LEGISLATORS ATTEND DISCUSSION REGARDING IMPACT OF NEW PROPERTY TAX STRATEGIES ON THE FAIRNESS OF THE STATE PROPERTY TAX SYSTEM
On Wednesday, May 4, 2016, members of Pleasant Prairie's Village Board and staff held a public discussion with State Representative Samantha Kerkman and State Senator Van Wanggaard regarding the impact of new property tax strategies used by property tax attorneys to offer national chains an advantage over other classes of property taxpayers.
One tax strategy discussed is referred to as the Abandoned Store (or Dark Store) method. This method claims that a national retail store in a thriving and profitable location should be compared to an abandoned or "dark" store in a less desirable location for property tax purposes (though not for any other financial purpose). Through this method, property tax attorneys have been convincing national retailers to seek assessed values for their thriving, profitable properties that are sometimes less than half the cost that was paid to acquire the land or construct their building.
"The tax attorneys use the legal system to gain an unfair advantage over communities that cannot afford the expensive legal defense of these mounting challenges; in order to protect the taxpayers from repetitive, large legal expense, communities will often settle these cases out of court," explained Pleasant Prairie Village Administrator Michael Pollocoff. "The inherent unfairness in this process is that all other classes of property taxpayer end up picking up the tab."
Pleasant Prairie's Village Board invited State legislators to discuss this topic because it will have a significant impact on the fairness of how the property tax burden is distributed among the different property taxpayers throughout the State of Wisconsin. Evaluation of the total property value at risk in the Village of Pleasant Prairie reveals the potential for a tax shift to small and local businesses and residential taxpayers of 17%.
"Pleasant Prairie would like to thank Representative Kerkman and Senator Wanggaard for their willingness to learn more about these national property tax strategies, what their potential impact is for the majority of Wisconsin taxpayers, and how neighboring states (Michigan and Indiana) are searching for solutions to address the same issues," added Pollocoff. "It means a lot to us that our legislators are here to help protect local taxpayers and the financial integrity of local services like police, fire and public works." A recording of the meeting and related handouts is available under the 5-4-2016 Special Public Meeting posting here. Other articles related to this topic are available by clicking "View PDF" below.
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