Tax hike hits land owners in 2 districts: Those in Bisbee and Naco will be affected
The Herald/Review reports:
BISBEE — Property owners within the Bisbee and Naco school districts will see a slight increase in property taxes next year, thanks to the [Republican-controlled] Arizona Legislature…
The tax break property owners have been given for the past 30 years was silently eliminated with a solid Republican vote in a state education budget bill passed earlier in the year.
Dropping the homeowners’ rebate will save $70 million in the 2011-2012 fiscal year, said state Rep. Pat Fleming, D-Sierra Vista.
So that $70 million will be made up by most Arizona property owners. County property taxpayers won’t see much of an increase in their tax bills and those in Bowie, McNeal and Pomerene won’t see any increase at all, said [Judy] Richardson [vice president of Stone & Youngberg, LLC, who works with the Arizona Association of School Business Officers] in an analysis of the impact to school districts.
According to Bisbee school district Business Manager Tony Zuraff, property owners here will see an increase of $11.48 per $100,000 of assessed property value.
In Naco
For Naco school district property owners, the increase will be $28.60 per $100,000 of assessed property value, states the report from Richardson.
The Legislature’s efforts to cut the budget by whacking education and services leaves Fleming still fuming.
“Over the past two years, the state has cut $1.1 billion from education,” Fleming said.
“We have seen a total lack of transparency in the Legislature. Republican leaders and Gov. Jan Brewer have locked lawmakers and the public out of the budget process. It seems the Republican tax hike will be the largest in rural districts, where our small businesses are struggling and jobs are hard to find. What we really need to do is work toward a balanced budget that focuses on job creation, education and getting Arizona back on track.”
Fleming was the only person who responded to Herald/Review questions on the matter.
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