There's another tax bill coming. The big one, from my local school district, will be arriving soon. That's the one I dread the most every year because I know I'm going to pay at least 5 percent more in property taxes.
It's been that way every since Gov. Ed Rendell took office in 2003. My school property taxes have risen more than 30 percent since Rendell promised he would lower property taxes by at least 30 percent. He lied, of course.
Are we better off today than we were before Ed Rendell took office? Hell no. The Rendell formula of uncontrolled government spending and higher taxes have landed the state's economy on life support.
While Rendell deserves much of the blame, he's not alone. You can add spineless school board members who rubber-stamp every administration spending request to the list. And let's not forget the members of the Pennsylvania Legislature, the most overpaid, under-worked legislative body in the world.
Are we getting our money's worth? What has $300 million a year spent on running the Legislature gotten us?
And it's not going to get any better with the same group running things.
From an editorial in today's edition of The Pottstown Mercury:
Property owners and municipal and school district financial officers in Pennsylvania share a taxing dilemma.Read the full editorial at the newspaper's Web site.
As the value of property decreases, owners are seeking to lower their tax bills by challenging the property assessments on which their municipal and school taxes are based.
But when they succeed, the lower assessment produces fewer tax dollars for the town or school. To make up the losses, school districts and municipalities are forced to raise the tax rate or cut services.
In this vicious cycle, the pain comes full circle.
The cycle of diminishing property values and assessment challenges is stretching municipal budgets in ways not seen for decades.
Originally posted at TONY PHYRILLAS
