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12th District legislators to participate in
property tax forum June 24
Lawmakers will explain
property taxes, answer questions
With new property tax
valuations hitting Chelan County homeowners' mailboxes,
Sen.
Linda Parlette and
Rep.
Cary Condotta will participate in a public forum on property
taxes June 24 at 6:30 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center at Chelan High
School.
The meeting is organized by
GoLakeChelan.com and
the Lake Chelan Chamber of Commerce. Topics will include future property
tax changes as well as tax and budget trends.
The issue of property taxes, say the 12th District lawmakers, is raising
ire among property owners who have seen their property taxes rise an
average of 6.7 percent in 2005, 9.5 percent in 2006, and a staggering
15.8 percent in 2007, according to the Chelan County Assessor's office,
although many people’s bills have gone up much higher.
“Some of the assessments that people just received have gone up as much
as two thousand percent,” said Parlette. “It’s no wonder people are so
worried.”
Parlette and Condotta sit on the legislative committees that deal with
tax and finance issues, and have been pursuing property tax legislation
for several years.
"I have been trying to get the attention of other senators about the
need to address property taxes since 2005 when 12th District residents
came to me with valid complaints," said Parlette, R-Wenatchee. "Over the
past few sessions I have sponsored legislation that would have provided
real and tangible property tax relief for property owners in our
district. Those bills and other property tax relief measures did not
pass, but we are not giving up, and meetings like this one are very
helpful in drawing attention to the issue. In the state Senate, it is
the Ways and Means Committee that will decide which, if any, property
tax relief bills move forward. I invited the chair of that committee to
join us on June 24, but her schedule did not allow it. The good news is
that some of the Ways and Means Committee staff will travel from Olympia
to give a short presentation on how property taxes work, hear the
concerns of those I represent, and help me carry those concerns back to
the committee chair."
"This issue is not new and is being aggravated by high gas and food
prices," said Condotta, R-East Wenatchee. "Homeowners want answers and
they want information on how properties are assessed and taxed. There is
a lot of misunderstanding and misinformation out there and equitable
solutions are not simple matters. Like our Senator, I have supported
greater safeguards to ensure families aren't taxed out of their homes. I
am looking forward to this forum taking place so we can outline our
choices going forward and try to determine what our constituents
desire."
Constituents that need immediate assistance with their property tax
assessments can contact their assessor’s office. Residents with ideas
for changes to state law can contact Parlette's district office at (509)
663-9702 or Condotta's district office at (509) 664-1274.
# # #
For more information, contact:
Bobbi Cussins, Public Information Officer: (360) 786-7252
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