Apr 27 2008
Greenville Schools Accused of Illegal Tax Increase
At issue is 1992 local legislation that applies a four-mill cap on school tax increases each year.
School officials have argued they’re entitled to two tax increases ó one to cover school growth as required by law plus the added four tax mills if the school board votes to use it ó and that the county auditor’s office approved both increases in 2006.
However, an attorney general’s opinion says that would amount to “a double tax increase for the same item” and state Sen. David Thomas, who helped write the local legislation, said four mills has always been the total legal limit.
Thomas has accused the school district of breaking the law and said school officials had a deputy auditor sign its 2006 tax increase before Case entered office and while his predecessor, the late Ed Haskins, was out sick.
District officials have said they used the same process they always had to inform the auditor’s office of the revenue it needed. Ray said Friday it’s up to the auditor to set the tax millage.
Case said in a letter last year that there’s no evidence the school district used the same tax logic before 2006, and called the 8.5-mill increase an “error” that nearly doubled the maximum tax increase allowed by state law.
It definitely sounds like the school board is trying to manipulate the law to mean something it doesn’t. Aside from the Federal government, school district are the most greedy group of bureaucrats out there, in my opinion. They are always demanding more money; they don’t live within their means and they waste most of our money on employment benefits and and over excess of administrators. Whether or not these tax challenges will be successful, voters need to show these folks the door at election time. They aren’t responsible enough to run a budget.
