JIPSD Chair Rejects Town Plan for Tax Relief

I wrote JIPSD Chairman Donald Hollingsworth to share with him a proposal to reduce property taxes in the Town of James Island.   I offered to have the Town pay the JIPSD to provide solid waste collection in the Town in exchange for the JIPSD reducing the operating tax they charge in the Town from 53.1 mils to 34 mils.   The 34 mils reflects the cost of providing fire protection.   The 19.1 mil difference is the cost of providing solid waste collection.   If you multiply that 19.1 mils by the Town's property tax base, it comes up to about $95,000 per month.   The Town's 20 mil property tax would be sufficient to cover that.   With our LOST property tax credit, the net property tax owed the Town would still be zero.   The revenue the Town receives from LOST, which is intended to replace the money the Town does not collect in property tax due to the credit, would be available to cover the cost of solid waste collection.

The result for Town taxpayers would be a substantial property tax cut.   The JIPSD charges a 53.1 operating millage and a 3.8 bond millage for a total of 56.9 mils.   If the JIPSD would agree to the Town's proposal, then the total tax for the JIPSD in the Town would be 37.8, a reduction of 33%.

I believe it is especially urgent for the JIPSD to agree to tax relief.   While they plan no property tax increase for the 2017 property tax on the bills coming this October, they are planning on a 6 mil increase in their bond millage in 2018.   This will be used to pay for the new fire station.   I think they do need a new fire station, but they are talking about a 10.5% increase in property tax!    By working with the Town, that could be more than offset and still provide for an ample property tax cut in the Town.  Even after the JIPSD increases taxes in 2018, the property tax in the Town would be 23% lower than it is today.

Unfortunately, as before, the answer was no.   Chairman Hollingsworth claims that their "customers" will be confused.   He claims that they must treat like cases alike, solely mentioning the City of Charleston and the City of Folly Beach.  And he said that it would be inappropriate for them to be involved in the governance of the Town.

It is very disappointing.   None of these concerns make much sense.  And they certainly don't make enough sense for the Commissioners to choose to raise taxes on the people of the Town by 10% when they have a chance to lower them instead by 23%.