'Rock The
Boat' Update
By CA Stubbs
Taxwatcher
About 45
days ago we came up with our 5 Point Battle Plan to
fight Excessive Appraisals and The Insatiable
Appetites of all tax, spend, and use fee outfits to
take our money faster than we make it.
This 5
Point Battle Plan was presented to the media on May
21, 2002, with a Press Conference at Woodlawn Lake,
with C. A. Stubbs Tax Watchdog, Bob Martin President
of HTA, Kay Turner President of People On Watch, Mary
Hicks President of Bexar Safe Water, and RG Griffing,
Editor/Publisher of SanAntonioLightning.Com.
On May 29,
2002 we had a luncheon strategy meeting to see how we
could best work together in giving overburdened
taxpayers a greater voice.
There are
no plans for another organization, for organizations
already exist under the leadership of Bob Martin with
HTA, Kay Turner with People On Watch, Mary Hicks with
Bexar Safe Water.
We agreed
to start communications to our leaders under joint
signatures of; C. A. Stubbs Tax Watchdog, Kay Turner
President of People On Watch, Mary Hicks President of
Bexar Safe Water Committee, Clinton Vitousek Owner of
American Neon Advertising, and RG Griffing Editor/Publisher
of SanAntonioLightning.Com.
These
first letters point out the grave and ridicoulous
disparities that exist in our income growth and the
growth in appraisals, taxes, and spending, and we are
urging our leaders in the strongest terms to start
listening to oppressed taxpayers for a change.
Letters
were sent to the Mayor & City Council on June 3,
2002; County Judge Nelson Wolff & Commissioners
June 6; and to our Local Texas 4 Senators & 10
Representatives on June 10.
Other
letters will follow to the remaining taxing and
spending outfits. We will print and publicize the
responses, or lack thereof, from all these leaders.
Now we are
in process of gathering the facts to reveal the total
cost of administering the Local Appraisal and Tax
Collection Process. From this information we will
calculate the costs in time and effort of taxpayers
to comply with the current system.
Our
efforts are not only being directed toward getting
local attention, but that of the Legislature as well
for drastic change and overhaul of this terrible
system. We are already in contact with other
organizations and groups throughout Texas to seek
their participation.
That's it
for now.
We will
keep you posted.
Sincerely,
C. A.
Stubbs - Texas Tax Watchdog
Bob Martin - President HTA
Kay Turner - President,
People On Watch
Mary Hicks - Pres. Bexar
Safe Water
Clinton Vitousek - Owner
American Neon Advertising
RG Griffing - Editor/Publisher
SanAntonioLightning.Com
*
* *
Attention
Government Leaders:
Identify
Yourselves!
Are You
Taxpayers' Friend Or Foe?
By CA Stubbs
Taxwatcher
Immediately
following the release of atrocious increases in
Property Appraisals, this writer tested the waters in
an effort to gage the depth of discontent with the
devious process of raising taxes driven by the
property appraisal process. (Editor's Note: Click
here to search County valuation records)
It
didn't take long for the telephones to start ringing
off the wall, and SanAntonioLightning.Com as a
primary conduit for knowledge on this and other
subjects, set a record in readership. (See related story)
The
SanAntonioLightning.Com is fast closing on its
largest media competitors in San Antonio. Accordingly,
this writer will happily be using the popular web
site and working with some well known and
knowledgeable groups to put the screws to our leaders
for relief from excessive appraisals, taxation, and
spending, and to relay the results to you through the
pages of the Lightning.
The
following is the first in a series of letters by this
important new group. Every two weeks a letter
will be forthcoming that will expand on our demands
for action on the part of our leaders to join in a
campaign of relief for us, the taxpayers.
We
are not going to be bashful in telling it like it is,
and we are not going to accept responses that suggest
we must continue to bear more than our shares of
societie's burdens.
We
will be forceful, and factual, and uncompromising in
our insistence of our share of fairness.
This
is our first letter:
June 3, 2002
Dear Mr. Mayor &
All Council Members:
There must be a Great
God in Heaven who listens to us poor beleaguered
taxpayers once in a while. He shed some Light on City
Hall as you, our leaders, concluded it was time to
tighten the belts and give us a 5% fourth quarter cut
in spending, and also a 5% reduction next year.
These actions are in
step with our Five Point Battle Plan which was
developed over 30 days ago:
(1) Call for all
taxpayers to fight their increased property
appraisals.
(2) Use
professionals to help win battles against the
appraisal district.
(3) Provide facts
on the unacceptable disparity that exists in per
capita income growth, and that of appraisals,
taxes, and spending.
(4) Send formal
requests to Local & State Leaders asking for
a pledge and commitment to join with taxpayers in
an all-out effort to reduce taxes and spending.
(5) Begin now to
collect communications (e-mail, letters, and
faxes) of dissatisfaction with run-a-way taxation
and spending and communicate this not only to
Local, but State Leaders as well, and demand that
action toward tax relief be taken.
Thus, we thank City of
San Antonio Leaders for taking the lead to reduce
spending.
We only ask that you
go one step further and help provide tax relief. The
gap between income growth and taxation and spending
growth must be reduced.
Accordingly, we
respectfully request that you be the first to pledge
and commit to join in the battle for overall tax and
spending relief. Those who do will be publicized
as "Taxpayer Hero's".
We anxiously look
forward to your favorable response at your earliest
convenience.
Sincerely,
CA Stubbs - Texas Tax
Watchdog
Bob Martin -
President, HTA
Kay Turner -
President, People On Watch
Mary Hicks -
President, Bexar Safe Water
Clinton Vitousek -
Owner American Neon Advertising
RG Griffing - Editor/Publisher
SanAntonioLightning.Com
PS: Also being sent to
Other Local & State Leaders.
-Developing-
*
* *
-Previous
Stories-
SA
City Budget
An Expensive Read
By CA Stubbs
Taxwatcher
I happen
to be one of the very few in San Antonio to own a
Copy of The Current and Many Prior City of San
Antonio Budgets.
By the
way, the budget used to cost me about $20 bucks, now
it's almost $50.
Whew!
So, no
wonder there's no mad rush to run down there, find a
parking space, and spend $50 bucks.
After
looking over my new 2001/2002 Budget, I'm no little
amount "hacked off" at the great lengths
the City goes to tout how low taxes are, while it
costs us more each year to live here, and we hear
nary a word about reducing taxes and use fees.
Read
these numbers and weep. Then get mad as hell, and
fight back.
And
remember your city leaders say taxes haven't
increased in 9 years.
Urban US CPI (Cost
Of Living Increase) 3.0% Estimate (2002 over 2001)
Tax, Use Fee,
And Valuations
|
Budget
Increase
|
City of San SAntonio
|
17.2%
|
12 Public Schools
|
5.3%
|
Alamo Community College
District
|
7.8%
|
Bexar Co. Government
|
(-)4.0%
|
University Health
System
|
5.7%
|
CPS
|
0.4%
|
SAWS
|
15.9%
|
VIA
|
3.0%
|
Tax Levy Increase
|
9.0%
|
Taxable (Appraisal
Value Increase City)
|
9.8%
|
Property Tax Dollars -City
|
12.6%
|
These
figures are based on official public records.
Get
out there and protest your property appraisal and
higher taxes.
Speak
now, or forever hold your peace.
(See
Information Below On How To Do This)
*
* *
'The
County Of
Easy
Suckers!'
New
Tax Appraisals Out
OOOUCH!!!!
Time
To Rebel, Stubbs Says
By CA Stubbs
Taxwatcher
This writer
has just received his new property appraisal on his
home, and gotten a whopping 10% increase over the
prior year.
Even as I
recieved this rotten news, my phone started ringing
constantly from folks wanting to know what to do.
"Rebel,"
was the only answer I could give.
"Rebel!"
Sadly enough,
the once proud HTA doesn't seem to be around any more
to take care of these matters, so Ole CA has stepped
into the void to render guidance and assistance.
And I have
"so" been enjoying my retirement and my new
bass boat! I love my Choke Canyon fishing spot.
But there's
Choke, and then there's "Choke."
Enough is
enough.
My quick
analysis shows increases anywhere from 10% to 27%,
and my taxpayer contacts are "Mad As Hell"
about it, because they are not getting any pay raises
anywhere close to this atrocious increase.
Only a sucker
would fall for this.
Thus, I'm
going to urge taxpayers to protest in such numbers as
to shut the Appraisal District Down.
Shut 'em down!
Likewise, I'm
lining up a Firm that people can contact to get
professional help that scares Hell out of the
Appraisal District.
I will be
providing the name and fees from this organization as
soon as I have worked out the best arrangement for
taxpayers.
We will offer
a special page on the Lightning for this purpose.
For those with
computers, here is how you can look up your appraisal
and all of the people in your neighborhood. http://www.bcad.org.
Be sitting
down when you do this. Perhaps you should consult a
physician.
Shocking.
And again I
must say, there is no Tax Watch Organization taking
the lead on this.
Thus, the
SanAntonioLightning.Com and CA Stubbs will be the
Sounding Board, and Clearance Point for, hopefully,
the biggest property tax rebellion since those
conducted by Stubbs & Company while founding and
running HTA.
Act now, or
forever hold your peace.
Oh, I almost
forgot.
Here is the
record of the dirty work performed by the Appraisal
District in getting more money from taxpayers while
tax rates stay the same, and appraisal values
skyrocket.
City of
San Antonio Property Tax Revenues 1997/98
$101.7 Million.
City of
San Antonio Property Tax Revenues 2000/01
$121.8 Million.
A
torturous 19.8% increase.
Much More to
follow.
Prospective
Tax Suckers standby.
* * *
Annexation
Suggestion?
Rejection!
By
CA Stubbs Taxwatcher
The PGA
mess has had the headlines long enough; then came
SAWS turn with their crossed up water lines. But, the
City, not to be outdone, has regained top billing
with Annexation Plans.
In my
Article last week, "Corporate Welfare"
you will recall my charge that PGA will cost the rest
of us a ton of money.
Well, I
think I can prove the point that through Annexations,
PGA, and Most All Other Growth At All Costs
Programs, that these new developments are not paying
their ways, and we who already live here are forced
to subsidize infrastructure expansion to accommodate
added people and added businesses.
Every New
Person Brought To San Antonio since 1997/98 has
caused a net increase of well over $2,000 to the
total budgets of 12 Public Schools, Alamo Community
College District, Bexar County Government, University
Health System, City of San Antonio, CPS, SAWS, and
VIA Metro Transit.
Their
total budgets for budget years 1997/98 was $4,988,077,738,
and for budget years 2001/2002 was $6,220,411,052.
Bexar
County Population for 1997/98 was 1,345,988, and for
2001/2002 was 1,422,700. (Source: Freedom of
Information Reports provided this writer from all of
these taxing and spending jurisdictions).
The budget
increase over this period was $1,232,333,314, for the
added 76,712 citizens. Stated another way, for
each of these new people the budgets were increased $16,064,
or, an average of $4,016 per year per person.
By using
the City of San Antonio 2000/2001 Budget page S25, we
find the Bexar County Property Tax Levy to be stated
as $2,077.25 per Homestead.
The Use
Fee revenues from CPS 14% Fee, plus Solid Waste, and
Storm Sewer Fees, when converted to property tax
equivalents, adds another $788.16, for a total of $2,865.41
in property taxes and use fees.
The
average number of persons per Household is about 2.61
persons, thus, per person tax and use fee
contribution is $1,097.86, still leaving a $2,902.14
deficit toward meeting the $4,016 in added costs.
When we
consider the share of sales taxes and other fees
contributed by these new people, we may reduce the
deficit by another $500, but I doubt it.
Finally,
they can say what they darn well please about my
calculations, but, they can't deny this grave
disparity in the vast growth in spending for all of
these taxes and use fee outfits, versus the growth in
citizen population, and a measure of increased
income, the inflation rate (CPI).
1997/2002
Spending Growth
24.7%
1997/2002
County Population Growth 5.7%
1997/2002
CPI Estimate
10.3%
