Occupy protests and contrasted the possible tax delay with what it called an immediate search for “deep cuts to social programs.”

“Whats needed now is for the rich and corporations to pay their fair share — not for the 99% to suffer more so the 1% can keep their tax cuts,” the group wrote.

“If the supercommittee plan delays the decisions about who has to pay higher taxes until next year, you can be sure itll become just one more opportunity for the 1% to run roughshod over the 99%,” the message adds. “Thats why we have to stop any deal that doesnt make the rich and corporations pay their fair share, while protecting critical programs — like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security — that we all rely on.”

MoveOn.org also cites a recent New York Times article that said supercommittee members were discussing a plan to set a revenue target, then have the congressional tax-writing committees haggle over the details in 2012.

By Heather J. Carlson
The Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN

ST. PAUL House Tax Committee Chairman Greg Davids unveiled an $80 million proposal on Monday to slash property taxes for businesses and some homeowners.

Davids, R-Preston, is proposing to exclude the first $100,000 in value for commercial/industrial properties from the statewide property tax. His plan calls for eventually phasing out the $800 million tax over 20 years. He says that this change will give businesses in the state a much-needed boost.

I happen to believe that what is going to get us out of these economic woes is creating private-sector jobs. The private sector creates wealth. The government does not, he said.

His proposal also centers on providing tax relief to homeowners whose local property taxes will increase by 12 percent or more in 2012. The refunds would come by increasing the percentage of property taxes the state refunds these homeowners from 60 percent to 90 percent. The states maximum refund would be raised by 20 percent for already eligible homeowners whose annual income is above $37,280. At this point, Davids said he does not have a specific plan to pay for the tax breaks. He said the idea would be to identify savings that could be found in state government to pay for it.

Davids announcement comes as property tax statements are starting to arrive in homeowners mail boxes. Democrats charge that this latest tax-relief proposal is an effort by Republicans to do political damage control after agreeing to scrap the Market Value Homestead Credit as part of a final budget deal. It was replaced with a market value exclusion on lower-priced homes. That shifted the property tax burden onto higher-priced homes, commercial, industrial and agricultural properties.

I think Republicans did a lot of harm in their budget, and I am glad they want to fix it.. I hope they do fix it, but the money has to come from somewhere, said Rep. Tina Liebling, DFL-Rochester.

Read in Tuesdays print edition what others say about the plan and the politics involved with both parties.

A suburban strip club owner serving a federal prison sentence for tax fraud is now being sued by one of his employees, who claims he cheated her and other dancers out of wages and improperly classified them as independent contractors to avoid paying taxes.

Michael Wellek, 63, of Libertyville, tearfully apologized at his February sentencing for not paying taxes on some $12 million in cash that Internal Revenue Service agents found stashed in an Elk Grove Village warehouse he controlled. The money was stuffed in bags labeled by the Wellek-owned strip club they came from Skybox in Harvey, Heavenly Bodies in Elk Grove Village and Cowboys in Markham.

A recently filed federal lawsuit alleges the money also didnt trickle down to the dancers at Skybox and Heavenly Bodies who were bringing it in. Strippers allegedly worked more than 40 hours a week but didnt get paid overtime and had unauthorized deductions from their pay that meant in some weeks they werent paid minimum wage, according to the complaint.

Most Collier County property owners will see their taxes go down in 2012.

Residents will find out how much next week when Collier County Property Appraiser Abe Skinner mails out notices on Monday.

“Most taxing authorities in Collier are holding the line on taxes and most residential properties will see a slight decrease,” Skinner said today.

Skinner said Collier residents living close to the beach could see a slight increase, especially beachfront condo owners and those living in downtown Naples.

Skinner said property owners in Golden Gate will once again see their home values decrease — some by as much as 40 percent over last year.

“They took a beating last year and they’re going to take one again,” he said.

Overall, Skinner said, Collier will see close to a 5 percent decrease in taxable value.

If people are concerned about the appraised value of their home and don’t believe the value cited by the property appraiser is correct, Skinner urged them to make an appointment with his office to discuss it.

“There’s always a chance that we made a mistake,” he said.

Collier’s current countywide general fund tax rate is $3.56 for each $1,000 in property, or $712 for a $200,000 home.

Its that wonderful time of year where everyone is rushing to their mailboxes in high anticipation for a kind message from their County Treasurer telling you how much you owe in property taxes this year. Im pretty certain nobody feels this way. As your County Treasurer, I know receiving your tax statement is an annual inevitable displeasure, especially now days when money is tight in this rocky economy.

In our own homes we are doing the big and little things to make ends meet and we expect our government; local, state and federal to do the same. When you look at your tax statement you will see that your taxes go to your school district, city, county and more. Your school board, city council, county supervisors, state legislature and governor make the decisions that directly affect your property taxes. I urge all taxpayers to be informed on the issues that affect your taxes. Also, contact your government officials ask them to do what you are doing in your own household; prioritize programs and find efficiencies in those programs to provide better service and make ends meet.

Receiving your tax statement can also be confusing. The most common misunderstanding people have is the property tax schedule in accordance to your assessment. If you are a property owner, you should have received your 2011 Real Estate Assessment Roll in April. The value on the 2011 assessment will be the basis on your tax statement you receive next year. The assessed value on your tax statement you should have received in the past week is based on your 2010 valuation on taxes for the period of July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011.

To simplify, just remember that the taxes you are paying now was calculated from the prior years assessment.

How property taxes are determined can be difficult to understand. There are assessments, rates, who pays, what the money goes towards, equalization, rollbacks, credits and more.

All of this information is explained in great detail, yet easy to understand on the Iowa Department of Revenues website at: www.iowa.gov/tax/educate/78573.html. I strongly recommend all property taxpayers to visit this website and become more familiar with the process.

You may also contact my office if you ever have any questions on this subject at 641-754-6366. We are open Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4:30 pm

I’ve been blissfully off the grid for the past few days, cycling in Western New York.  (Allegany State Park is absolutely gorgeous.  Made me be glad to be paying taxes in New York State.)  I could forget about the debt ceiling fiasco, 9 percent unemployment, the tea party, runaway health spending, global warming, the NBA lockout…

But back in the real world, I learn from newly minted GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry what’s wrong with America–that middle income Americans don’t pay enough taxes.  Really.

We’re dismayed at the injustice that nearly half of all Americans don’t even pay any income tax. (Quoted in this terrific Ruth Marcus column.)

We’re apparently not dismayed that more than half of all Americans have been in a 30-year recession with little or no income growth.  We’re apparently willing to write off Social Security and Medicare payroll taxes, which are the big federal taxes for low- and middle-income Americans.  A family of four earning $30,000 may pay no federal income tax, but it pays $4,590 in payroll taxes (including the employer’s share, which economists believe is ultimately paid by the employee in the form of lower wages).  Payroll taxes are much bigger than income taxes for most families.

Among working households, 82 percent pay more payroll tax than income tax.  They also pay federal excise taxes on gasoline, beer, wine, liquor, tires, and cigarettes.  And state and local taxes are notoriously regressive.   Feel better, governor?

It’s true that middle income people don’t pay the estate tax.  Nor do most rich people.  Are we dismayed about that?

Here’s another shocker for the governor:  the recession surely caused many households to join the ranks of “lucky duckies.” (This is the Wall Street Journal’s term for people so poor that they don’t owe income taxes.  My reaction is here.)  Are we dismayed that after dad lost his job due to the recession, the family can still claim the child tax credit so long as mom keeps working?

Okay, here are some facts, courtesy of the Tax Policy Center.  They may not allay Mr. Perry’s dismay, but they should assuage the concerns of anyone with a soul.

• Of the 46% of households who don’t pay income tax, nearly 2/3 pay payroll taxes.
• Of the 18% who pay neither income nor payroll taxes, more than half are elderly.
• More than 1/3 have incomes below $20,000.  (Note:  Ronald Reagan made the decision in 1986 to exempt people with incomes below the poverty line from federal income tax.  Twenty-five years later, that still seems like a good call.)
• Only 1% of nontaxpaying households are nonelderly with incomes over $20,000.  I’m dismayed about them too governor. Maybe we should close some of the loopholes that allowed almost 1,500 millionaires to escape income tax in 2009.

Governor Perry’s dismay raises some questions about the potential tax policy implications.  Does he want to raise taxes on lower-income elderly people–by far the largest category of lucky duckies?   Does he want to raise income taxes on the bottom 50% of taxpayers?  If so, wouldn’t that trickle up to raises taxes on most if not all of the middle class?  How does that square with his pledge to never ever raise taxes?  To keep his “tax reform” from being a net tax increase, he’d have to give tax cuts to high income folks.

Oh, right, we have to raise taxes on the working poor and the middle class to finance even more tax breaks for millionaires.

Sigh…

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