Today, Vice Mayor Suzanne Mulvehill will be speaking to Palm Beach County Commissioners on renegotiating the Fire/Rescue Contract and eliminating the supplemental payments. Why the Vice Mayor and not the Mayor? If you recall, when we went to the County, we were charged additional monies that no other city was charged. In a few years, and for eternity, we will be paying $1.3 million a year in supplemental payments for Fire/Rescue.Also, what will be discussed is spreading the cost for this service to all property owners in Lake Worth as some of us do not pay taxes or pay little. We have the double homestead exemption in effect as well as the Senior Exemption for people who live on less than poverty income. Mayor Varela likes this idea as everyone will be paying the same rate just like we do for Lake Worth Waste and Stormwater. Those charges were moved to our tax bill a few years ago... a creative screwing.
I have a few problems with this--as I haven't had my Wheaties yet, please bear with me--
Poor people will be paying the same rate as wealthy people. When I have a need for an ambulance, I am billed. That bill is sent to my insurance company. The balance is paid by me and there is always a balance. I can assure you, with the gigantic charges today of ambulance/paramedic services, the bill is enormous. A $500 charge is not unusual.
So, not only will I pay for the service when I use it, but I will pay for the privilege of just being offered that service on my tax bill and the rate will be the same for someone living on less than poverty income versus someone else living well above upper middle class income. I just ask if this tax really should be equal...is it fair that we all will be paying the same tax amount particularly when we have to pay to use an ambulance anyway? Fires are few and far between.
What will happen now is that it will free up some millage that the City can now use against the residents. Property values are expected to go down again and therefore they will have less money--$4.5 million is estimated. The City has to get creative once again. Not only will we all be taxed the same for a service we pay for anyway when we use it, but the City will have the ability to use that dollar difference in a tax of a different kind. They are worried that we are at an 8.85 millage now and 10 mills are the max they can charge us under State law. It will give them that much more millage to screw us with. They always say that they have not or will not raise taxes but they always find a creative way of doing just that.
In this Democratic and liberal thinking city, I am surprised that the commission believes that we should pay the same rate regardless of our income or ability to do so. All people are equal I guess.
I was against Fire going to the County to begin with and I am against this new creative tax idea.
It looks like they want to tax us more to help pay for those union benefits that we can't afford.
ReplyDeleteThat's your liberal, progressive politicians at work! When we thank God that the state sets a bar of 10 mils that every city must stay under, we always tickle that number and try to find ways "around" the cap. Instead of a conservative approach trying to find ways to cut spending, possibly using.... get this.... an internal auditor, to help find areas of waste, mis-management or overspending. THAT'S in our charter but "the best commission ever" tries find more ways to, as Lynn so eloquently put it, SCREW US!
ReplyDeleteI believe our pendulum has swung far enough to the left to last us a decade or so and it will take a lot of conservative belt tightening and re-organization as well as incentivising to get this funky little town by the sea to reach it's potential. Home owner/occupier is the key, affordable or otherwise.
Continuing to elect and re-elect these progressive (regressive really) types will only prolong the blight, crime and influx of illegal aliens that they have come to symbolize.
People buy here because housing is affordable. Most of our people are on the poor side of life. They will be hurt the most by an additional fixed tax.
ReplyDeleteBut wait just one minute here--
ReplyDeletethe Mayor said that a flat rate makes sense and it seems that the rest of the Commission agrees. As property values continue to go down, the City is making less and less. The idea is to stick the same rate on the property owners so that the City gets their money regardless. Instead of caring about the rate payer, they are caring about the cost of services and that does include Union benefits that most of these taxpayers do not receive themselves.
Hey, reduce some of these dang services. Cut the waste. Cut the crap, a word I will no longer be able to use at City Hall. Internal Auditor a must.
Fair warning--anyone who comes over here and uses the expression, "best commission ever," that comment will be deleted. I am really tired of the bull.
ReplyDelete