The mail: Taxes, Jim Smith, political moderation & assorted other topics

You wrote that the Legislature last year ordered an actual reduction in  local property taxes. Last year they raised my taxes about 33% on my rental property [which I appealed & Lost] which I bought in 2002 ...they have raised my property taxes 177% since my 2002 purchase which is almost three times the average MLS increase for the same period 65.337%  -- Carol A Cels McCool

The law they passed ordered a rollback in OVERALL tax collections - the total dollars collected. Unfortunately, this still allows the government to stick individual taxpayers with increases, by continuing to increase their appraisals. Amendment 1, just passed in January by the voters, now limits the increase in tax appraisals to 10 percent a year for non-homesteads -- still a pretty big increase, but at least now there's a limit. My own thinking is there ought to be an overall cap on everybody's taxes equally....

****************

Would you be so kind as to provide either the e-mail addresses and phone numbers for our area state legislators or a web site link to obtain that information. -- Richard Ross, Tampa

Howdy. If you go to the legislature's web site... www.leg.state.fl.us and click on House or Senate, when you go to each member's individual page, there's an e-mail address listed.

****************

Haven't seen anything in the news lately about the Pinellas property appraiser's land deal. Has the State Ethics Commission issued any ruling on this matter? -- Hal Ward, St. Petersburg

Not that I know of. There was a grand jury report that criticized the whole deal, of course and there was later a ruling from the Florida Bar that the county attorney did not violate Bar rules in the Smith deal. Even if the Ethics Commission "clears" Smith, by saying that what he did was not illegal, it still was a cozy and insider deal that did the public a disservice. "Not illegal" is a pretty low standard for good government.

****************

If the Republicans want to really move toward the center, or embrace the conservatism of John Paul Stephens or the executive that appointed him. Why not throw Christine Todd Whitman into the VP mix?  It would also, should McCain win, truly set up the election of female president. -- Fred Dearman, Oldsmar

Because lots of Republicans don't want to move toward the center, or embrace the conservatism of John Paul Stevens or the executive who appointed him. Like the liberal Democrats, the more conservative Republicans would rather be ideologically pure than win elections.

***************

I've got to sound off on all this talk of budget cuts. No one ever says let us cut state legislator's salaries or out of state trips and severely restrict how many trips in the state that are made, right from the governor's office on down!  Of course, the cuts must be made in schools and health (which is in a sorry state here in Florida anyway)! -- P.J. Nette, Jr.

I agree with your spirit, but legislators' salaries and travel are a grain of sand against the state budget -- the cut would have mostly symbolic value.

***************

May I ask what your reasoning was in concluding that public safety employees should be exempted from [phasing out pensions]?  Why do you believe that carving these individuals out of any revision would in any way serve some purpose?  Where’s the equality or fairness?  Shouldn’t the rules apply to all employees in a similar manner?  Aren’t employers subject to great liabilities because we apply the “rules” inconsistently?  I know, I know, life is not fair...but, the belief that life is not fair is our crutch for not doing what is right for everyone, not just some.  -- John Wever

My thinking in excepting public safety workers from a general phase-out of public-sector pensions was that they spend their careers putting their lives on the line for the public interest, and their salary alone doesn't really compensate for that. Look, I doubt we will ever get the gumption to phase out government pensions in the first place, let alone be able to debate whether to phase out police & fire as well...

Happy Friday and best wishes to all for a good weekend....

Comments

[ALC]

http://www.sptimes.com/2008/02/29/Northpinellas/Popular_burger_joint_.shtml
This will change fast food forever in Pinellas County.

[Jim Johnson]

No. McCain or Christ or Whitman arent qualitatively better than a liberal Democrat. And there is no gain from rewarding candidates who have centrist sentiments. Electing them makes them harder to get rid of at the next election.

Better to let Hillary of Obama flush America down the toilet, and whet the appetites of voters for a conservative.

[Larry]

Howard, I hate to beat a dead horse, but I was just reading an article on Amendment 1 and portability, and it said "allows a one-time transafer of up to $500,000 in exemption." Does that mean that if I decide to move again, I cannot transfer the savings carried to the second residence over to a new third residence? That would mean I was trapped again. What's the deal?

...and rank-and-file employees (you can even count out the EVIL teachers if you like) of school boards (yes, counties pay into the state pension fund) and state universities spend their lives serving your kids...

What do you not get about "public servant" when it comes to state workers? We are paid very little and accept that. We made that choice. When we made that choice, we made it knowing we'd have a little somethig towards retirement after our years of *service* to you, the taxpayers. The big name crooks who scam the system and double dip come and go from the headlines every year, but the rank and file, 99% of whom work for far less than most of your readers would dream of accepting show up at work every day and do our jobs to help you, your children and your elderly parents.