School Impact Fees: Fair & Equitable?
There have been several general comments on our blog concerning impact fees in Marion County. This is a hot issue, with our county commissioners and school board both considering significant increases in fees for various purposes.
The school board has just developed a proposal, which is being reviewed by consultants, to implement the following schedule of school impact fees:
Single Family Home $8067
Apartment (per unit) $5146
Mobile Home $7700
Our question for the month of October:
Do you think these impact fees are fair and equitable? Why or why not?
Click on comments below and let us hear from you.
Blog Master
posted by Blog Master @ 6:35 PM
22 Comments:
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Sorry folks, I had to remove the above comment. It was a "spam ad". We have been getting a few of these lately. Just trying to keep you from having to read them!
Let me be sure I understand this. A retired couple with no children purchase a mobile home for $35,000 and pay a $7700 impact fee. A doctor, his wife and four kids buy a new $1.5 million home and pay $8067. This does not seem fair and equitable to me! Am I missing something?
This can't be the way this will work!
We are fast becoming a community described by Chris Rock's stump speech when he played presidential candidate Mays Gilliam in the 2003 movie “Head of State”:
How many of you work in a city you can't afford to live in?
That ain't right!
How many of you work in a mall that you can't afford to shop in?
That ain't right!
How many of you clean up a hotel you ain't never gonna be able to stay in?
That ain't right!
I don’t mind taxes, if they are fair. However, I’m not convinced these impact fees are good for our local economy and job situation.
Increase the sales tax and a more fair increase in the impact fees are my preferences. Also, I can't believe there isn't quite a bit of "fluff" that can be cut out of the school budget.
As I have commented before, I do not see the need to distingush between moble homes and site built houses. A retiree with no children may end up in either.
The fact remains that newcomers are causing a tremendous impact on the government's finances, and they should be the ones who pay.
A side benefit to those who are owners. Home values will increase, overnite, by the amount of the impact.
Responding to the comment above.
So you feel the situation described by "taxed retiree" is fair and equitable?
I don't. Income, house price, home location, and family status should all be part of the fee equation.
I see that Anonymous wrote:
"Increase the sales tax and a more fair increase in the impact fees are my preferences. Also, I can't believe there isn't quite a bit of "fluff" that can be cut out of the school budget."
It is very hard to find a lot of "fluff" in a budget when 87% of it (I think that is right, and am sure within a couple percentage points) is for salaries and benefits. Thay doesn't leave much "fluff" unless you want to start cutting employees.
Anonymous, cutting employees is difficult when you have a steady increase in the number of students, which require more teachers, more lunchroom workers, more janitors, etc . . .
I have been following school budgets in Marion county for 48 years as a reporter and now as a citizen. If I were king, I would make some changes, but they are difficult.
--pwf
Taxed retiree has a good sounding question, until you get to the meat of it and understand the process.
The income of the person has nothing to do with it. Each house, mobile home and apartment creates a demand for services, regardless of their income and the number of kids. At age 70 and no children at home, if I built a new home, I create a demand for educational services, because I visit doctors and their staffs are composed of young people, who have kids . . .
Impact fees are just that -- a one time tax because an impact is created. Annual property taxes is where we nail the doctor and his $1.5 million house.
Do impact fees destroy the economy of a community? Please inquire in Stuart Florida, where Martin County has been charging about $10,000 for a dozen years and it sure has not slowed their growth -- not a twit.
Lake County is approaching $10,000; Volusia, Osceola, Orange -- why should Marion County get further and further behind. Every new home creates a new impact, regardless of the age of the owners.
The school board should have a minimum of $5,000 for every apartment, mobile home and home. I am sorry the chair of the schoiol board is afraid of the construction industry and wants to stop at $2,500. That only delays the inevitable.
--pwf
How are mobile homes taxed (by value, flat fee, certificate, or other)? Perhaps the county should also go after increasing the base tax also on mobile homes also. Just a thought.
If you are interested in viewing some of the previous comments concerning this topic when it was first introduced, go to the “Archives” and select “July”. Select the posting “Impact Fees: Will Our School Board Duck This Issue”. You can then review all of the comments that were offered at that time.
Last time I checked, mobile homes have two options re tax. first, like real property RP, and second, like a car, with a tag.
The RP option allows them to bath in our $25,000. homestead exemption. The tag does not.
Most I have run across are real property selections.
Charles,
I assume you can only use the real property option if you own the land the trailer is on? Many mobile homes are in parks and they own the home but rent the space.
PWF offers some good points to consider. When you look at impact fees in other counties, which I have done, you see we are way behind the eight ball compared to several counties. Perhaps the school board is not even being aggressive enough with the proposed schedule of fees. Also, I hope they put in some sort of system to annually keep the fee structure up to date with (at least) inflation. Having to readdress this every 5-10 years or so may be good politics, but is not good financial stewardship. Sorry to see that Sue Moseley seems to be bailing out on the fee that applies to homes. My bet, the whole proposal will be further watered down.
Who did the school board hire as a consultant for impact fees??? The same one the county fired after the fire impact fee debacle??? They are probably friends of a school board member, but they sure did a lousy, lousy job for the fire services.
Unbelievable!! Hire the same consultant that messed up the county fire impact fees proposal. I don't think the county commissioners accepted anything this consultant said.
Going against the grain here.
Although the numbers are startling, I have no heartburn with the school impact fees.
As a person who has never had a child and has paid income taxes, property taxes on houses, boats, cars and land, to support schools, parks, libraries, and the like I think we need to do what is necessary to provide the educational tools our young people need to succeed.
I know with four siblings, someone else's taxes helped educate my parent's children and I should do the same.
If any school board members read this, I hope you will not let the retirement communities off the hook on your school impact fees proposal. All who live in a retirement community do benefit from having good schools. We need services that education is the basis of providing. I’m a senior and I believe any new seniors coming here impact the need for a good education system.
Don
(OTOW)
FWIW, I concur with Don. We all benefit from schools.
When the impact fees are imposed, all our properties will increase in value, some amount, approaching the size of the fee. When we sell, we will receive the fee back, and perhaps transfer it to a new house.
In a sense, arn'e we are making an interest free loan to the Government?
Your blog presents an interesting question, what is Sue Moseley doing with the impact fees? Isn't it interesting that her campaign signs, that were illegaly placed too early, are in front of the Marion County Builders Association?? I truly pray for her because I do not know if she is not intelligent enough to know she is being manipulated, or is she willing to put our children at risk so that she can continue in politics??? Even Ray
Charles can see what is going on!!!
And I am sure sue will pray for you. At least she is not using religion for politics as your boy kurt and his buddy david. for alvarez to run as a church going man makes even you look bad. and everybody knows kurt joined first bap becaue it had more votes. surprised david didn't leave little st. marks ad go to first methodist. talk about manipulation?
gimme me another beer!
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