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Show Page 18 The Ogden Valley news Volume XV Issue VII March 15, 2008 RED MOOSE cont. from page 1 PROPERTY TAX cont. from page 3 Moose Lodge to house such a facility. But owner John Lewis stated that while the petitioner did previously contact his office about possibly purchasing the lodge, it is currently under contract with an unrelated buyer. Weber County lead planner Jim Gentry stated that if the zoning petition is approved, it would allow blanket approval to facilities that house and treat non-violent youth. This would include youth being treated for such things as eating disorders and depression. “They would not have records for sexual or other criminal violations.” Also on the March 25 agenda will be a number of subdivision petitions seeking final approval. For more information on Ogden Valley planning issues, contact the Weber County Planning office or visit their web site at <www1.co.weber.ut.us/> Planning Commission agendas for upcoming meetings can be found on the web site about two days prior to each meeting. hearings, any increases in property taxes. Tax increases were defined very strictly by Truth-in-Taxation, basically labeling any increase in revenues over a previous year’s property tax revenues as a tax increase burden has changed over time for the various types of property. Tax burdens on primary residences have been somewhat stable in the past 16 years, with a slight increasing trend from 1999 through 2003, then slightly dropping. Although much smaller in total BELL CANDIDACY cont. from page 1 years and in Utah for 30 years. He and his wife of 42 years, “K-Bell,” raised two children in Davis County while he served as the Chief F-16 test pilot at Hill AFB. Both D- and K-Bell grew up in Southeast Arkansas. He attended the University of Arkansas (BA Business) and the University of N. Colorado (MA). After a year working on the Gemini Project in St. Louis, Bell joined the U.S. Air Force where he completed pilot training. He states that for the next 20 years, he was on a mission for his country. In Viet Nam he flew 188 combat missions in F-4 fighters, and was awarded 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses and 13 Air Medals with 29 awards and decorations. After the war he was selected for a special assignment with the Marine Corps where he attended Navy Top Gun School. While on his only staff assignment, Bell helped to create and flew in an unprecedented 5 nation, 3 year, F-16 flight test program, based out of Hill AFB. Bell also states that he worked persistently with integrity and at times audacity, to insure a new concept of F-16 interoperability was successfully integrated into the European theater and NATO. At Hill AFB, he flew production flight test missions at Hill AFB. Returning to civilian life, Bell supervised engineers at Hill AFB for General Dynamics for ten years before retiring. unless the increase is caused by new development. These tax increase notices and hearings cause political pressure for local councils and boards to reduce property tax rates as property values increase to avoid being blamed for tax increases. Utah’s Truth-in-Taxation law has been very effective at reducing the property tax burden over time. Brigham Young University professors Gary Cornia and Lawrence Walters described in a 2006 paper how Truth-in-Taxation had consistently reduced the burden of locally-imposed property taxes on residential property (excluding the state-mandated basic levy for schools) from 1987 through 2001. As shown in Figure 1, the property tax burden remains lower now than in the mid-1980s, although there was a slight upward trend in the early part of this decade. Again, Figure 1 includes all property taxes, and it is useful to see how the dollars, more significant changes were occurring in the tax burdens on personal property, motor vehicles, utility properties, and natural resources (mining, oil and gas extraction, etc.), which have generally declined since 1990. These declining tax burdens could be a result of tax policy choices or they could result from declining property values. All property types experienced a lowering of effective tax rates in the mid1990s when the Legislature significantly reduced the state-mandated basic levy for schools. Prior to the large basic levy reductions in 1995 and 1996, the Legislature had increased the tax exemption for primary residences in 1991 and 1994, but those changes did not result in a lower tax burden or a lower effective tax rate on residences. The basic levy reductions had a much more direct impact on residential property tax burdens, and the reductions also affected all types of property except motor vehicles. Other tax policy changes affected these tax rates in the 1990s, including a swap of county property tax reductions for sales tax increases, and several years in which voter approval was required for imposition of tax rates in excess of the Truth-in-Taxation calculated rates. After 1998, effective tax rates rose again and then remained level to slightly increasing for most types of property. In addition to reviewing Utah’s own experience with property taxes, it is useful to compare Utah to other states to assess how burdensome Utah’s property tax may be in comparison. A detailed study by the Minnesota Taxpayers Association on property taxes in the 50 states and Washington, D.C. shows that taxes on a $300,000 home in Salt Lake City compare very favorably to taxes in other states. Utah has one of the lowest property taxes, ranking 45th in this comparison. The Minnesota study also compares taxes on other types of property, including businesses, apartments, lower-priced homes, and property in a rural community. In each ranking, Utah is well below the national average. In conclusion, Utah’s Truth-in-Taxation law has generally been effective at holding the property tax burden at a low level, although during the rapid increases in property values in the 1990s, additional tax relief was enacted to counter the rising tax bills. Since the late 1990s, Utah’s property tax burden has been on a slight upward trend for primary residences. Nevertheless, the level of taxation on homes in Utah remains very low compared to other states. Endnotes [1] “Full Disclosure: Controlling Property Tax Increases During Periods of Increasing Housing Values”, National Tax Journal, Vol. LIX, No. 3, September 2006. This research brief was written by Utah Foundation President Stephen Kroes. He may be reached at (801) 355-1400 or by email at <steve@utahfoundation. org> For more information about Utah Foundation, please visit our website <www.utahfoundation.org> If you value independent, factual research on the issues, please support Utah Foundation by becoming a member. 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