Dan Talks to City Councilman from Frienswood!
Posted on 04/18/2005 3:30:41 PM PDT by weegee
The sloppy, inaccurate, "class-less", and potentially defamatory journalism displayed today by reporter Dan Feldstein and the Houston Chronicle in their article concerning my property taxes is a perfect example of why both the American public’s esteem for the mainstream media– and the Chronicle’s paid subscription numbers –continue to plummet like a stone.
This article was a clear personal attack on me in an attempt to discredit my efforts to reform the property tax system and bring relief to Texas homeowners. It was also an attempt to destroy the trust I have earned with the public over a 16 year career in Houston broadcasting, as well as undermine my reputation in this community.
I made it very clear to Mr. Feldstein last week that I had done nothing wrong, that the facts of the matter are clear about my having done nothing wrong, and that he was being used by my political opponents in an attempt to harm me.
Knowing all that, he chose to go ahead and write this article anyway.
Here are the facts, which I am prepared to document and attest to under oath, in the course of a legal proceeding:
* For many years I lived with my family in Katy, located in Fort Bend Co., and listed that home as my primary residence.
* During the period that my home in Katy was my primary residence, I always paid my Fort Bend Co. property taxes on time and in full.
* Only for purposes of paying Katy Independent School District taxes, my home in Katy was subject to appraisal and assessment by Waller Co.
* During the period that my home in Katy was my primary residence, I always paid my Waller Co. property taxes on time and in full.
* Because my home in Katy was my primary residence, I claimed and received a standard homestead exemption from both Fort Bend and Waller counties.
* For the past several years, I have also owned a second home on Lake Conroe in Montgomery Co.
* Because my second home on Lake Conroe was not my primary residence, I neither claimed nor received a homestead exemption for it.
* During this period, I always paid my Montgomery Co. property tax bill on time and in full.
* In 2003 my home on Lake Conroe became my primary residence.
* As required by law, I immediately notified the proper taxing authorities in both Fort Bend and Montgomery counties, dropping my homestead exemption from the former and reassigning it to the latter.
* In situations such as this, not only is it standard procedure for Fort Bend Co. to notify Waller Co. of any changes in homestead exemption status, they have a legal obligation to do so.
* Fort Bend Co. taxing authorities have confirmed for me, on multiple occasions, both verbally and in writing, that they– not I– were in error by not following standard procedures or meeting their legal obligation to notify Waller Co. of my change in homestead exemption status.
* My "dual homestead" exemptions were the result not of my actions, nor of my legal negligence, but of multiple bureaucratic errors that the bureaucracy itself acknowledges I was neither responsible for nor aware of.
* When my property tax bills of the last two years came for my home in Katy (which was now no longer my primary residence), I paid what the taxing authorities told me I owed.
* Because of mistakes and errors made not by me, but rather by three separate taxing bureaucracies, over the past two years I wasn’t assessed approximately $500 in property taxes, out of a combined property tax bill for my home in Katy that totaled close to $20,000.
* In February of this year I received a letter from Fort Bend Co. taxing authorities notifying me of their failure to properly communicate with Waller Co., but including no statement as to the amount of back taxes I might owe as a result of their mistake.
* Also in February of this year I received a letter from Waller Co. taxing authorities notifying me of their failure to properly communicate with Fort Bend Co., but also not including any statement as to the amount of back taxes I might owe as a result of their mistake.
* Of my own volition, I contacted Fort Bend Co. taxing authorities and spoke with a supervisor, who was very professional, very helpful, and who made it clear to me that this mistake had been their fault, not mine.
* I asked the supervisor if I owed any back taxes as a result of their error, and she advised me that there would be a tax bill due of approximately $500 dollars. The supervisor informed me that there would be no penalty due if I paid the tax by May 1st, 2005, since this matter had not been the result of my error.
* I have that statement in writing, signed by the supervisor.
* When I informed the supervisor that I was selling that home, she suggested that I simply allow the taxing authorities to assess and collect that amount at closing.
* Despite having closed the sale of my former home in Katy at the beginning of this month (April), it doesn’t appear that any taxing authority took the amount of back taxes I accrued as a result of their error.
* I am in the process of verifying that fact, so that I do not overpay my taxes.
* In fact, I still haven’t gotten an official statement, from any taxing jurisdiction, telling me exactly how much I owe them as a result of their mistake.
* Again, I want to be perfectly clear– I communicated to Dan Feldstein and the Houston Chronicle the substance of all of this information last week
In response, they saw fit to write this:
Radio host billed for back taxes
I made that promise to Mr. Feldstein because as our interview went on it became clear to me that he was less interested in being fair than in smearing me– a suspicion borne out by the callous disregard for the truth evident in the article he finally produced.
"Sloppy" because Feldstein sounds more like he’s blogging for his personal online journal than a major metropolitan print publication– or are all Chronicle reporters now going to be allowed to report "the news" using a breezy first-person tone dripping with sarcasm?
"Inaccurate" in so many ways I don’t even know where to begin. I’d only ask that you compare the facts as I’ve laid them out for you above with what Feldstein put in print. For now, I will simply note that the idea that the Chronicle "discovered" this informaton and brought it to the attention of taxing authorities is absurd; I brought it to their attention in early March.
And "class-less" because, in printing anything other than my "stage name" the Chronicle and Dan Feldstein did nothing to actually advance their "story", while successfully robbing my family of some of the anonymity and security they deserve.
The Chronicle and Dan Feldstein should be ashamed of themselves.
They will be held accountable, in an entirely appropriate manner, in due course.
The problem I gather from the last boycott is that some people (Edd Hendee included?) RESUBSCRIBED.
WHAT? Did you forget how bad they were or was it "symbolic"?
Screw them, Dan Rather, and Walter Cronkite.
They are are lying liars and not worth the time of day. That said, I posted this distortion to FR so that those who no longer look at the paper are at least aware of their latest crimes against journalism.
Dan did not reference the numbers or the scandal today, directly, but he did say that it opened their books to criticism.
Their taxes have declined in a booming market.
They lie about circulation as well.
LOL - Right after we moved into our new house the Comical distributor rang the bell begging for our subscription. I interrupted him by saying, "I absolutely hate the Comical!" His reply.....?
"Is it because of their politics?"
HA! Even the distributors know!
Didn't some city staffer threaten that restaurant with "repercussions" if the broadcast about tax appraisals was done from their business?
"But they carry all of the comic strips! Even the ones the Comical doesn't print anymore like Zippy The Pinhead and 9 Chickweed Lane, just check their website..."
LOL, I joined a twelve step program and I haven't seen a cartoon since!
As do their advertisers, most of their customer "service" staff, their public ombudsman, and... well, anybody else I've talked to on the subject.
:-]
...I love ya, man!
A year ago, Dan Patrick held the Chronicle's feet to the fire for a story they did about a young man who died in the service of his country. The Chronicle tried to use it to make a statement against President Bush.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1135605/posts
http://www.chronicallybiased.com/index.php?itemid=51
"Chronicallybiased.com - Founder and publisher Dan Patrick"
You don't suppose this is in any way an attempt by the Chronicle at revenge?
Will the Comical one day discover that FACTS are stubborn things? Naaaaaaah....
That's the issue here. I once heard Jack Sweeny, the publisher of the Chronicle, admit that to an audience of businessmen. Subscriber boycotts are good because they push their circulation numbers down, but if you really wanna hit 'em it takes an advertiser boycott.
The Republican Party may be a good place to start - urge its candidates not to take out any ads in the leftist papers, especially during the primaries. They don't lose anything since republicans don't read those papers anyway, and the ads they deny often cost 10-20 thousand or more.
The Comical just has "weekly free subscriptions" where they litter on peoples' yard to get those circulation figure up there again.
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