Georgia County Government - February 2009 - (Page 7)

CountyMatters It’s Time to Think About the Future By Jerry Griffin Executive Director We are very fortunate to live in a state that has a balanced tax structure that serves us well in various economic gyrations. here are a lot of things going on in the world today over which we have no control. Everyone is becoming numb to the ups and downs of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and while every economist has their view of what is happening and what it will take to fix the economy, most of us are watching from the sidelines and hoping someone, somewhere in the world, will help discover solutions for the world’s economy. We’ll wait and hope they find the cure for our ailing 401K and 457 accounts. Regardless of what is happening in the economy at large, one fact remains very clear: The local government services required for our society to exist and for our economy to continue to provide jobs and salaries must be provided. We are very fortunate to live in a state that has a balanced tax structure that serves us well in various economic gyrations. Local governments also have a relatively broad-based tax structure that in many instances has reduced the reliance on the property tax. In this recession, however, both state and local governments are feeling the pinch of lowered sales taxes and property tax digest value. This year, the digest change has largely been associated with decreased new construction, but next year, we anticipate a further decrease in digest value because reappraisals will certainly show property values have decreased. Certainly our state is facing challenges, some of which involve eliminating services that counties are then asked to provide, but other cuts seem to be aimed at actually eliminating expenditures that fund programs not vital to state government. Counties and schools are doing the same thing as they consider their revenue picture. T From 22 years of experience with county commissioners, I can attest raising taxes is the last choice they want to make, but sometimes it is necessary. Given that counties provide some 69 services, those legally mandated being the most expensive in the budget – county jails and the operation of the courts, for example – and since the property tax is the only tax that can be adjusted by the county commission, a solid tax structure is vital. Association County Commissioners of Georgia has long advocated a careful study of the property tax law to deal with equity and fairness. Interesting ideas are being discussed at the General Assembly, but it is generally a piecemeal approach focusing on only one part of the issue. One thing is abundantly clear in the current recession and that is that a badly overheated housing market fueled by mortgages that were too easy to obtain were at the base of the financial crisis. That overheated market led to property value increases that were hard to comprehend. When the bubble burst, values are probably below what we all hope is the actual value of our property, but those reduced values will become the tax base for local government next year. Neither the Legislature nor county commissioners were responsible for the economic turmoil in real estate, and we believe that now that the bubble has burst, once other components of the market place are stabilized rationality will return to housing and to property values. Such was true with the “dot com” bubble. We believe that tax legislation dealing with real estate this year should be carefully considered. Certainly no one wants to create any impediments to our future, but tax policy can have unintended consequences if it is not deliberated carefully. We should all be concentrating on what we can do during this down economy to ensure that when the economy returns, Georgia and her local governments are ready to reclaim its role of national leader. ■ FEBRUARY 2009 www.accg.org 7 http://www.accg.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Georgia County Government - February 2009

Georgia County Government - February 2009 Contents President’s Message County Matters ACCG Training Programs: A Foundation for Excellence in County Government ACCG Welcomes Newly Elected Commissioners Georgia’s Trauma System: The Emergency Management System Component Demographics Program Addresses County Planning Extension News: 4-H Camping Program Benefits Georgia Youth Research Corner: Promote Economic Development in Your Rural County County Parade Index of Advertisers

Georgia County Government - February 2009

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