PRESS RELEASE: Citizen Group Opposes Senate Repeal of Local Option Land Transfer Tax

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 20, 2008

Contact:

Karen Rindge, Chair, (919) 828-3833 – chair@wakeupwakecounty.com
Phil Poe, Treasurer, (919) 832-6777 – treasurer@wakeupwakecounty.com

(Raleigh) - “It is a sad day when elected officials act to remove citizens’ ability to vote on a referendum,” stateda Karen Rindge, chair of WakeUP Wake County, a group of citizens for managed growth and fair growth funding. On Thursday, the North Carolina Senate passed legislation repealing a local county option to raise a 0.4 percent land transfer tax by a vote of the people. The measure must pass the NC house in order to become law. We urge the NC House to leave this revenue-raising option in place.

In 2007, the General Assembly promised all 100 counties a menu of options to raise revenue to address North Carolina’s severe infrastructure needs, especially in low-wealth and high-growth counties. The Senate’s action would break that promise – and take away the people’s voice at the ballot box.

The Homebuilder and Realtor political action committees have lobbied and spent millions of dollars already -- and vow to spend $10 million more -- to defeat what they misleading call “the home tax.” Perhaps they should call it “the shopping center tax” because it applies to all property sold. A land transfer tax is a one-time tax on the buyer when property is sold, as opposed to the property tax that is paid every year.

A transfer tax is assessed on transfers of property at the time of sale. Only 1/3 of the sales are homes. The rest are commercial property and land sales. In Wake County, a 0.4 percent transfer tax could raise approximately $40 million annually and could help support up to $400 million of an expected billion dollar school bond in 2009 for new schools.

Property taxes alone can not fund growth. The transfer tax is already used as an effective way to pay for growth in six NC counties (Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Pasquotank, Perquimans and Washington) and in many other states. These counties have seen their property taxes go down, not up. The citizens in high growth counties should have the right to decide if a transfer tax is needed to help build new schools, parks, roads, and water and sewer projects. The only other funding option is increasing everyone’s property tax –the real ‘home tax.’

“The NC Association of Realtors says that the transfer tax is ‘a bad idea’. This industry benefits directly from unbridled growth, yet they offer no good ideas for meeting the costs of growth. WakeUP says that keeping up with growth is a GOOD idea. We believe the transfer tax is a fair way to pay because those who profit from growth help to pay its costs. Growth should pay for growth,” added Rindge.

The mission of WakeUP Wake County is to educate our members, the public and government officials concerning growth and development issues affecting our quality of life now and for decades to come. WakeUP advocates on behalf of our members and is following the actions of municipal governments, the Wake County Commissioners and the state legislature, as they pertain to sustainability.