I recently met with John Williams and Cathy Huber Nickerson, Battle Ground’s city manager and finance and information services director, respectively. I took them up on their offer to meet with me to further explain the recent decision to increase the city’s portion of property tax assessments to the annual 1 percent limit.
This decision was recommended by city administration and approved by members of the city council. Mr. Williams had concerns that the effect of this decision on individual taxpayers was misunderstood and financially overstated. Certainly that is the impression they received from citizen feedback and from opinion letters published in The Reflector.
We met for over an hour. Their explanations were clear and concise, even when my weathered brain failed to make all the proper connections. I quickly became aware that this was not an issue that could easily be explained in a 600-800 word column. In fact, when I returned to the office I looked up information at www.dor.wa.gov on “How the one percent tax limit works.” I would recommend you go to that website if you want to better understand this issue. Mr. Williams and Ms. Huber Nickerson’s explanations were completely consistent with the information on this website.
I would like to share a few points of interest I learned from this meeting and after a review of The Reflector’s property tax statements. I hope these points will be as helpful to you as they were to me:
• In 2011, roughly 58 percent of property taxes in Clark County were classified as “non voted levy.” In other words, a public vote was not required. The City of Battle Ground’s assessment was one of several within this classification. It should be noted however, the 1 percent limitation initially came as the result of a public vote.
• The remaining 42 percent was in the “voted levy” classification. In Battle Ground in 2011, that was only the Battle Ground School District levy.
• The City of Battle Ground levy accounted for about 4.8 percent of the total property tax assessment in 2011. The 1 percent increase is only being applied to that portion of the property tax assessment.
• Taking the entire 1 percent will increase the property tax revenue to the city by $24,000. This will be paid through property tax assessments, allocated on a property value basis.
• The impact on the average homeowner will be $4.33 per year.
• Property taxes are a relatively small portion of the city’s tax revenues.
• The city has permanently lost roughly $100,000 of annual liquor tax from the state.
I have only listed the points that were the most easily understandable and significant to me. The tax structure for the city and other governmental entities is complex. I believe much more than it should be. The city regularly faces under-funded mandates and/or legislation from the state. I can’t imagine anything a legislator could do that would be more helpful to taxpayers than to simplify the tax structure and make it more understandable. It is hard to imagine why legislators would not want it to be simplified, unless they are fearful of a better informed public, and thus more scrutiny of their spending decisions.
I have always been a proponent of the city manager form of city government. My views were reinforced after my visit with Mr. Williams and Ms. Huber Nickerson. They are experienced professionals who have not only the responsibility to run the city like a business, but also to keep the city’s administration compliant with the law. They have to consider both short-term and long-term implications of all their decisions. I believe the condition of our city reflects their wise administration.
I would probably not agree, however, with all their decisions. In the current economic conditions, I can’t imagine giving wage increases. (I realize in some cases the city is bound by union rules or contracts and also affected by the long-term implications of no wage increases.) Gratefully, the elected members of the city council, who are our eyes and ears, have the responsibility to make decisions that the public is willing to sustain. The council member’s job is to “mind the store,” while letting professional administrators lead the charge. This should allow for a nice blending of professional management practices with the community’s will.
Steve Walker
Publisher
