[StBernard] Property Tax Millage Rollup Meetings Scheduled

[Westley Annis]

LA Politics From the Inside

Property Tax Millage Rollup Meetings Scheduled
 

As appears below, several taxing districts have called meetings to increase
their millage rate. After the 2008 reassessment, millage rates were rolled
down to take into account the higher valuation or reassessment of property.
For example, a taxing district with a maximum authorized millage rate of 30
mills, may have had its mills automatically rolled down to 25 mills, so that
it would collect the same amount of tax (at the lower millage rate) that it
collected before reassessment raised property value.  However under the
Constitution, all taxing bodies (even nonelected ones) can roll up their
mills back up to the maximum authorized rate without a vote of the people.
During the 2009 session of the Legislature, we passed two measures affecting
millage rollup's. The first (HB 902, 903- Arnold) limited rollup's for
nonelected bodies, with the exception of fire districts, to 2 1/2% per year.
The second (HB 83- Burns) required that millage rollup notices be posted on
the Internet and that meetings could not be rescheduled without giving
proper notice. Both of these bills were amended from their original terms in
order to pass.
Even though the Internet notice bill is not scheduled to take effect until
August 15, 2009, I am requesting that all public bodies go ahead and place
the notice of their meeting on their Internet site as well as discuss the
amount of money being raised by the proposed millage increase and what this
money will be used for. I'm also requesting that these taxing bodies placed
their budget on the Internet. 
While public services performed by these taxing bodies is very important,
property taxpayers have been particularly hard hit in recent times. As we
all know the economy is very troubled, 401 (k) plans have been devastated,
insurance rates have risen due to the hurricanes and many homeowners have
been required to pay additional property taxes during very difficult
economic times. In asking taxpayers to sacrifice even further, the taxing
bodies need to make a strong case how the money is needed to provide
services to the public.
Details about the meetings appear below:

District #1	 Tuesday, 8/18/09 at 5:30pm	 District Headquarters
(34780 S. Range Road, Slidell)	 
District #3	 Wednesday, 8/12/09 at 5:30pm	 Training Facility (29278
Hwy. 190, Lacombe)	 
District #4	 Tuesday, 8/18/09 at 6:00pm	 1800 North Lane Drive,
Mandeville	 
District #7	 Wednesday, 8/12/09 at 6:30pm	 73469 Hwy. 41, Pearl River

St. Tammany Parish Govt.	 Thursday, 9/3/09 at 6:00pm	 21490 Koop
Dr., Mandeville