Support for Homestead Exemptions Said Wavering in LA

Shreveport, LA, Times ^ | 12-29-02 | Morgan, Robert

[Theodore R.]

Homestead exemption support may be wavering Robert Morgan Posted on December 29, 2002 BATON ROUGE - Louisiana's sacred cow, the homestead exemption, appears to be losing devotees.

Various efforts over the years to use property taxes to fund local schools have met with repeated defeats in the state Legislature.

[Theodore R.]

The homestead exemption is one of the centerpieces of the legislative program of the late Huey Pierce Long, D-LA, supported especially by conservatives. However, when it comes to "education," even "conservatives" just can't seem to wait until they too can pay "more" of their "fair" share.

[Pern]

We live in a (political) world where people say 'No, no, no.' But people (ordinary citizens) are saying 'Yes, yes, yes.'"

Oh yeah, I believe that one!

The Lafayette Advertiser tries to paint a slightly different picture:

Headline: Poll: Voters support lowering homestead exemption.

http://www.acadiananow.com/html/2CFF6851-B9CB-4EB4-A835-31CB61658580.shtml

The text of the article is almost identical to the Shreveport Times.

[Theodore R.]

The Gannett article tried to show that people no longer hold the $75,000 homestead exemption in the regard that they once did and are willing to exempt "education" from the exemption. If so, the exemption would be nearly meaningless. Perhaps the LA people cannot understand that they could be fleeced by the forces of big business and big government. If John Breaux told them to drop the homestead exemption, they might well do so!

[Pern]

The scary part is that the people are so gullable down here, I really expect it to be lowered. Thus, assuring the uninterupted flow of kick backs and payoffs to our public servants. I thought it was time to move when brown roots won the senate election, but if this passes (and you know it will) it's really time to go.