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Armstrong votes to uphold
I-747 levy limit
Wenatchee lawmaker hopes it is beginning for
meaningful property tax relief
Rep. Mike
Armstrong encouraged
lawmakers to go beyond adoption of the 1 percent property tax levy limit
and begin to seek long-term, meaningful property tax relief. The House
of Representatives voted Thursday, 86-8, to reinstate the limit of
Initiative 747, which was tossed out Nov. 8 by the Washington Supreme
Court. The Senate soon followed in passing the measure,
House Bill 2416, and sent it to the governor.
Armstrong, R-Wenatchee,
said homeowners in the 12th District are being hit hard by rising
property taxes as assessed values rise, and need immediate and serious
tax relief.
"The property taxes are
really impacting people's pocketbooks. We asked the governor to call
this special session so that we could put a lid on those property tax
increases now and not wait until the regular session in January, after
taxing districts have adopted their budgets," said Armstrong.
Armstrong noted that while
the 1 percent limit will provide the help that people need, it is only
part of the answer to a very large problem.
"We are putting our finger
in a hole in the dike. We are plugging a hole that has been caused by a
series of events that have left property taxpayers very vulnerable. Had
we not been here to do this, that water would have been seeping out in
the form of tax increases over the next two months until we had the
opportunity in the 2008 session to address the problem," added
Armstrong. "When we come back into session in January, we need to
properly fix that hole. We need to renovate our property tax system and
provide more protections for the people who pay the taxes."
Armstrong said he has
serious concerns that the Legislature failed to address the "banked
capacity" issue during the one-day special session. Under the law, if a
taxing district does not levy the entire allowable increase in any year,
it can bank that amount for a future year, allowing the district the
opportunity of increases greater than 1 percent. Republicans proposed
House Bill 2418 that would have required entities to seek voter
approval before using their banked capacity, but a move to bring it to
the floor for consideration was rejected on a party-line vote, 59-35.
"Citizens said they want
tax levies limited to 1 percent per year. However, taxing districts
which have built up banking capacity could increase their levies far
beyond the 1 percent limit. If we are truly sincere about fixing a
problem with property tax increases, we need to ensure that voters can
decide whether to allow taxing districts to increase their levies beyond
1 percent," said Armstrong.
Armstrong also voiced
concerns about a Democrat proposal that would allow homeowners with a
household income of less than $57,000 - the state's median income - an
ability to defer up to 50 percent of their annual property-tax bill. The
measure,
Senate Bill 6178,
would require homeowners to pay all of the back taxes, plus interest,
when they sell their homes. Armstrong called it a "predatory lending
bill."
"That's what this is. If
we had private enterprise bring forth an idea like this, we would have
shut them down in a heartbeat. Who ultimately pays the price? It will be
the people we are trying to help," noted Armstrong. "This will penalize
poor people in Washington even more. The deferral of taxes under this
bill allows for a 7 percent interest rate, or more, to accrue annually.
This could completely wipe out someone's entire estate that they've
worked their whole life to obtain. It's just a really bad idea. We want
to protect them and make sure that is not allowed to happen."
Armstrong said a better
approach would have been the House Republican proposal,
House Bill 2419, which would have provided a $400 rebate to all
residents who paid property taxes on their primary residence in 2007.
"Our property tax rebate
package would have put money back into people's pockets. They would have
been able to spend that money, which in turn would have been good for
our economy. The governor's proposal, on the other hand, takes money
away from people, and is a way to allow government to own everything
you've worked your entire life to have. We want to put money back into
people's pockets and give them a break now."
A move to bring the $400
rebate bill to the House floor for consideration also failed on along
party lines, 59-35. Nevertheless, Armstrong said it was a productive
one-day special session.
"I'm ecstatic to be here
to do this for the citizens of the state. I'm pleased that we have
adopted the provisions of an initiative that the voters want in
Washington," he concluded.
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For more information, contact:
John
Sattgast, Public Information Officer: (360) 786-7257
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