WCF 8/7/09 (Dan S.):
Relevant Excerpt:
Now let’s look at where this money will go if the RDA’s request is declined. The answer is about the same for the Junction as for any other property in Ogden. Here’s the breakdown from my own recent property tax statement:
I’ve simplified this chart by combining taxing entities with similar purposes; for instance, “Schools” includes both the Ogden City School District and the Statewide School Basic Levy, while “Health & Safety” includes the Weber-Morgan Health Department, Paramedic Fund, 911 Service, and Mosquito Abatement.Multiplying these percentages by the total projected tax increment of $1.25-1.75 million gives the following annual revenue to the taxing entities:
(Click the highlighted link for a more detailed version of the above table.)
If the tax increment is extended for 12 years, each of these entities will either have to do without this revenue (and thus provide a lower level of service) or make up the revenue by raising taxes on the rest of us.Because the schools would take the biggest hit, the RDA is offering to pay them back $300,000 per year through so-called “mitigation payments”. As you can see, these payments would make up no more than half of the lost revenue to the schools. The RDA is also offering to sweeten the deal by handing some real estate over to the school district. There have been no reports of similar offers to the other taxing entities.
WCF 8/16/09 (Rudi):
Relevant Excerpt:
The Standard-Examiner follows up on our earlier WCF discussions, with this morning's Scott Schwebke story, reporting that the fix may be in for Boss Godfrey's proposed Junction tax increment bailout. The Ogden School board, which has been offered a $300 thousand annual "mitigation payment," in exchange for supporting the Godfrey administration's bailout plan, appears to be colluding with the Godfrey administration, splitting up its already pennies-on-the -dollar payoff, and throwing a few bones to the smaller special service districts, just to bring them along. Read all about it here:WCF 8/19/09 (Rudi):
• Ogden juggles tax increment districtingRoyce Van Tassell, vice president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, is absolutely right in arguing that the Ogden School District should strongly oppose extending The Junction’s tax increment district; and Mr. Eugene Hart, business administrator for the Ogden School District, and sitting member of the city taxing entity committee, is absolutely wrong.
We'll present a couple of graphic representations to show why Mr. Hart possibly needs to go back to school for some remedial math. Here's the graphic from this morning's Std-Ex story, which represents the proposed payoffs to the various entities whom Mr. Hughes, for unknown reasons, is apparently trying to rope into going along with the Mayor's bailout plan:
And here's a helpful table, embedded within an earlier WCF article, showing what all the taxing entities represented by the Ogden RDA TEC Committee can reasonably expect to receive once tax increment moneys begin to flow under terms of the existing junction financing, provided they don't bend over for Godfrey's bailout plan (Click to enlarge image):
Examining these numbers, we're still scratching our heads wondering how any conscientious member of the Ogden RDA Taxing Entity Committee could possibly consider the Mayor's plan to be in any way "fair," or "a good option." As a matter of fact, if any voting member of the TEC is to go along with Boss Godfrey, and accept pennies on the dollar under this knuckleheaded plan, we believe such an act would constitute a clear breach of fiduciary duty, as it would be an act blatantly contrary to the economic interests of the taxing entity he or she is appointed to represent, (along with taxpayers such committee member is supposed to competently serve.)
Relevant Excerpt:
Update 8/19/09 3:00 p.m. MT: We just received this update from one of our most reliable sources within city hall. The TEC committee did indeed roll over in spades this afternoon, and adopted Boss Godfrey's flawed bailout plan whole hog:
The Taxing Entity Committee approved the extension of the mall RDA with a 6-2 vote – Weber County did not support the extension but also did not raise concerns. The Board will be seeing an action item on this in the near future.Chalk this up as another big win for the "good ole boyz network" in Ogden. We all know who they are.
Shame on the Ogden School District representatives, by the way. They should be looking after their already underfunded school district... but apparently real revenue isn't their top priority these days.
We obviously still have a lot of work to do in Emerald City, fellow lumpencitizens, in our ongoing effort to root out the Godfreyite trash.
Sad, very sad.
8/20/09 9:46 a..m. MT: Scott Schwebke provides this writeup in today's Standard-Examiner:
• Ogden RDA extends Junction tax increment district by 12 yearsIt's a sad commentary indeed, about the poor quality of the taxpayers' representatives on the Taxing Entity Committee.
River Project Bailout (2012):
WCF 1/17/12 (Rudi):
Relevant Excerpt:
Here's a quick side note to the above item, by the way, which our readers ought to consider in light of the Ogden School District's action in cavalierly giving up 72% of its River Project Area tax revenue until the year 2027. "Five schools in the Ogden School District are using approximately $7 million in federal grants to help bring them up to a higher level and keep them out of danger of being shut down because of poor performance," according to the S-E story below:Relevant Excerpt:
We're having some difficulty understanding the Ogden School Board's "thinkin'" in these tight financial times, we'll confess. Howbout you?
Update 1/18/12 6:42 a.m.: The Standard reports this morning that just as we predicted, "[t]he Ogden Redevelopment Agency board adopted a resolution Tuesday night that will extend the Ogden River Project tax increment collection period by eight years":
Hopefully in the days to come, we'll hear no further whining from the Ogden City School District about cash shortfalls.
