City Government
Mayor Hotline November 13 to 19
November 26, 2010 
11/19/10
Robert Tremewan
Haines
Boise, ID 83712
ISSUE: The value of his property between this year and last year went down, but his taxes went
up; that’s a 19 percent increase when we’re in a recession. He would like to have an explanation
of how the city has come up with this budget.
Mayor’s Office
11/16/10
Natasha Levandowski
Boise
ISSUE: Part of the reason she moved to Boise is because it is a dog-friendly city, but it is no
longer dog-friendly. Dog parks should be kept up instead of all mud or cement.
Parks & Rec.
11/18/10
Diane Sower
Boise, ID
ISSUE: Near 29th or 30th St. at Sunset someone has built a fence about 1/3 of the way out into
the middle of the street. She wondered if there is any kind of code for this or if everyone is
allowed to do that.
PDS
11/19/10
Billy VanSickle
ISSUE: Concerned about the intersection at 36th and Anderson. People coming out of Taft
School try to make a left turn onto 36th. There is a business on the corner that has a sign that
blocks the view. The sign needs to be moved back a few feet to open up the view.
PDS
11/19/10
Anonymous
ISSUE: Taxi driver at airport had no knowledge of where anything was. His taxi ride cost $2
more because they told him they are charged $2 to get out of the airport. That should be posted in
the taxi.
Airport
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Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
Nov 26, 2010, 12:47 pm
The increase in ones total tax bill while ones home value went way down used to confuse me as well but I have figured it out, I think.
Most/all tax entities are limited to a max of a 3% increase in spending…say they spent $100,000 last year. This year they can spend $103,000. That sounds harmless doesn’t it?
Now consider property value…say you had a home valued at $1000 a year ago. Today it could not be sold for $600, a 40% drop in value. Now figure almost all homes have fallen.
Consider the two situations. The unlimited greed of government will result in government spending more but the tax base is way down. How do they fix this?
They raise your taxes so as to insure you pay more for your reduced home value…not the 3% the government is limited to but an unlimited amount so as to guarantee the total in tax revenues meets governments greed goal.
Put in personal terms…Last year my home was valued at $198K…I paid around $1500 in tax. This year my property is worth $167K, a drop of perhaps 15%. My tax bill remains about $1500, a BIG increase compared to the value of my home.
They hide it, they pretend paying the same total tax means your rates have not jumped BUT, it has…
Government should not be limited as to how much they can raise their spending but in how much they can increase any individual homes tax…3% limits on the government result in double digit tax increase for home owners in bad times.
Government greed is the problem.
EDITOR NOTE–You got it all pretty correct. The increase is in the LEVY which is a percentage of the assessed value of the property. In Ada County Boise City is pretty much the biggest offender because the other units (County and ACHD) did not take the 3% budget increase allowed. The biggest impact will be Boise not making so many of those “most business friendly” communities. Tax RATES as a percentage of property value have sky rocketed.
Nov 26, 2010, 6:35 pm
I have to say, double digit increases in taxes while property is falling in value double digits is offensive. They rely on the process being too complicated for the folk being fleeced to figure it out.
Nov 26, 2010, 11:45 pm
the city’s leaders best buds already makes money on flipping foreclosed homes, which are first depressed in price through rigged short sales then bought on the fly, raising the taxes simply raises more Idahoans mortgages so they go under and lose their houses, . .its a win win for the banker and the politicians closest buddies, . .Americans lose, . its just the way it is.
Nov 27, 2010, 11:33 am
…and our grandparents or great grandparents elected the politicians who set up the political and economic system to strongly favor the rich. They are doing great even in this recession but middle class incomes have remained stagnant or decreased over the last 10 years or so.
Nov 27, 2010, 1:21 pm
We seem to be speaking at cross purposes. I am noting that the greediest institution in society is government and you folk seem to be noting that rich people get all the breaks…
Nov 28, 2010, 1:06 pm
Greed? How about churches which pay no income tax or tax on property?
I don’t see government as “greedy”, it spends its money, unlike the rich who hoard it. I certainly have problems with HOW government spends money – for instance, foreign wars, foreign aid, farm subsidies. You may think those are great uses of tax dollars. That’s what we should be debating.
Nov 28, 2010, 9:01 pm
Government spends money stolen from others in pursuit of power, growing government, and remaining in office. Any good they do is by accident and costs much more than it should.
As the lust for power and permanent office is without limit, government greed for ever growing amounts of money is also without limit…
To government there is no such an idea of ‘enough’.
Nov 29, 2010, 11:12 am
Government, and the top rich 2-3% elites, are hand in glove. This is so obvious, yet too many folks are incapable of figuring it out.