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Someone
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Posted: Sat May 17th, 2008 09:50 pm |
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| Thanks for the weekend, and really wasn't expecting anything. Just testing their character. But it is starting to point to they had no idea that .05 plus .03 = about 50%. Kind of like me .08 doesn't sound bad, but I wasn't at the meetings and it wasn't my job to understand.
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They are all the same
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Posted: Sat May 17th, 2008 09:33 pm |
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Someone, no sense sitting around and fretting about the lack of response. You really did not think that they would actually answer that question, did you? Better call town hall, I have heard from more than a few people around town that their tax bills were wrong...charged us a little too much. You are probably due a small refund when they get around to it. The amounts of over payment from residents so far has been anywhere from $15.00 to $90.00. Again, go figure. Not only did we get screwed, but we took more of a screwing than we were supposed to take.
Have a great weekend.
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Someone
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Posted: Sat May 17th, 2008 09:18 pm |
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Boy can't let this die. Now i would like to thank all the council and committee members for the quick and honest response. You have set the town at ease.
OK so I didn't get any. I think they all must be away at a How to Run a Town meeting.
Last edited on Sat May 17th, 2008 09:19 pm by Someone
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ccattie
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Posted: Sat May 17th, 2008 03:10 am |
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freaky someone 
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Someone
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Posted: Fri May 16th, 2008 04:58 pm |
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I guess the council and committee members haven't got on yet.
Boy when you ask a question on here, folks run and hide, I think.
Last edited on Fri May 16th, 2008 11:34 pm by Someone
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Hartlyboy
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Posted: Fri May 16th, 2008 02:44 am |
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| Of course you need a seperate set of rules. The developers you annex all that property for don't want to play by County rules and be responsible for their own infrastructure and stuff. They need you townies to pony up for the schools and streets and cops, etc., needed by the new residents they bring you.. Last edited on Sat May 17th, 2008 11:06 pm by Hartlyboy
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Barney Rubble
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Posted: Fri May 16th, 2008 01:55 am |
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| Fred and I talked about this at the quarry today. Can somebody explain in terms easy to understand why we in Smyrna are forced to pay a town property tax in addition to the county tax? The town does nothing for us that we don;t pay for separately like water, electric, trash collection. Why do we need a separate set of rules and rulemakers? Thats what our town taxes pay for. And hybrid cars.
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Someone
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 10:20 pm |
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Getting back to the question, where did the 5 come from. Like I said before this process will take some time (around 5-8 years) and it was decided that a 5 cent increase would not drastically effect the citizens, considering the reduction in electric. Are we right, I don't know. But we will keep working. And if any one on this blog has a question about it, please call me. I'm in the book.
Seems like that 5-8 years when by real quick.
Back to my question, since we seem to have some of the leaders read this. Did the committee and council know just what that LITTLE 5 or 8 cent would end up. You all keep saying we don't know what is going on, just don't understand, so clear this up for me anyway. I would like to see it in writing that you all knew what this would bring. Thank you in advance, I know you all will answer right away.
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SmyrnaDE
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 09:22 pm |
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gene mullen wrote: SmyrnaDE wrote: gene mullen wrote: SmyrnaDE wrote: gene mullen wrote: With everything I have been readiing on here, it seems as though most of you do not the information correct. This will be the one and only time that I will respond, so if you have a question I will do my best to find an answer.
All I ask is that the questions be civil, based on known fact ,not fiction and they pertain to the town and it's operation.
Mr. Mullen- What is your best answer regarding the purchase of those Lake Como Canoes? What made you do it?
See the other page Pat. I think I answered that question.
Alright then. Answer me this: Where did you get the 5 in the 5% Tax increase?
You're really going to make me type all night. All right, here goes. It's going to another long one.
The Town of Smyrna's budget is based on utility sales, and has been for long, long time. For 2007 we had a 23 million dollar budget ( give or take a few) of that 23 million, $1.6 million came from property taxes, another million or so ( may be less) came from property transfer fees, impact fees, etc. All the rest came from electric sales. Now you know why our rates are so high.
For several years, the town's auditors and financial advisors have been saying that is not the way to finance a town. Part of my campaign in 2004, 2005 and 2006 was to try to balance the revenue streams coming into the town. The general fund (which contains all the administrative functions, police, and lots of others) was running a $2.5 million deficit. That is not the way to run a town. In all the campaigns I advocated increasing property taxes and reducing electric rates to cover this deficit. This is a long term process, partly because it was allowed to continue for so long. Keep in mind that at a current rate of $.25 per hundred, the Town "makes" about
$ 60,000 per 1 cent of increase. The 5 cent increase was directly offset by a reduction of equal value in the electric rates. Now,granted this was done with the PPCAC rate because it was the fastest way to show our customers a savings. And we are working right now on making that reduction a permenant part of the actual rate.
This year, Mayor Stombaugh organized an audit committee. This committee is made up financial people that have alot of experience. I was opposed to this committee and was very vocal about it. Well, guess what? I was wrong. These people have come up with alot of good suggestions and procedures that we are working on to make things more efficient and streamlined and also to have better controls in place. And it hasn't costs the town a dime.
Getting back to the question, where did the 5 come from. Like I said before this process will take some time (around 5-8 years) and it was decided that a 5 cent increase would not drastically effect the citizens, considering the reduction in electric. Are we right, I don't know. But we will keep working. And if any one on this blog has a question about it, please call me. I'm in the book.
Here's where I got the 5 from. I was wrong about the 5%. Sorry.
It should have been 50%<
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They are all the same
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 08:24 pm |
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My neighbor said he called and the girls at the desk said that they have been plowed under by calls about this. My neighbor was told that there were no mistakes. This is what council voted for, which was an $.08 cent increase. How many will show up to next council to protest this. Probably not many. But Many will pay Many $$$$$$$$$$
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cottoncandy
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 07:54 pm |
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They are all the same wrote:
No shell game here. My taxes went up 50%, and that is a FACT!
Then go to or call Town Hall to ask why.
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Smyrna Needs Change
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 07:32 pm |
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Someone wrote: Are we playing a shell game? I seem to be reading one thing and then reading something else. Now can anyone answer this one. Have what some of you are paying the town, the same, a decrease or have they gone up?
my taxes went up by $151.00
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They are all the same
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 07:25 pm |
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Someone wrote: Are we playing a shell game? I seem to be reading one thing and then reading something else. Now can anyone answer this one. Have what some of you are paying the town, the same, a decrease or have they gone up?
No shell game here. My taxes went up 50%, and that is a FACT!
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Someone
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 07:23 pm |
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| Are we playing a shell game? I seem to be reading one thing and then reading something else. Now can anyone answer this one. Have what some of you are paying the town, the same, a decrease or have they gone up?
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cottoncandy
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 07:10 pm |
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They are all the same wrote: Someone wrote: I think what I am trying to get at here, did everyone who said yes understand that the .08 cent increase would come out to ~50%. Did all the members of committee and council understand, that is what I think I have been after.
Someone, do you think that today, if you asked this question point-blank from any of the council people, they would answer this question with, "Yes, I knew this was a 50% increase."? I, personally, do not think we would get an honest answer. I think that you will never have an honest answer to your question.
Most of you are spinning the facts. There was only a net 3-cent increase in property taxes, which is about 17.5%. The other approximately 30% is being offset by a decrease in the PPCAC shown on our electric bills. I have seen a slight decrease in my electric bill, and I will admit that I had expected more. Until I get some more facts, I can only guess that our PPCAC has been rising due to the surge in oil prices recently.
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They are all the same
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 05:10 pm |
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Someone wrote: I think what I am trying to get at here, did everyone who said yes understand that the .08 cent increase would come out to ~50%. Did all the members of committee and council understand, that is what I think I have been after.
Someone, do you think that today, if you asked this question point-blank from any of the council people, they would answer this question with, "Yes, I knew this was a 50% increase."? I, personally, do not think we would get an honest answer. I think that you will never have an honest answer to your question.
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ccattie
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 04:57 pm |
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I see where you are going. I didn't pay much attention to it since I didn't get the paper or anything then. I heard pretty much what you are saying, "oh 8 cents, no biggie" from people when they explained it.
-c
Someone wrote:
I think what I am trying to get at here, did everyone who said yes understand that the .08 cent increase would come out to ~50%. Did all the members of committee and council understand, that is what I think I have been after.
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yun1095
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 04:24 pm |
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lets have a recall election and get every single one of them inept "councilman's"out off office...
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Someone
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 03:33 pm |
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| I think what I am trying to get at here, did everyone who said yes understand that the .08 cent increase would come out to ~50%. Did all the members of committee and council understand, that is what I think I have been after.
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They are all the same
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 03:24 pm |
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cottoncandy wrote: Someone wrote: Now say we are addinf .05 and .03 cents to the rate, doesn't sound bad, but could of added, that would come out to maybe a 50% increase, now we pay attention.
The news article stated that the 8 cents would be added to the 17 cents to make it 25 cents. A very quick glance would tell you that it is an almost 50% increase. Again, we must take some responsibility rather than blaming others. The reason for Public Hearings is to ask for PUBLIC input. None given = agreement.
Someone, well, she got us there. $.07 (the increased amount) divided by $.17 (the 2007 rate) = 47%. However, a lot of us have a 50-55% increase. Go figure.
However, your point, Someone, is well taken. Not most of us think to sit down and remember how to do our math formulas to come up with this astounding and rather incredible increase. The council members probably banked on this. Now Thornton, Mull, and Smugg can really be Smugg.
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cottoncandy
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 02:37 pm |
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Someone wrote: Now say we are addinf .05 and .03 cents to the rate, doesn't sound bad, but could of added, that would come out to maybe a 50% increase, now we pay attention.
The news article stated that the 8 cents would be added to the 17 cents to make it 25 cents. A very quick glance would tell you that it is an almost 50% increase. Again, we must take some responsibility rather than blaming others. The reason for Public Hearings is to ask for PUBLIC input. None given = agreement.
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Someone
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 02:17 pm |
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OK, candy you got me on the where, but I also did not see a 50% posted or said anywhere. Kind of back to what I am saying, do you think if it was posted as a 50% increase don't you think you might have some folks questioning. Again why do folks have to watch everthing that is done, if I had the time to go all the meetings, I would run, but I don't. The folks that are there, like them or not, are to look after the town, and explain very carefully what is going on.
Now say we are addinf .05 and .03 cents to the rate, doesn't sound bad, but could of added, that would come out to maybe a 50% increase, now we pay attention.
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Smyrna Needs Change
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:53 pm |
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Someone wrote: If we have to go to everything the council does, what do we need them for. They are voted on to do a job, so we would not have to sit in on everything. Now do you think a 50% increase in paying anything is going to go over very well with anyone. When we see that they say 5%, now if we have to bird dog them every step of the way. Also committees.
If we don't give council our feedback or concerns when a new policy is to be voted on. How can we then sit back and be surprised when it is passed. We knew about the tax hike before it was passed and did nothing about it, how can we now be so outraged and surprised? We should have gotten out butts to the meetings and let it be known that we did not want this. So many of us just figure some one else will speak out that it ends up no one does. Crying on this blog will get nothing done. We elected this council and we have every right to speak out when we do not like the direction they are taking. This is suppose to be our town. We the citizens have the power to turn things around. We elected this council and as we all saw with the turnout at the last election most of us didn't even get out to vote.
We really do need to start taking an interest and making a change ourselves. We need to have our voices heard. There is strength in numbers and that is what we need. Quite a few of the new changes come out of the various committees, the trouble with that is the times most of them are held. If you have a job you can not attend most of the meetings. That is one change I would like to see and if it is inconvient for the council so be it.
The mayor is right about her father's saying and I for one intend to stand up for what I believe.
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cottoncandy
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:30 pm |
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Someone wrote: If we have to go to everything the council does, what do we need them for. They are voted on to do a job, so we would not have to sit in on everything. Now do you think a 50% increase in paying anything is going to go over very well with anyone. When we see that they say 5%, now if we have to bird dog them every step of the way. Also committees.
Please give us the source of your above statement in bold.
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Someone
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:17 pm |
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| If we have to go to everything the council does, what do we need them for. They are voted on to do a job, so we would not have to sit in on everything. Now do you think a 50% increase in paying anything is going to go over very well with anyone. When we see that they say 5%, now if we have to bird dog them every step of the way. Also committees.
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cottoncandy
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:09 pm |
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They are all the same wrote: And the misinformation continues. Rest assured that you are NOT paying a 5% tax increase. It is closer to 50% and in some cases more. Mull, Cher, White, Thornton, Brown, Pressley,and Stombaugh all knew what was taking place. If they come on here and say they did not know, then they are either lying or they blindly voted without checking the facts. Thorton and Mull definitely knew. No one cared. They wanted to please Smugg. It always comes back to Smugg.
Let's stick with the facts. A Public Hearing, which was advertised in the newspapers, was scheduled prior to the vote on the tax increase. Other than the media, only one citizen attended the Public Hearing. Mayor Stombaugh did not attend the Public Hearing nor the Council Meeting, which followed. NO ONE spoke against the tax increase. The representatives of the citizens of the Town of Smyrna could only conclude that the tax increase met the approval of those citizens.
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Pat Stombaugh
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:05 pm |
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Pat Stombaugh wrote: SmyrnaDE wrote: Please stay on this one Topic Ms. Mayor.
Each of you are elected to represent us.
We are spelling out our discord with our actual taxes
and trying to figure out if the Town is actually charging us
what you all voted to do.
SmyrnaDe - I did not vote for this. I made it very clear at the finance committee meeting that I was opposed to ANY tax increase this year!!!
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Pat Stombaugh
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:03 pm |
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Pat Stombaugh wrote: SmyrnaDE wrote: Please stay on this one Topic Ms. Mayor.
Each of you are elected to represent us.
We are spelling out our discord with our actual taxes
and trying to figure out if the Town is actually charging us
what you all voted to do.
SmyrnaDe - I did not vote for this. I made it very clear in at the finance committee meeting that I was opposed to ANY tax increase this year!!!
I can not believe some of you. Most of my friends have heard my father's quote over and over again AND they all agree with it. SURPRISE they would post it???
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Pat Stombaugh
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 01:01 pm |
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They are all the same wrote: And the misinformation continues. Rest assured that you are NOT paying a 5% tax increase. It is closer to 50% and in some cases more. Mull, Cher, White, Thornton, Brown, Pressley,and Stombaugh all knew what was taking place. If they come on here and say they did not know, then they are either lying or they blindly voted without checking the facts. Thorton and Mull definitely knew. No one cared. They wanted to please Smugg. It always comes back to Smugg.
I DID NOT APPROVE OF THE TAX INCREASE AND EXPRESSED MY CONCERNS MANY TIMES. I WAS NOT ONE OF THE VOTES TO INCREASE TAXES AS I WAS NOT ONE OF THE VOTES TO ACCEPT THE 2008 BUDGET.
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They are all the same
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 12:34 pm |
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And the misinformation continues. Rest assured that you are NOT paying a 5% tax increase. It is closer to 50% and in some cases more. Mull, Cher, White, Thornton, Brown, Pressley,and Stombaugh all knew what was taking place. If they come on here and say they did not know, then they are either lying or they blindly voted without checking the facts. Thorton and Mull definitely knew. No one cared. They wanted to please Smugg. It always comes back to Smugg.
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Someone
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 11:34 am |
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| Ccandy, What I was really hoping for was for the town to put on here, well really that 5% works out to be a 50+ increase in what you pay. They had made it sound before that no matter what you would only pay 5% more, wrong.
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SmyrnaDE
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 02:49 am |
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SmyrnaDE wrote: "Smyrna Town Council voted unanimously to increase the property tax rate by 46.3 percent at the December 17 council meeting. The tax rate rose from 17.26 cents to 25.26 cents per $100 of assessed value.
But this tax hike will be accompanied by a reduction in the cost of electricity. Five cents of the 8-cent tax increase will be offset by a matching reduction on town utility bills.
The Purchase Power Cost Adjustment Charge (PPCAC) on town utility bills will now drop by 21.7 percent. For an average residential electric customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt hours of energy per month, this PPCAC reduction translates to $3.60 in savings each month.....
The total 8-cent increase would add $160 in property tax per year for a residence appraised at $200,000.
Councilman Gene Mullen, chair of the town’s Finance Committee, said the town’s general fund typically runs a deficit of about $2 million, which is covered by profits from the electric utility.
Mullen said the 2008 budget, with a tax increase and a reduction in the electric cost, is the first year of a “multi-year process” aimed at balancing the general fund.....
The electric reduction will be included on the February bill for January’s electric usage, Hugg said. Quoted from article From SCSuntimes 12/19/07
Damnation.
But my figures still do not meet what was proposed. I'm still charged more.
Last edited on Thu May 15th, 2008 02:52 am by SmyrnaDE
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SmyrnaDE
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 02:30 am |
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Last edited on Thu May 15th, 2008 02:50 am by SmyrnaDE
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cottoncandy
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Posted: Thu May 15th, 2008 02:00 am |
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Someone wrote: Hey, that wasn't sarcasm we don't understand, I am sure you would tell us that.
By the way has anyone really explain the 5% that isn't 5% yet. I asked the question many posts ago. See I told you we don't understand.
Maybe I better leave that we out and replace with I
The "5% increase" is misinformation or a misunderstanding. The Town Council (Mayor Stombaugh was absent) voted for an 8-cent increase in property taxes, which is almost a 50% increase. Five cents was to be offset by a decrease in electric costs. The balance of 3 cents was a pure increase in property taxes with no offsets. I paid my taxes, and I was given only a 6% discount.
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Two and a half cents
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 11:03 pm |
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RN wrote: Just Observing wrote: RN wrote: My taxes went from $249.00 to 394.58. Ooh sorry if I pay it before 6/1/08 I get a whopping not quite $6 discount. Not going to get my money until September. They can take their $6 savings and shove it. So, when were the electric bills supposed to decrease to supplement the so called 5% increase in taxes? OR did I miss something?
The tax rate is $.2528 per hundred of assessed value. If your home is assessed at $200,000, that is 2000 hundreds. Multiply that by .2528 and that is your property tax.
2000 x .2528 = $ 505.60
There is a 6% reduction if payed by June 1. Seniors get an additional deduction but they have to apply for it.
Council raised the property tax 5 cents and cut electric the same. Around $300,000
then raised it another 3 cents to cover the general fund. Around $ 190,000
For a grand total of 8 cents over the 17 cents it was. That's around a 48% raise in property taxes. By the articles posted by Taats it was 39 cents a hundred before the reassessment.
These are just the facts and do not contain any personal opinion. (lol)
So is that another 6% on top of the $6.00 that it shows on my bill.
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Two and a half cents
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 10:40 pm |
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Did everybody get that "Important Information" statement form town hall.
I don't understand???? It says if taxes are paid by 6-02-08 by 4:30 we will receive a 6% discount. My tax bill shows that I get $6.00 discount if I pay 6-01-08. So, do we get anither extra 6%???
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Someone
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 10:22 pm |
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Hey, that wasn't sarcasm we don't understand, I am sure you would tell us that.
By the way has anyone really explain the 5% that isn't 5% yet. I asked the question many posts ago. See I told you we don't understand.
Maybe I better leave that we out and replace with I
Last edited on Wed May 14th, 2008 10:26 pm by Someone
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Vindicator
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 10:04 pm |
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| Your sarcasm says it all.
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Someone
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 07:21 pm |
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| It's not that she wouldn't get some support, but I think that she is being bulled over by some council folks, so she just ends up spinning wheels. So we get on her. But of course we don't understand.
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Footloose
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 07:09 pm |
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| Geeeze, some of you guys are relentless on the mayor. Give her some support instead of sniping from the bushes. Cooperate and help get things done.
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Smyrna Needs Change
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 05:34 pm |
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yun1095 wrote: And now dear little children, who may this story read, To idle, silly flattering words, I pray you ne'er give heed: Unto an evil counselor, close heart and ear and eye,
And take a lesson from this tale, of the Spider and the Fly. 
Exactly!
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yun1095
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 05:26 pm |
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And now dear little children, who may this story read, To idle, silly flattering words, I pray you ne'er give heed: Unto an evil counselor, close heart and ear and eye,
And take a lesson from this tale, of the Spider and the Fly.
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Smyrna Needs Change
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 05:17 pm |
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| Someone? Anyone? Is there any member on council that you would feel comfortable and trust enough to speak to about an issue concerning the town.
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Someone
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 03:52 pm |
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| See folks, we don't know what we are talking about.
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Pat Stombaugh
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 02:03 pm |
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When I was sworn in, one year ago, I made the comment that we are a new council by number of years served. We will make mistakes. I know people that served more than one term and still made mistakes. There are times you vote and the second after, you wish you could change that vote. We are human. I'm sure many of you could do a better job but did you run for office?
The meetings have changed. I have surveyed other towns and visited other council meetings to see the procedures of their meetings. I just finished an online course on meeting procedures and I will be presenting a "basic meeting procedure" at our next council meeting. This is something the town has not had before.
Visitors are allowed 3 minutes, as most towns allow, and now with the digital timer the speaker can watch the time and know when they should start winding down. Most speakers, so far, have not used the full 3 minutes. I have asked council to allow the speaker to finish without interrupting. When the speaker is finished I ask council if there are any questions or comments. Sometimes we must refer the subject to a committee, Mr. Hugg, Chief Baldwin or our town attorney.
My observation over the past year has shown me that council and the town need to work on policy and procedures. Many were/are non existing or need updating. We ask our citizens to serve on committees but we give them no policy to follow. We are working on this also.
I met with our outside auditors yesterday. Council and the audit commission will meet tomorrow night with the auditors to discuss their recommendations. They seemed pleased with their findings. Our new audit commission has made recommendations and council just adopted a purchasing policy. Is it perfect - I'm sure many of you will tear it a part. It is a beginning and something that was badly needed.
This past year has been very challenging with moving forward and improving the past. Unfortunately, especially in government things take time. That has been one of the difficult issues for me because I like to just get things done. To each of you who do give your support - THANK YOU.
Last edited on Wed May 14th, 2008 02:06 pm by Pat Stombaugh
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ccattie
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 01:56 am |
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Never let any of those people make you scared. Let me know when you'll be speaking at the next meeting and I'll flip my eyelids and stare right back. They are all old cronies. I'm more afraid of the bogeyman than I am of any Smyrna councilman. These people only have power because the townies are afraid of them. When the town was tiny and isolated, you had to cater to these Boss Hog types. This is 2008 and there is a lot more money and influence coming in. Do you really think some of the big companies coming through couldn't just squash the entire council in one swoop if they felt like it? The funny thing is I am not even really all that anti-council or anything, but I just keep hearing more and more horrible things about the people running this town and the ones with doodoo on their faces don't seem to care. It makes me think that they know they are caught and so they don't even bother.
-c
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Anniesdad01
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 01:26 am |
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Wallyguy wrote: Anniesdad - Have you ever gone to a council meeting with a concern and been talked down to and made to feel like a complete ass? Been there, done that, and after attending meetings for over a year, I vowed never to go back. Most of the people who want to discuss iconcerns are treated that way, and Chief Baldy sits there and tries to stare them down, while council members who don't want to face the issues talk louder and over the person trying to explain his concerns. And do the people's concerns get resolved? NO!! That person walks away feeling like scum. How dare he bother the elitists sitting on the council! No, thank you.
Yeah, I've taken my turn before the mic, more than once. Don't care if what they think. I am more concerned as to whether I got my point across. It can be intimidating but if there is something that needs to be said, or you fell that passionate about an issue, then you need to get up and speak. The trick is to do your homework, get your facts in order and remember - Those 3 minutes are yours. If a council person interrupts you then you request additional time. As for those on council making you or me feel bad, no way. We all put our pants on one leg at a time. And my friend, if you don't get an answer, KEEP ASKING. Bring Friends. Talk with the press that's present in the room. Whatever you do NEVER GIVE UP. If others did we would all be breaking for 4 O'Clock tea. I never want to say to myself, "I wish I had spoken up". This is OUR government.
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Wallyguy
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Posted: Wed May 14th, 2008 12:03 am |
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Smyrnite, we must have attended the same meetings! I hope Mayor Stombaugh reads all the blogs and can understand why we are not going to show up at the circus and give her moral support. (Unless they give me the franchise for the popcorn stand.) If she can't take the heat, she should get out of the kitchen. And let Mullen and Smugg run it as they have been doing. Our last "leader" was corrupt and evil and no one was sorry to see him go (well, maybe Smugg and Baldy), and apparently our present mayor can't play major ball. So, back to the minors, Pat. If Mullen wants it that bad and you're too weak to oppose him, step down and let him have it. The town is in such bad shape now so who cares? The voters' imput means nothing to any of them sitting up on the podium.
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Smyrnite
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Posted: Tue May 13th, 2008 10:55 pm |
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| My personal favorite, WallyGuy, is when a concerned resident (and dare I say, voter) gets up to speak, the council buries their heads into the packets they received 3 days earlier and finds them VERY interesting, while ignoring the speaker? Baldy glares and tried to stare them down, very true. You can see the squirrel in his little head running frantically, almost making the good eye twitch, while attempting to intimidate said speaker. The council meetings should charge admission and sell popcorn, because they are a nine ring circus. Full of clowns and horse manure. Last edited on Tue May 13th, 2008 10:55 pm by Smyrnite
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Wallyguy
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Posted: Tue May 13th, 2008 10:51 pm |
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| Anniesdad - Have you ever gone to a council meeting with a concern and been talked down to and made to feel like a complete ass? Been there, done that, and after attending meetings for over a year, I vowed never to go back. Most of the people who want to discuss iconcerns are treated that way, and Chief Baldy sits there and tries to stare them down, while council members who don't want to face the issues talk louder and over the person trying to explain his concerns. And do the people's concerns get resolved? NO!! That person walks away feeling like scum. How dare he bother the elitists sitting on the council! No, thank you.
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