Which tax to ax set up for voters (RINO County Mayor Forces Tax Down Throats)

Knox County commissioners voted Wednesday night to enact an 18-cent property tax boost if a referendum to repeal the wheel tax succeeds.

In an 11-6 vote, the 6 percent property tax increase would only go into effect if voters repeal the current $30 wheel tax.

That was the decision after a lengthy debate in a specially called meeting to deal with the county's stagnant budget situation.

"The (school) children continue to suffer because we are a stagnant society here in Knox County," said Commissioner Craig Leuthold, who made the motion to enact the property tax increase.

Commissioners convened the meeting in the wake of an anti-wheel tax petition that appears on its way to making the ballot, perhaps in November.

That in turn has prompted commissioners to put projects on hold, such as a new high school to relieve overcrowding, pending the outcome of the possible referendum.

The Election Commission has verified there are enough names and matching addresses to get the wheel tax issue on the ballot, but it is going through the third and final phase of verifying signatures with those on file in the commission office.

One of the petition organizers, Greg "Lumpy" Lambert, spoke in opposition to the property tax increase, saying it would "disenfranchise" the more than 25,000 people who signed the wheel tax petition.

County Mayor Mike Ragsdale has ardently defended the need for a new revenue stream in order to move the county forward with several projects for schools, parks, senior citizens and pay raises for employees, including deputies.

And he presented a list last month of recommended cuts if the wheel tax referendum were to fail, including a 50 percent cut to dozens of nonprofit agencies and funding for a new high school, presumably in West Knox County.

Ragsdale and others of his administration spent part of Wednesday calling key commissioners and urging some sort of action.

"We don't need to drag this on" was the message to some commissioners called by the administration, county spokesman Mike Cohen said.

Ragsdale reiterated that Wednesday night, telling commissioners the Knox County Sheriff's Office alone would face a $1 million cut without one of the tax revenue streams.

John Yu, chief of the Knoxville Volunteer Emergency Rescue Squad, told commissioners the squad does not have paid staff and cannot tighten finances.

He was one of more than a dozen people who spoke on behalf of several agencies receiving county funds, groups that Ragsdale said handle money more efficiently than government.

Katherine Brunson of the Metropolitan Drug Commission also pleaded for funding: "We're trying to keep people out of the courts and out of the jails and to clean up the schools."

Lambert said the groups were invited in a letter from Ragsdale and represented "special interests. The people of Knoxville have had enough of taxes."

Voters can reject the attempted repeal of the wheel tax and pay the $30 annually, or they can shoot down the wheel tax and get the property tax increase.

Our RINO County Mayor Mike Ragsdale has succeeded to raise taxes once again. In his first year, he instituted a wheel tax and now in his second year has succeeded in raising it 5 times the original amount or face a property tax increase. Regardless of the fact that property tax revenues have increased annually by 6 million and he himself claims to have saved "several million in efficiences" since he has been in office.

Part of the original proposal was for a 45 million library downtown despite the fact we have built at least 6 2 million dollar branch libraries in the last couple of years. He uses democratic code words for his excuses for raising taxes, such as moving the county forward and/or being progressive. This guy is nothing but a Wolf (Democrat) in Sheep's (Republican) clothing.

He then scrapped the library once a referendum by petition succeeded in an attempt to repeal the wheel tax. So he then proceeds to say it is for the children who need a new high school in West Knox County. So now the county commmission votes a property tax increase if the wheel tax is repealed by the voters.

I'm totally disgusted with supposed Republicans that are really Democrats in Tennessee. I ready to support the Constitution Party.

A "wheel tax" in Tennessee is a tax on the privilege of owning a car. It is levied by counties, most of whom issue a small sticker to put on the window of the vehicle. There's no tax I like, but one thing can be said for the wheel tax: it spreads the tax burden around more equitably (IMHO). E.g., pimps may live in their cars and avoid the property tax or illegal immigrants may sleep 20 to a room and pay little or no property tax, but they may own a vehicle. The wheel tax gives property owners a break by spreading the tax burden. (Just like the Fair Tax would if it replaced the federal income tax.) Only thing is, you have politicians (from both parties) who would like to impose BOTH a wheel tax and an increased property tax. Eternal vigilance and vote the rascals out.

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