Ken.....I also received my tax bill and spent a few minutes contemplating its effect. Although my "taxable value" decreased by $2100, my taxes increased $450 dollars. For me this is a 16.5% increase. Using the "rule of 72", at this rate my actual tax due will double every 4.3 years. It was interesting for me to note that of the 10 local taxing authorities, only 1 levied a tax rate that was less then the prior year.....or.....another way to state it is that 9 out of 10 local government agencies we support increased their tax rate. Also, only 2 units of local government actually decreased the amount of taxes they will receive and 1 of those reductions was for the grand total of .42 cents.
As a business owner I had to reduce staff by 20% in the last 4 years and I can assure you that any increase in prices totaling 16.5% would drive my customers away. I feel truly blessed to be able to have a vacation home in Candlewick where our diligent Board has kept the annual assessment at or near level for the last 5 years. Perhaps some of our local elected politicians would be wise to seek counsel from our very own elected officials.
Best regards, Dick Coleman