Inside This Issue:

Florida Property Tax Laws
Create Confusion

New laws approved by the Florida Legislature seem to
be contradictory. A new reporting requirement for
property sales (SB 1588) appears to override other 2008
legislation that made sales prices confidential (HB7019).

Meanwhile, lawmakers eliminated the application
process for the tax cap that goes into effect next year
for non-residential property. So businesses will not have
to file for their 10% tax cap after all.

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Hawaii Resorts Face Higher Property Taxes

Hotels and resorts in Kaua’i County face massive tax
increases under a proposal to promote open space and
give homeowners a tax break.

The plan to tax buildings at a rate three times higher
than land is being closely watched by tax jurisdictions
throughout the state.

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Louisiana Supreme Court Outlaws
Property Tax Penalties

New Orleans will no longer be charging property
owners penalties and collection fees on delinquent
tax bills. The state Supreme Court says the practice
is illegal.

It’s unclear whether taxpayers will get a refund on
the $40 million in penalties collected by the city during
the past decade.

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Missouri Eliminates Back Door
Property Tax Increases

Missouri lawmakers did away with tax loopholes that
some cities and counties used to raise property tax
revenues in reassessment years.

Under a new law, tax jurisdictions must roll back their
rates to a roughly revenue-neutral point regardless of
whether they are operating at or below their legal tax
rate ceiling.

Texas Legislature Seeks Tax Reform Input

Two legislative committees are holding public
hearings around the state this summer gathering
testimony about ways to reform the appraisal
process. The data will be used to draft proposals
for next January’s legislative session.

Committee members are also studying ways to
revamp current truth-in-taxation procedures for a
more open, honest and timely notification to property
owners when their taxes increase.

August 2008

TAX ALERT!

Court Order Protects Fulton Properties
Under Appeal

As tax bills are issued in Fulton
County, Georgia, many
businesses are being hit with
considerable value increases.
The median increase for
commercial properties is 46%.

However, if you have appealed
your assessment, you will not
have to pay taxes on the higher
values up front. A temporary
court order is keeping Fulton
from reaping a huge tax windfall
while the backlog of 15,000
appeals is being resolved.

The temporary order will expire when half of the appeals are settled. This could conceivably take 6-8 months.

Click here, to find out what
you need to know

And the Survey Says. . .

Two recent surveys by the National Federation of Independent Business show taxes are a major concern for small business owners nationwide.

The NFIB Small Business Economic
Trends Monthly Report for June
2008 found taxes were the second
most important problem cited
after inflation.

Meanwhile, the Federation’s Small Business Problems and Priorities poll put property taxes at fourth place and tax complexity at fifth place, following health insurance costs, energy prices and federal taxes on business income.

High-impact, time sensitive or urgent tax issues you will want to know about immediately!

·  New critical legislation
·  Appeal deadline changes
·  Tax compliance rule changes
·  Court rulings directly affecting
    your tax values

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