With Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield having proposed a city property tax increase of 64 cents per $100 of assessed value (from $1.94 to $2.58), many are watching to see what the City Council members will decide — and how the taxpayers will react.
Some taxpayers already are shocked that such a large tax increase has been proposed. Some taxpayers are not yet aware of how much more taxes they may have to pay. Many will not be aware until the new taxes are calculated for their homes and their businesses.
There are no “good times” to raise taxes. But a big tax increase in a time of economic recession and 10 percent unemployment is particularly unwelcome.
While some City Council members do not want to vote for a big tax increase, they also do not want to have to make big cuts in the city’s proposed $198.6 million budget.
Just think, they ran for office and asked to be elected by the people to make such decisions.
Who wants to pay higher taxes? Who wants to cut proposed city spending items or services, or deny city employees pay increases, or limit fire or police or other services? No such decisions will be comfortable or easy. But members of the City Council will have to decide — and city property owners will have to pay.
Each budget item will demand a decision. Who envies City Council members the decisions they must make?
When they finally decide, there surely will be many strong objections that too much has been cut and that taxes have been raised too high. After tax bills arrive, some taxpayers will express their views vocally, and some in the next election.
City Council members and citizens in general have hard decisions to make. But that’s the way our system works.