Block · one region of the page, as the scanner read it. It may hold a whole story, part of one, several, or an advertisement; stitching blocks into articles is the next step. Text is supplied OCR.
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Gilmore plan
not clear
In the News of Aug. 27, a
letter by State Senator Kevin Miller suggested that the “number one issue” in the current race for governor” seems to be the local personal property tax.
This issue, he went on to say, clearly defines “The difference in the philosophical bent of the candidates.” While I hope he is wrong on the first point (there are surely more important issues), I agree with him on the second.
Compare the two plans. Beyer’s plan would effectively eliminate the impact of the personal property tax on the average person by July 1998, in the first year of his administration.
Gilmore’s plan, on the other hand, is to be phased in over a five year period; the tax cut for the average person would be only $43 in the first year of his plan — whenever, it takes effect. Doubt as to when it takes effect leads us to the second point.
Beyer’s plan is clearly constitutional and will take effect as soon as the General Assembly enacts it. The tax would be paid locally as usual, and average taxpayers would receive a tax credit of up to $250 on their state income tax return. Local collections of the tax would be unaffected.
As for Gilmore’s plan, A.E. Dick Howard, the state’s foremost constitutional expert, was quoted in the Richmond Times-Dispatch (June 19) as saying the plan would require a constitutional amendment, a process that takes three years.
Beyer’s plan is fiscally sound; no surprises, the overall cost does not increase over time, and locally collected personal property taxes will remain available to localities throughout the state.
In Rappahannock County, real estate taxes presently make up 75-80 percent of
96.9%