WEB Exclusive – UPDATE!
30 January 2008
Because the bill supported by the PTCC and PCTA, HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act (SPTEA), was not allowed out of the House Appropriations Committee by the majority leadership for a fair hearing, it was attached as an amendment to HB 1600 to ensure it would be debated.
Unfortunately, the amendment was defeated on Tuesday (1/29) mostly because the legislators bent to the will of the special interests and marched in lockstep with their caucus leaders. We are currently assessing the situation and will issue a new PTCC update shortly.
If you want to see how your representative voted on the HB 1275 amendment, the complete voting list is here.
Some of the excuses from those who opposed HB 1275 (and my response):
- Rep. Mario Scavello (R-Monroe): If property taxes are eliminated there will be a mass migration to Pennsylvania and our infrastructure will be overwhelmed. (Nonsense. There is NO evidence of any kind that this will occur.)
- Rep. Bryan Cutler (R-Lancaster): We shouldn’t have to pay tax on attorney’s fees and argued against the four year phase-in. (The PA Bar Association lobbied hard against HB 1275 and Rep. Cutler is an attorney. Draw your own conclusions. The four year phase-in was necessary because you can’t just replace $8 billion in property taxes at the drop of a hat. There would have been no money available to do this.)
- Rep. Scott Boyd (R-Lancaster): People will be crossing the border to find an attorney so they can avoid the sales tax. (Impossible. Are Maryland or Delaware or New York or New Jersey lawyers licensed to practice PA law?)
- Rep. Michael Sturla (D-Lancaster) and a lot of others: NO reduction of property taxes for business, even at 50%. (In the recent PTCC survey where many of you voiced your opinion, 92% of you said you didn’t care if school property taxes were reduced by 50% for business if your property taxes were ELIMINATED. The reduction of business property taxes was a major theme for the democrats.)
- Rep. Jess Stairs (R-Fayette/Westmoreland): The people of Pennsylvania will start a revolution because of the new taxes! (Ridiculous. Let’s see… If my school property taxes are totally eliminated I’m going to have to pay $300-$500 in other taxes. What’s infuriating about that?)
David Levdansky (D-Allegheny/Washington): It taxes funerals! (And your point is? If the average funeral costs $10,000 there would be an additional $600 tax. But until the day you die you’d pay NO school property tax. I’ll take that trade, too.)
In short, the opponents’ arguments were nothing but lame excuses for not having the courage to oppose the special interests and to do what is right for Pennsylvania homeowners. They have betrayed their constituents and sold them out for their own self-interest. These lawmakers do not deserve our support and should have their jobs eliminated in this year’s elections so we can find representatives who will truly represent their constituents.
You are strongly encouraged to show your disapproval with a call, e-mail, or letter to your representative if they voted against HB 1275. Let them know that their job is HISTORY at the end of this year! Contact information for your representative is here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm
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One other note: One of the bills that the PTCC and PCTA oppose, HB 1600, is DEAD. A gut-and-replace amendment by Rep. John Perzel (R-Philadelphia) that would take ALL gambling proceeds and give them to senior citizens earning less than $40,000 passed Tuesday night (1/29). It totally replaced the original language in HB 1600, effectively killing the bill.
If this bill get through final passage in the House and is passed by the senate and signed by the governor, and since this bill uses ALL of the gambling proceeds, any property tax “relief” from gaming money that you’ve been expecting for two years will be eliminated if you’re less than 65 years of age. This is good news for low-income seniors who are having problems just staying in their homes and we think that this goes a long way towards helping the most vulnerable group in our society. However, the flip side is that the House has reneged on its promise of property tax relief for ALL homeowners that it made to the taxpayers of Pennsylvania two years ago with Act 1. This is ironic since they could have given elimination to ALL homeowners through HB 1275 but refused to do so.
What really irritates me about the Perzel amendment is that it is more of the same "divide and conquer" strategy. I'm sure that these lawmakers feel that with the passage of this bill the seniors (the biggest voting bloc) will be satisfied and they won't have to deal with the issue any more. If this is true, we’ll just have to prove to them that this strategy won’t work.
If you want to see how much “relief” you will receive from the gambling revenue in your school district this year, click here and look under the $400 million column. Be sure to take your blood pressure medicine first!
This debate still has a long way to go and many more votes will have to be taken, so we’ll just have to wait to see how all of this plays out.
Just please remember that we are far from finished! There are many avenues still available to us to achieve our goal of total school property tax elimination and we WILL continue the fight. I hope that you will likewise continue your support.
Please feel free to post your comments and please write to me with any questions or concerns.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
pataxpayers@gmail.com
http://www.ptcc.us/
Keep up the pressure!
22 January 2008
Dear Friends,
The House majority leadership has graciously granted us another week to strengthen our position and apply more pressure on contrary lawmakers. More on this in a moment.
The only bill related to property taxes that was voted last week was HB 1947. This bill is a constitutional amendment that was backed by Rep. David Levdansky (D-Allegheny/Washington) and is companion legislation to Rep. Levdansky's valueless HB 1600. It will ALLOW up to a 100% homestead property tax exemption instead of the current 50%. The key word here is ALLOW, since the bill by itself does absolutely NOTHING - it needs further enabling legislation sometime in the future to have any effect. While the majority party spin on this bill is that it is historic, it is actually nothing more than a hollow election year ploy to garner votes – the politicians are attempting to deceive us yet again. The measure passed unanimously, 193-0, because it would have been difficult for any legislator to vote against it and risk looking like an obstructionist. The bill effectively says that "we may eventually consider the possibility that sometime in the future we might..."
While the vote was meaningless, the debate that it generated was really the important issue. Opposition lawmakers clearly made the point that the bill is worthless and pretty much had Rep. Levdansky on the defensive during the entire debate. Rep. Levdansky was asked three times for a straight yes or no answer on whether he would support total elimination of school property taxes if this constitutional change was made and all three times he avoided the question and refused to commit. Rep. Levdansky obviously does not want elimination and this was made clearly evident during the debate.
Although majority leader Rep. Bill DeWeese said that debate was postponed on HB 1600 and HB 1489 (the two bogus "relief" bills that we oppose) because there were so many amendments that the members needed time to study them, Tony Phyrillas of the Pottstown Mercury and other House insiders have reported that the real reason debate was postponed was because their supporters did not have sufficient votes to pass either bill. It appears that many of the members know that these bills will be regarded by the public as Act 1 revisited and do not want to be associated with another scam. It is a certainty that the majority leaders will be beating the bushes for votes for these bills this week.
Meanwhile, our efforts have gained strength because of your overwhelming response to the last Action Item, our PCTA members' work on publicizing HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and because of targeted advertisements that ran in more than 20 Pennsylvania newspapers on Tuesday and Wednesday (1/15-16). A sample of those advertisements is here: http://mysite.verizon.net/drbsr/PTCCWeb/1275_Punxsutawney_Spirit_Smith.pdf.
On January 9, the Pennsylvania Bar Association circulated a legislative alert statewide encouraging their membership to contact their legislators with the request that they oppose the School Property Tax Elimination Act. As an indicator of the success that your support has been making, the PBA issued on Friday (1/18) another bulletin that stated: "This delay has afforded taxpayer groups in support of Rohrer's legislation the opportunity to strengthen their voice and their legislative support for the proposal. Many House members who are committed to voting "no" on the Rohrer amendment are feeling this political pressure". The PBA didn't pull this information out thin air - they are likely receiving feedback from legislators who are running scared and telling them that their constituent's votes are more important than their support of the PBA's stance.
We've also heard that the newspaper ads and the huge number of e-mails and telephone calls were discussed in Harrisburg political circles last week. Apparently some of the House members were quite irritated; a staffer for one member reportedly said that this is "sleazy politics" (!?) and another reportedly said that it's "just not right" that the PCTA is doing this (!!??). Their arrogance is amazing! We are their employers and we have every right to demand that they address our grievances.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS THIS: We have been given another week to make our voices heard before property tax debate begins on January 28. We MUST use this time effectively to increase the pressure on these unresponsive lawmakers. The Action Items from last week’s update can still be very effective and I ask all of you to PLEASE respond to them again and again and yet again to keep the pressure on – more than one contact with your legislator will emphasize your conviction! Because of your efforts we have gained tremendous momentum – DON’T LET UP NOW!
** ACTION ITEMS **
** First, please immediately forward this e-mail to everyone you know and ask them to participate in this Action Item. We need as many voices as possible NOW.
** Second, call or e-mail your representative NOW to DEMAND that they support HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and that they REJECT HB 1600 and HB 1489. Tell them that your vote for them in 2008 will depend on their support of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, whether it is presented as a free-standing bill or as an amendment to another bill. Tell them that you are not interested in hearing any excuses that they may offer. Contact information for your representative is available here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm.
We are engaged in a classic battle between the special interests and the citizens of Pennsylvania. The special interests may have the money to influence lawmakers by donating to their re-election campaigns, but WE HAVE THE POWER OF THE BALLOT BOX and can remove these politicians from office in 2008 if they refuse to do the right thing for the taxpayers of Pennsylvania. The message must be made perfectly clear: ELIMINATE SCHOOL PROPERTY TAXES NOW OR WE WILL ELIMINATE YOUR JOB IN 2008!
Please, everyone, keep piling on and try to get as many of your contacts as possible to do the same. Lean on your district’s representative and House majority leaders Bill DeWeese and Keith McCall and minority leader Sam Smith. Demand that they support House Bill 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and reject HB 1600 and HB 1489. Write letters to the editor, call radio talk shows. We have a good chance of success if we just don't get tired and give them the opportunity to ignore us again!
Let’s all work together to get this done!
Please feel free to write to me with any comments, suggestions, or concerns.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
pataxpayers@gmail.com
http://www.ptcc.us
Dear Friends,
The House majority leadership has graciously granted us another week to strengthen our position and apply more pressure on contrary lawmakers. More on this in a moment.
The only bill related to property taxes that was voted last week was HB 1947. This bill is a constitutional amendment that was backed by Rep. David Levdansky (D-Allegheny/Washington) and is companion legislation to Rep. Levdansky's valueless HB 1600. It will ALLOW up to a 100% homestead property tax exemption instead of the current 50%. The key word here is ALLOW, since the bill by itself does absolutely NOTHING - it needs further enabling legislation sometime in the future to have any effect. While the majority party spin on this bill is that it is historic, it is actually nothing more than a hollow election year ploy to garner votes – the politicians are attempting to deceive us yet again. The measure passed unanimously, 193-0, because it would have been difficult for any legislator to vote against it and risk looking like an obstructionist. The bill effectively says that "we may eventually consider the possibility that sometime in the future we might..."
While the vote was meaningless, the debate that it generated was really the important issue. Opposition lawmakers clearly made the point that the bill is worthless and pretty much had Rep. Levdansky on the defensive during the entire debate. Rep. Levdansky was asked three times for a straight yes or no answer on whether he would support total elimination of school property taxes if this constitutional change was made and all three times he avoided the question and refused to commit. Rep. Levdansky obviously does not want elimination and this was made clearly evident during the debate.
Although majority leader Rep. Bill DeWeese said that debate was postponed on HB 1600 and HB 1489 (the two bogus "relief" bills that we oppose) because there were so many amendments that the members needed time to study them, Tony Phyrillas of the Pottstown Mercury and other House insiders have reported that the real reason debate was postponed was because their supporters did not have sufficient votes to pass either bill. It appears that many of the members know that these bills will be regarded by the public as Act 1 revisited and do not want to be associated with another scam. It is a certainty that the majority leaders will be beating the bushes for votes for these bills this week.
Meanwhile, our efforts have gained strength because of your overwhelming response to the last Action Item, our PCTA members' work on publicizing HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and because of targeted advertisements that ran in more than 20 Pennsylvania newspapers on Tuesday and Wednesday (1/15-16). A sample of those advertisements is here: http://mysite.verizon.net/drbsr/PTCCWeb/1275_Punxsutawney_Spirit_Smith.pdf.
On January 9, the Pennsylvania Bar Association circulated a legislative alert statewide encouraging their membership to contact their legislators with the request that they oppose the School Property Tax Elimination Act. As an indicator of the success that your support has been making, the PBA issued on Friday (1/18) another bulletin that stated: "This delay has afforded taxpayer groups in support of Rohrer's legislation the opportunity to strengthen their voice and their legislative support for the proposal. Many House members who are committed to voting "no" on the Rohrer amendment are feeling this political pressure". The PBA didn't pull this information out thin air - they are likely receiving feedback from legislators who are running scared and telling them that their constituent's votes are more important than their support of the PBA's stance.
We've also heard that the newspaper ads and the huge number of e-mails and telephone calls were discussed in Harrisburg political circles last week. Apparently some of the House members were quite irritated; a staffer for one member reportedly said that this is "sleazy politics" (!?) and another reportedly said that it's "just not right" that the PCTA is doing this (!!??). Their arrogance is amazing! We are their employers and we have every right to demand that they address our grievances.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS THIS: We have been given another week to make our voices heard before property tax debate begins on January 28. We MUST use this time effectively to increase the pressure on these unresponsive lawmakers. The Action Items from last week’s update can still be very effective and I ask all of you to PLEASE respond to them again and again and yet again to keep the pressure on – more than one contact with your legislator will emphasize your conviction! Because of your efforts we have gained tremendous momentum – DON’T LET UP NOW!
** ACTION ITEMS **
** First, please immediately forward this e-mail to everyone you know and ask them to participate in this Action Item. We need as many voices as possible NOW.
** Second, call or e-mail your representative NOW to DEMAND that they support HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and that they REJECT HB 1600 and HB 1489. Tell them that your vote for them in 2008 will depend on their support of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, whether it is presented as a free-standing bill or as an amendment to another bill. Tell them that you are not interested in hearing any excuses that they may offer. Contact information for your representative is available here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm.
We are engaged in a classic battle between the special interests and the citizens of Pennsylvania. The special interests may have the money to influence lawmakers by donating to their re-election campaigns, but WE HAVE THE POWER OF THE BALLOT BOX and can remove these politicians from office in 2008 if they refuse to do the right thing for the taxpayers of Pennsylvania. The message must be made perfectly clear: ELIMINATE SCHOOL PROPERTY TAXES NOW OR WE WILL ELIMINATE YOUR JOB IN 2008!
Please, everyone, keep piling on and try to get as many of your contacts as possible to do the same. Lean on your district’s representative and House majority leaders Bill DeWeese and Keith McCall and minority leader Sam Smith. Demand that they support House Bill 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and reject HB 1600 and HB 1489. Write letters to the editor, call radio talk shows. We have a good chance of success if we just don't get tired and give them the opportunity to ignore us again!
Let’s all work together to get this done!
Please feel free to write to me with any comments, suggestions, or concerns.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
pataxpayers@gmail.com
http://www.ptcc.us
WE ARE BEING STONEWALLED AGAIN!
14 January 2008
** VERY URGENT ACTION ITEMS **
Dear Friends,
If you want school property tax ELIMINATION and if you have not responded to a PTCC Action Item in the past, RIGHT NOW is the time to do so! This may be our only chance this session to have the School Property Tax Elimination Act passed by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
It is almost certain that several property tax bills will be reported out of the House Appropriations Committee on Monday (1/14):
HB 1600: This is the worthless Levdansky/Scavello bill that will raise the sales tax and state income tax to finance a rebate of approximately an average $414. If you don’t remember the details, the explanation is here: http://mysite.verizon.net/drbsr/PTCCWeb/HB1600.htm
HB 1489: This is the DeWeese bill that is also known as “HB 1600 Lite”. It does not raise the state income tax like HB 1600 but raises the sales tax by 0.5% to finance a small homestead rebate of approximately an average $205. Otherwise the provisions are identical to HB 1600. Reportedly, the governor told the democratic caucus last week that this is the only bill he wants to see approved by the House.
Both of these bills are dangerous pieces of legislation that work on the same principle as the Act 1 tax shift referendum that was so soundly rejected by the voters last May. They permanently raise taxes for a small, temporary rebate that will quickly be eaten away by relentlessly rising property taxes. They do nothing to control costs, address equity for underfunded schools or to solve the education finance crisis. They are WORTHLESS SCAMS that are meant to deceive us unto believing that the politicians have given us property tax “relief” and can be jammed down our throats without any chance for us to reject them. They are simply a PERMANENT TAX INCREASE and must be rejected.
HB 93: This one has slipped under the radar but will still be an issue. The bill provides for the implementation of special tax provisions FOR FIRST-CLASS CITIES ONLY that allow for the refund or forgiveness of property tax liability for certain low-income, disabled, or senior citizens. This is simply more pandering for votes and will take money from property tax relief for other areas of the state.
THE BILL WE SUPPORT, HB 1275, THE SCHOOL PROPERTY TAX ELIMINATION ACT, IS STONEWALLED AND IS NOT SCHEDULED TO BE REPORTED OUT OF COMMITTEE!
Floor debate and voting on the bills that are reported out of committee is possible as early as Wednesday (1/16), with final passage possible as early as Thursday (1/17). It appears now that property taxes will be debated and voted without any consideration of HB 1275. This is an absolute travesty that is fueled purely by the political motives of the House majority leadership. This cowardly maneuver will not allow a straight up or down vote on HB 1275 and will again deny true property tax reform to Pennsylvanians.
It is possible that the sponsors of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, could attach the HB 1275 language as an amendment to any of the worthless bills that will be debated. This will force the legislature to deal with this issue. We’ll know in a day or so if this happens.
** ACTION ITEMS **
** First, please immediately forward this e-mail to everyone you know and ask them to participate in this Action Item. We need as many voices as possible NOW.
** Second, call or e-mail your representative NOW to DEMAND that they support HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and that they REJECT HB 1600 and HB 1489. Tell them that your vote for them in 2008 will depend on their support of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, whether it is presented as a free-standing bill or as an amendment to another bill. Ignore any mealy-mouthed excuses that they may offer. Contact information for your representative is available here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm.
You must take these actions before Tuesday, January 15!
My mood right now is exemplified by the famous line by Peter Finch in the movie Network: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore!”. All of you should be equally angry with this political smoke-and-mirrors game, too. The Harrisburg politicians have done NOTHING of substance this session and they are about to hand us NOTHING again.
Over ten thousand Pennsylvanians lose their homes to sheriff’s sales each year; many more are forced to sell their hard-earned homes because they can’t afford the burden of property taxes; schoolchildren in over 100 districts are receiving a marginal education because the residents can no longer adequately support the schools. Literally tens of thousands of Pennsylvania residents are suffering – truly suffering - because of oppressive property taxes, yet the Harrisburg politicians continue to shuffle our lives like pawns on a chessboard while they play their foul political games and pander to the special interests. They ignore our needs and wants; they are despicable and are anything but true representatives of the people. They must do what is right for the people of Pennsylvania or be voted out of office in 2008. They must be told NOW, in the strongest voice possible, that “WE are mad as hell and WE’RE not going to take it anymore!”.
This is the time that we have been working towards for the past two years. It is URGENT that we make a strong effort now to ensure that the competing bogus bills do not pass and that HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, is enacted. PLEASE do all that you can during the next few days to involve as many folks as possible in this effort.
Your help now will make a difference in your life and the lives of all Pennsylvanians.
Please write to me with questions or concerns and please feel free to add your comments for everyone to read on the PTCC blog at http://pataxpayers.blogspot.com/2008/01/urgent-action-item.html.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
pataxpayers@gmail.com
http://www.ptcc.us/
** VERY URGENT ACTION ITEMS **
Dear Friends,
If you want school property tax ELIMINATION and if you have not responded to a PTCC Action Item in the past, RIGHT NOW is the time to do so! This may be our only chance this session to have the School Property Tax Elimination Act passed by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
It is almost certain that several property tax bills will be reported out of the House Appropriations Committee on Monday (1/14):
HB 1600: This is the worthless Levdansky/Scavello bill that will raise the sales tax and state income tax to finance a rebate of approximately an average $414. If you don’t remember the details, the explanation is here: http://mysite.verizon.net/drbsr/PTCCWeb/HB1600.htm
HB 1489: This is the DeWeese bill that is also known as “HB 1600 Lite”. It does not raise the state income tax like HB 1600 but raises the sales tax by 0.5% to finance a small homestead rebate of approximately an average $205. Otherwise the provisions are identical to HB 1600. Reportedly, the governor told the democratic caucus last week that this is the only bill he wants to see approved by the House.
Both of these bills are dangerous pieces of legislation that work on the same principle as the Act 1 tax shift referendum that was so soundly rejected by the voters last May. They permanently raise taxes for a small, temporary rebate that will quickly be eaten away by relentlessly rising property taxes. They do nothing to control costs, address equity for underfunded schools or to solve the education finance crisis. They are WORTHLESS SCAMS that are meant to deceive us unto believing that the politicians have given us property tax “relief” and can be jammed down our throats without any chance for us to reject them. They are simply a PERMANENT TAX INCREASE and must be rejected.
HB 93: This one has slipped under the radar but will still be an issue. The bill provides for the implementation of special tax provisions FOR FIRST-CLASS CITIES ONLY that allow for the refund or forgiveness of property tax liability for certain low-income, disabled, or senior citizens. This is simply more pandering for votes and will take money from property tax relief for other areas of the state.
THE BILL WE SUPPORT, HB 1275, THE SCHOOL PROPERTY TAX ELIMINATION ACT, IS STONEWALLED AND IS NOT SCHEDULED TO BE REPORTED OUT OF COMMITTEE!
Floor debate and voting on the bills that are reported out of committee is possible as early as Wednesday (1/16), with final passage possible as early as Thursday (1/17). It appears now that property taxes will be debated and voted without any consideration of HB 1275. This is an absolute travesty that is fueled purely by the political motives of the House majority leadership. This cowardly maneuver will not allow a straight up or down vote on HB 1275 and will again deny true property tax reform to Pennsylvanians.
It is possible that the sponsors of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, could attach the HB 1275 language as an amendment to any of the worthless bills that will be debated. This will force the legislature to deal with this issue. We’ll know in a day or so if this happens.
** ACTION ITEMS **
** First, please immediately forward this e-mail to everyone you know and ask them to participate in this Action Item. We need as many voices as possible NOW.
** Second, call or e-mail your representative NOW to DEMAND that they support HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, and that they REJECT HB 1600 and HB 1489. Tell them that your vote for them in 2008 will depend on their support of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, whether it is presented as a free-standing bill or as an amendment to another bill. Ignore any mealy-mouthed excuses that they may offer. Contact information for your representative is available here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/find.cfm.
You must take these actions before Tuesday, January 15!
My mood right now is exemplified by the famous line by Peter Finch in the movie Network: “I’m mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it anymore!”. All of you should be equally angry with this political smoke-and-mirrors game, too. The Harrisburg politicians have done NOTHING of substance this session and they are about to hand us NOTHING again.
Over ten thousand Pennsylvanians lose their homes to sheriff’s sales each year; many more are forced to sell their hard-earned homes because they can’t afford the burden of property taxes; schoolchildren in over 100 districts are receiving a marginal education because the residents can no longer adequately support the schools. Literally tens of thousands of Pennsylvania residents are suffering – truly suffering - because of oppressive property taxes, yet the Harrisburg politicians continue to shuffle our lives like pawns on a chessboard while they play their foul political games and pander to the special interests. They ignore our needs and wants; they are despicable and are anything but true representatives of the people. They must do what is right for the people of Pennsylvania or be voted out of office in 2008. They must be told NOW, in the strongest voice possible, that “WE are mad as hell and WE’RE not going to take it anymore!”.
This is the time that we have been working towards for the past two years. It is URGENT that we make a strong effort now to ensure that the competing bogus bills do not pass and that HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, is enacted. PLEASE do all that you can during the next few days to involve as many folks as possible in this effort.
Your help now will make a difference in your life and the lives of all Pennsylvanians.
Please write to me with questions or concerns and please feel free to add your comments for everyone to read on the PTCC blog at http://pataxpayers.blogspot.com/2008/01/urgent-action-item.html.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
pataxpayers@gmail.com
http://www.ptcc.us/
It's time to tell the politicians what we want! (And what will happen if they ignore us again)
07 January 2008
Dear Friends,
Happy New Year to all!
Since the legislature has not been in session for a few weeks there’s not much definitive information about the progress of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act. However, there are some indications that we may soon see some action on property taxes in the House of Representatives.
HB 1275 now has 44 co-sponsors. The updated list is in the November 10 update here. If your representative is on this list you may want to thank him or her for sponsoring this legislation. If not, you should contact your representative to find out why they are not working for your interests. More on that later.
HB 1275 is now in the House Appropriations Committee; we expect the bill to be reported out of committee in the near future. We also expect floor debate on property taxes to begin sometime after January 14 since this issue should probably be settled prior to the governor’s February budget address. Of course, considering the legislature’s record on timeliness these projections are subject to change. But nonetheless this may or may not be our last opportunity to affect House passage of HB 1275 and we must act anyway to let the politicians know we are watching them.
First, letters to the editor of your local newspaper in support of the School Property Tax Elimination Act are always a good way to help to spread the word and apply pressure to politicians, so write one if you feel comfortable doing so. Second, frequent letters, phone calls, and e-mails to representatives are a MUST from as many of you as possible. Details are below.
Representative David Argall (Berks, Schuylkill), the Republican Caucus whip, is the only House leader who has signed on to HB 1275 and is actively promoting the bill. Republican leader Sam Smith (Armstrong, Indiana, Jefferson), Democratic leader William DeWeese (Fayette, Greene, Washington), and Democratic whip Keith McCall (Carbon) have not indicated that they will support HB 1275. This is unfortunate since the leadership of each party can have a huge influence over their members’ votes. Although the motives for their reluctance can only be assumed, these leaders need a stern admonition from each of us to let them know that we expect them to ignore the petty politics, be TRUE representatives of the people, and do what is right for the taxpayers of Pennsylvania. Their contact information is at the bottom of this update.
It is also VERY important that you contact your district’s representative during the next week to let him or her know that you expect them to support HB 1275 and that your vote and the votes of your friends in 2008 will be determined by their support of this legislation. To this point we’ve been respectful with these politicians in requesting their support but many have totally ignored our wishes. With their re-election coming up this year it is now time to play hardball. As Tony Phyrillas of the Pottstown Mercury recently said in his blog, “It's time to hold your representatives accountable. Make sure they hear from you and the message should be loud and clear: Eliminate property taxes now or voters will eliminate your job in 2008”. Well said, Tony! You can find contact information for your representative by Zip+4 here.
Remember, too, when you contact your representative that House Bill 1600 is still being considered. This bill is no different than the soundly defeated Act 1 tax shift referendum and will permanently raise both the sales and income taxes to finance a small property tax rebate (approximately $414) that will be quickly negated by relentlessly rising property taxes. This fraudulent, worthless legislation is nothing more than a tax increase in disguise and MUST BE DEFEATED! Be sure that your representative knows that you expect him or her to REJECT HB 1600. Further details about HB 1600 are available here.
One final note on HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act. It’s easy to tell the good guys from the self-serving members of the House of Representatives by their support for this bill. Unlike Act 1 - the property tax “relief” measure that benefits everyone EXCEPT the taxpayer by funding racing purses, jockey pensions, the Philadelphia Convention Center, and the Pittsburgh Penguins Arena - the School Property Tax Elimination Act is pure in that it benefits NO ONE but the people and schoolchildren of Pennsylvania. There is NOTHING in HB 1275 that favors the politicians or the special interests. HB 1275 is a remarkably honest piece of legislation and those legislators who support it are truly working for your interests.
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HB 1275 Objections Survey
Objections to HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, have been raised by politicians and certain groups in Pennsylvania. The PTCC would like your opinion about these objections so we can show public attitude to counter them effectively. Please take a few moments to complete a short three question YES/NO survey about the issues. The survey is here. Here are the questions that are included in the survey:
1) The Tax Foundation (http://www.taxfoundation.org/) has ranked Pennsylvania #47 for business property tax burden in its annual rating of business-friendly states. The School Property Tax Elimination Act (HB 1275) proposes to reduce business school property taxes by 50%; it is estimated that this will generate as many as 100,000 new jobs each year by attracting new business to Pennsylvania. Some House Democrats will not support HB 1275, calling this reduction “corporate welfare”.
Question: If school property taxes on your home are COMPLETELY ELIMINATED, do you object to the reduction of school property taxes for business by 50%?
2) The School Property Tax Elimination Act (HB 1275) is financed in part by expanding the current sales tax base to include more services such as architect’s fees, health club memberships, and lawyer’s fees. It has been reported that some lawyers are objecting to a sales tax on their services and are lobbying for the defeat of HB 1275.
Question: If school property taxes on your home are COMPLETELY ELIMINATED, do you object to the broadening of the sales tax base to include attorney’s fees?
3) Under the provisions of the School Property Tax Elimination Act (HB 1275), non-profit organizations will continue to be exempt from paying sales taxes on goods and services that they purchase. However, any goods or services sold by the organizations to consumers will be subject to sales tax in the same manner as commercial stores.
Question: If school property taxes on your home are COMPLETELY ELIMINATED, do you object to paying sales tax on goods sold by non-profit organizations?
Besides the YES/NO questions in the survey, it would be appreciated if you would add your comments about these issues to this PTCC blog post (below) for all to read or e-mail them to pataxpayers@gmail.com. Any personal information that you choose to submit will remain confidential but survey results and anonymous quotes may be sent to politicians by the PTCC to show support for HB 1275.
Please help. Your participation in this survey will be greatly appreciated.
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In closing, I want to thank all of you for your continuing support of our efforts to achieve honest, equitable school finance reform. Please work to enlist the help of your family, friends, and neighbors in this campaign so we can have an even larger base of support for the benefit of all Pennsylvania taxpayers and schoolchildren. Please forward this e-mail to as many folks as possible! The more hands, the better!
Your questions and concerns are always welcome – please write to me at pataxpayers@gmail.com.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
http://www.ptcc.us/
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Republican Caucus Leader:
Hon. Samuel H. Smith
527 East Mahoning Street
Punxsutawney, PA 15767
(814) 938-4225
Fax: (814) 938-1950
ssmith@pahousegop.com
Armstrong, Indiana, Jefferson
Democratic Caucus Leader:
Hon. H. William DeWeese
222 Elm Drive
Suite 101, P.O. Box 832
Waynesburg, PA 15370
(724) 627-8683
Fax: (724) 627-6043
wdeweese@pahouse.net
Fayette, Greene, Washington
Democratic Caucus Whip:
Hon. Keith R. McCall
162 West Ridge Street
Lansford, PA 18232
(570) 645-7585
Fax: (570) 645-9526
kmccall@pahouse.net
Carbon
Dear Friends,
Happy New Year to all!
Since the legislature has not been in session for a few weeks there’s not much definitive information about the progress of HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act. However, there are some indications that we may soon see some action on property taxes in the House of Representatives.
HB 1275 now has 44 co-sponsors. The updated list is in the November 10 update here. If your representative is on this list you may want to thank him or her for sponsoring this legislation. If not, you should contact your representative to find out why they are not working for your interests. More on that later.
HB 1275 is now in the House Appropriations Committee; we expect the bill to be reported out of committee in the near future. We also expect floor debate on property taxes to begin sometime after January 14 since this issue should probably be settled prior to the governor’s February budget address. Of course, considering the legislature’s record on timeliness these projections are subject to change. But nonetheless this may or may not be our last opportunity to affect House passage of HB 1275 and we must act anyway to let the politicians know we are watching them.
First, letters to the editor of your local newspaper in support of the School Property Tax Elimination Act are always a good way to help to spread the word and apply pressure to politicians, so write one if you feel comfortable doing so. Second, frequent letters, phone calls, and e-mails to representatives are a MUST from as many of you as possible. Details are below.
Representative David Argall (Berks, Schuylkill), the Republican Caucus whip, is the only House leader who has signed on to HB 1275 and is actively promoting the bill. Republican leader Sam Smith (Armstrong, Indiana, Jefferson), Democratic leader William DeWeese (Fayette, Greene, Washington), and Democratic whip Keith McCall (Carbon) have not indicated that they will support HB 1275. This is unfortunate since the leadership of each party can have a huge influence over their members’ votes. Although the motives for their reluctance can only be assumed, these leaders need a stern admonition from each of us to let them know that we expect them to ignore the petty politics, be TRUE representatives of the people, and do what is right for the taxpayers of Pennsylvania. Their contact information is at the bottom of this update.
It is also VERY important that you contact your district’s representative during the next week to let him or her know that you expect them to support HB 1275 and that your vote and the votes of your friends in 2008 will be determined by their support of this legislation. To this point we’ve been respectful with these politicians in requesting their support but many have totally ignored our wishes. With their re-election coming up this year it is now time to play hardball. As Tony Phyrillas of the Pottstown Mercury recently said in his blog, “It's time to hold your representatives accountable. Make sure they hear from you and the message should be loud and clear: Eliminate property taxes now or voters will eliminate your job in 2008”. Well said, Tony! You can find contact information for your representative by Zip+4 here.
Remember, too, when you contact your representative that House Bill 1600 is still being considered. This bill is no different than the soundly defeated Act 1 tax shift referendum and will permanently raise both the sales and income taxes to finance a small property tax rebate (approximately $414) that will be quickly negated by relentlessly rising property taxes. This fraudulent, worthless legislation is nothing more than a tax increase in disguise and MUST BE DEFEATED! Be sure that your representative knows that you expect him or her to REJECT HB 1600. Further details about HB 1600 are available here.
One final note on HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act. It’s easy to tell the good guys from the self-serving members of the House of Representatives by their support for this bill. Unlike Act 1 - the property tax “relief” measure that benefits everyone EXCEPT the taxpayer by funding racing purses, jockey pensions, the Philadelphia Convention Center, and the Pittsburgh Penguins Arena - the School Property Tax Elimination Act is pure in that it benefits NO ONE but the people and schoolchildren of Pennsylvania. There is NOTHING in HB 1275 that favors the politicians or the special interests. HB 1275 is a remarkably honest piece of legislation and those legislators who support it are truly working for your interests.
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HB 1275 Objections Survey
Objections to HB 1275, the School Property Tax Elimination Act, have been raised by politicians and certain groups in Pennsylvania. The PTCC would like your opinion about these objections so we can show public attitude to counter them effectively. Please take a few moments to complete a short three question YES/NO survey about the issues. The survey is here. Here are the questions that are included in the survey:
1) The Tax Foundation (http://www.taxfoundation.org/) has ranked Pennsylvania #47 for business property tax burden in its annual rating of business-friendly states. The School Property Tax Elimination Act (HB 1275) proposes to reduce business school property taxes by 50%; it is estimated that this will generate as many as 100,000 new jobs each year by attracting new business to Pennsylvania. Some House Democrats will not support HB 1275, calling this reduction “corporate welfare”.
Question: If school property taxes on your home are COMPLETELY ELIMINATED, do you object to the reduction of school property taxes for business by 50%?
2) The School Property Tax Elimination Act (HB 1275) is financed in part by expanding the current sales tax base to include more services such as architect’s fees, health club memberships, and lawyer’s fees. It has been reported that some lawyers are objecting to a sales tax on their services and are lobbying for the defeat of HB 1275.
Question: If school property taxes on your home are COMPLETELY ELIMINATED, do you object to the broadening of the sales tax base to include attorney’s fees?
3) Under the provisions of the School Property Tax Elimination Act (HB 1275), non-profit organizations will continue to be exempt from paying sales taxes on goods and services that they purchase. However, any goods or services sold by the organizations to consumers will be subject to sales tax in the same manner as commercial stores.
Question: If school property taxes on your home are COMPLETELY ELIMINATED, do you object to paying sales tax on goods sold by non-profit organizations?
Besides the YES/NO questions in the survey, it would be appreciated if you would add your comments about these issues to this PTCC blog post (below) for all to read or e-mail them to pataxpayers@gmail.com. Any personal information that you choose to submit will remain confidential but survey results and anonymous quotes may be sent to politicians by the PTCC to show support for HB 1275.
Please help. Your participation in this survey will be greatly appreciated.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
In closing, I want to thank all of you for your continuing support of our efforts to achieve honest, equitable school finance reform. Please work to enlist the help of your family, friends, and neighbors in this campaign so we can have an even larger base of support for the benefit of all Pennsylvania taxpayers and schoolchildren. Please forward this e-mail to as many folks as possible! The more hands, the better!
Your questions and concerns are always welcome – please write to me at pataxpayers@gmail.com.
David Baldinger
PTCC Administrator
http://www.ptcc.us/
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Republican Caucus Leader:
Hon. Samuel H. Smith
527 East Mahoning Street
Punxsutawney, PA 15767
(814) 938-4225
Fax: (814) 938-1950
ssmith@pahousegop.com
Armstrong, Indiana, Jefferson
Democratic Caucus Leader:
Hon. H. William DeWeese
222 Elm Drive
Suite 101, P.O. Box 832
Waynesburg, PA 15370
(724) 627-8683
Fax: (724) 627-6043
wdeweese@pahouse.net
Fayette, Greene, Washington
Democratic Caucus Whip:
Hon. Keith R. McCall
162 West Ridge Street
Lansford, PA 18232
(570) 645-7585
Fax: (570) 645-9526
kmccall@pahouse.net
Carbon
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