Hi Jim:  We moved from Allegheny County's high property taxes to Fayette County's low property taxes.

Have more land…and (the main reason for the move) are closer to our kids and grandkids.  But taxes also played a part in our decision.  Total taxes in Whitehall Borough\Baldwin-Whitehall School District\ Allegheny County over $3,300 a year…and that figure is before the full brunt of a $65million plus upgrade of the high school is completed.  Total school, county and municipal property taxes in Fayette County…less than $800.   We lived in this same township, school district and county…but not in the same house…for 21 years before I joined KDKA and moved closer to Pittsburgh to cut back on the commute.

     I don't think at this point any coalition of any groups will make much difference.    But, that could change at any time.  I think every group…every person…needs to work locally to unseat those who in their district are up for re-election.  A number of legislators have already announced their retirement.   Including the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.  Problem is we got 50+ new legislators last legislative election and it hasn't made much difference regarding property taxes.

     Even the House switching parties hasn't meant much.  As you know, timing is everything….and the best thing that could happen for property tax reform…is for the PA Supreme Court to uphold Allegheny County Judge Wettick's decision that the base year assessment system is unconstitutional.  Wettick's ruling affects only Allegheny County, but since it has been appealed to the Supreme Court, if they uphold Wettick's ruling, it will affect the estimated 60 counties that use the base year assessment system. 

     As you know, STOP has been insistent that all three property taxes be abolished…and one of the main reasons is the inaccuracy of the assessment process.  Not one county achieves what the International Association of Assessment Officers says is an acceptable tolerance.  Keeping this corrupt system in any form is to support it's inaccuracies.  If the assessments are wrong…the so are the property taxes on which they are based. 

     If the Supreme Court upholds the base year as unconstitutional, all those counties using it will be required to have regular, expensive and still inaccurate countywide reassessments every year or two.  That is what Wettick ordered Allegheny County to do to 'correct' the inaccuracies.  Trouble is Allegheny County has spent between $30 and $40 million to try to remedy the assessment mess…and their last attempt was so inaccurate the county executive refused to use the numbers.  He, instead switched to the base year system…which led to the law suits described above.  See the PA. STATE TAX EQUALIZATION BOARD'S chart on the variances that exist in each of our 67 counties.  What the numbers on the chart mean are how far above, and below actual market value the assessments run in those counties.   For example:  two homeowners with homes of equal market value in the same community…might be assessed in Allegheny county 30.9% above that market value, or 30.9% below…which means one homeowner might pay 62% higher property taxes than the other.

        The biggest problem all of the groups trying to do something about property taxes is the apathy of the sheeple of Pennsylvania.  Our 'citizens' complain…whine…but ask them to go vote…or work to unseat a candidate…or help someone running for office…ask them to fight to protect their homes…and you get empty stares or unkept promises.

         The pay raise issue got the citizens riled up…for the most part because the media kept hammering on the issue.  That isn't happening with the property tax issue in part because some of the media is making a killing on legal ads for sheriff sales.  Example:  The Pittsburgh Post Gazette supports keeping the property tax system…and periodically editorializes in favor of that. What the P-G doesn't tell it's readers is they have made millions of dollars off sheriff sale and tax sale legal ads.  I received the ad figures for 2004—when I was still doing a talk show—from the Allegheny County Sheriff's office on their letterhead.  The Post Gazette received $1.2 MILLION dollars in Allegheny County sheriff sale legal ads for that one year.  That does NOT include additional revenue the P-G received in legal ads for property tax sales conducted by the City of Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Public School District.

      All of us have tried educating the public as best we can about how corrupt the system is.  Until the public gets hurt enough…or angry enough…and truly puts the heat on their legislators to correct the problem…all of our efforts will accomplish little or nothing.  How many homeowners live in the districts where your taxpayers groups serve.  What percentage of them are involved in your groups' efforts? Why isn't the percentage much higher? 

        The taxpayers groups railed against Rendell and what did the citizens do?  Re-elect him overwhelmingly…at least among the small percentage who bothered to vote at all.  If organizations cannot get their friends, family and neighbors off their lazy butts, what difference will it make if there is a coalition of such groups?

         That doesn't mean we will stop trying to share the info we gather and try to awaken the masses.  Lincoln once said about slavery…(paraphrasing)  "It is so corrupt that once enough people discover how wrong it is…it will fall under it's own weight."  Efforts to abolish slavery were underway when our nation was founded in 1776…and some 90 years later it finally fell under its own weight. 

         I guess we shouldn't be surprised that the corrupt property tax system hasn't been abolished when our efforts are only 6 years old.  Bob Logue, written 1-14-08