Tax payment plan for small business owners considered

LOCK HAVEN - The Clinton County commissioners will consider a plan to give small business owners a break in the way they pay their real estate taxes next year.

Business owner Steve Poorman addressed the commissioners at their meeting Thursday, asking if the county can offer a similar program as Lycoming County, allowing commercial property owners there to pay 30 percent of their taxes at one time, and have the remainder paid over six to nine months. Those using the program pay an extra fee.

This, he said, would help commercial property owners who are struggling to pay their property taxes, along with making needed repairs due to revised building codes.

"Taxes have gone up substantially in this county," Poorman said. "I think anything the county can do to help small businesses is critical ... They can't pay their taxes. Business is very difficult at this point for the small business owner. They are suffering and this is a hardship."

This is the second time Poorman has requested the new program.

He was rebuffed initially in July 2006, when that board of commissioners said the program would penalize those who do pay their taxes on time because the county would have to float a bond to make up the difference in revenues while waiting for the commercial taxes to come into the treasurer's office.

Commissioner Chairman Joel Long said he has "no problem" with looking at the proposed program to see if it could be instituted for next year.

REASSESSMENT

Poorman also requested the commissioners release statistics on the net effect of the countywide reassessment project, which is nearing its conclusion.

Poorman said the the reassessment was supposed to be done for tax fairness, with one-third of property owners' taxes going down, one-third going up and one-third remaining steady. However, he said all of his properties' values have gone up "substantially" after being reassessed.

He said he has seen "substantial" increases to many other property assessments.

"I think the county needs to report to the community what really occurred when those new assessments came in," Poorman said.

Long reminded Poorman that assessed values and property taxes are different, and nearly every property's value likely increased because it was the first countywide reassessment iin over 35 years, and properties are now assessed at 100 percent of their market value, instead of the previous 40 percent.

Long said the county won't know what effect the new assessments will have on individual property taxes until the end of the formal appeals process and new millage rates are enacted.

The county has heard dozens of formal appeals daily since early last month, with more than 1,800 appeals to be heard.

He also reminded Poorman the county cannot by law increase revenues for 2009 by more than 5 percent than this year, and any increase in assessed values countywide will be offset by a decrease in millage rates. The county must set the rates by Nov. 15.

"Even though your value went up substantially, that does not mean you are going to see an increase in the tax dollars you pay," Long said. "We won't know that until all the appeals are done and we have a final value for the county and set the millage.

"There are going to be properties that see a substantial decrease and there are going to be properties that see a substantial increase," he continued.

Long said he would be happy to release a report on the final reassessment figures once they are established.