Iron County Tax Increase - Water Board
If you live in Iron County and haven’t heard about the recent 1300% water district / property tax hike and the surrounding uproar, you are probably living under a rock, and not in Iron County.
It goes something like this: Last year, the water conservancy district charged a .000094 tax rate. So on a $200,000 property with a 45-percent exclusion, taxpayers paid $10.34 to the district.
After Senate Bill 111 passed in March, the water district can charge a rate of .001. So on the same $200,000 property, homeowners will pay $110. By the way, retiring Sen. Tom Hatch sponsored the bill and it passed 26 /3 - the 3 representatives not present on voting day include Southern Utah Sens. Hatch and Hickman. (I thought that was an interesting sidebar, just a little food for thought.)
So regarding this 1300% tax increase - the community is outraged, as well it should be. Many Iron County residents say this is called “taxation without representation” and many are wondering why a water board, appointed by our county commissioners, has the authority to tax residents in the first place?
An Interesting Twist
In the midst of all the hullabaloo, my Republican opponent, Dennis Stowell, has told people that if elected to the Utah Senate, he will reign in the water board, and make certain that citizens don’t get these crazy tax hikes.
I think that’s a great campaign promise. People will probably listen to him and they will probably like that. Gosh, I would like to say the same thing… so I’ll say it now “if elected to the Utah Senate, I promise to reign in the water board and make sure that you, Joe Taxpayer, don’t have to be subjected to crazy tax hikes.”
However, as great of a campaign promise that it is, I am still wondering where Dennis Stowell was when the tax hike came down in the first place?
From my research, the Central Iron County Water Conservancy District has been talking about a huge tax levy since its budget hearing in December 2005. Where was the commissioners’ outrage then? You would think that at least a County Commissioner should have known what was coming down the pike. And as outraged as he said he is, he should have been yelling his head off about it. Instead, he gives the impression that he was just as shocked as everyone else… even IF it was his buddy Tom Hatch who wrote the bill that allowed for the tax increase in the first place. He really didn’t know this was going to happen? I have a hard time believing that.
I’m not a water expert and I don’t have all of the information YET about how this all works. However, it seems to me an idle campaign promise to say that you can’t “reign in the water district” until you’re the senator…why don’t you have this power already when you are a part of the commission that appoints the members to the board? And so, while it is frustrating that the Central Iron County Water Conservancy District can impose taxes on Iron County residents without our input, it is even more difficult to understand why the County Commissioners didn’t do something about it when it first hit the fan.
There will be a lot of opinions on this subject in the coming weeks and I promise I will be watching this issue like a hawk. I also would like to hear someone’s opinion on why the County Commissioners AND the Water District didn’t think it was necessary to do a better job in preparing us for this huge blow.
August 7th, 2006 at 6:50 pm
“There will be a lot of opinions on this subject in the coming weeks and I promise I will be watching this issue like a hawk. I also would like to hear someone’s opinion on why the County Commissioners AND the Water District didn’t think it was necessary to do a better job in preparing us for this huge blow.”
Here’s my opinion, as requested. First, Republicans don’t like to talk about taxes, whether proper or deserving. Second, anyone living in Utah these past few years should have recognized the very likelihood - indeed, need - for there to be some $$$$$ fixed to water use. I just wish that the tax increase was tied to actual use, and not simply property value.
August 7th, 2006 at 9:54 pm
Let me see if I got this. Current Utah Senator Dennis Stowell has promised if re-elected he will prevent the kind of tax hikes that just occured under his watch? How genuine.
OneNephi raises an interesting point. Republicans absolutley refuse to talk about taxes except to say they are against them.
Isn’t it time we get realistic about the fact of taxes so that we can have an intelligent discussion about how we pay for critical public services. I for one, am tired of the politically motivated denial of the hard subjects.
This is 1300% tax hike is a classic example of what happens when our elected officials spend all their time talking about other people’s sex lives instead of intelligent planning and other things that really do impact our quality of life.
August 8th, 2006 at 8:15 am
No, Dennis Stowell is not the incumbent. It’s Tom Hatch’s open seat. Mr. Stowell is currently the county commissioner who appointed the water board members, and yes, this tax hike occured under his watch.
February 4th, 2007 at 10:36 pm
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March 9th, 2007 at 12:29 pm
I am a calif. resident that sees the taxes in calif. going up all the time and it is getting to expencive to livehere, ( to live with a bunch of illegals that the state will not do anything about)I would love to retire to utah,both my parents were born and raised in salt lake city. I own a 40 acre parsel in iron county and i wanted to build a log home on it in the future, so i just wanted to say that this is just another tax burden on the people of the state And I think something needs to be done to ensure that taxes are frozen on such things as water and property,just look in todays news and you will see just what i am talking about, regular gas is $3.00 a galon here because some other states are running low on fuel and i can’t understand why i have to pay more because someone else uses more or don’t order enough or do not conserve any for there state or something such as that, SO PUT UP THE GOOD FIGHT AND VOTE OUT THESE MONEY GRUBING TAX WRITEING PEOPLE THAT WANT EVERYONES HARD EARNED DOLLAR, i hope to be amoung you in the GREAT and BEATIFUL satae of UTAH soon. Thanks for letting me give my 2 cent opion. Tim Jacobson
March 9th, 2007 at 7:33 pm
I am from Kalyfornya two. I eet foster farms chickens adn tofu. We grow hemp on our farm. sumtimes i do not go to school becuze da hemp makes me late. i hate taxus also.
March 9th, 2007 at 7:34 pm
kan you grow hemp in utah? i will move if day tax hemp here