Answer the door if you don't want a property tax increase

The last time Governor Bredesen made big cuts in the state budget, local governments suffered.

The last time Governor Phil Bredesen made significant budget cuts was five years ago - the first year he took office. Back then, the Governor slashed departmental spending with 9% across the board budget cuts.

Most of the cuts were debated with little fanfare from state legislators. The exception was state-shared taxes. That’s the portion of taxes the state sends back to cities and counties. Local governments were upset at losing a portion of the money they relied on to fund their own needs.

Ultimately, they lost $40 million and property taxes went up in several communities. Governor Bredesen fully restored the payments with the 2006 budget, but with this year’s shortfall hovering near $500 million, local government officials are scared of losing the money again.

How did local governments respond? They made up the difference with increases in property taxes (10-06-2003).

Tennessee counties have raised property taxes by nearly $100 million this fiscal year, and some observers believe that amount is almost certain to increase next year.

Thirty-six of Tennessee's 95 counties have increased tax rates since July 1, ranging from 65 cents per $100 assessed value in Marion County to 5-cent increases in Putnam and Weakley counties, according to the University of Tennessee's County Technical Assistance Service.

Local officials raised the taxes after the Legislature earlier this year slashed state revenue subsidies to local governments by about $37 million. That amount was a compromise of Gov. Phil Bredesen's original plan, which sought a 9 percent cut that would have amounted to approximately $61 million.

Several local governments are trying to avoid tax increases by staking a claim to their share of state-shared tax revenue. Their doing it by conducting a special census. Firefighters in La Vergne, Murfreesboro and Smyrna are knocking on doors to make sure people are counted so they can adequately serve Rutherford County's growth in population. Each additional person counted above the 2000 census numbers brings local governments over $100 a year in state-shared tax revenue.

Each person counted in a special census generates $111 in state-shared revenue from the state's Department of Economic and Community Development (ECD), according to figures from the University of Tennessee's Municipal Technical Advisory Service. Money gained from the special census is provided to a local government's general fund each year until the next census takes place. Cities look at the special census as a way to help gain needed revenue without having to hike property taxes on exisiting residents.

Local governments have until May 15 to complete a special census to account for new population growth and the potential to help keep people's property taxes from increasing again. Here is a list of cities conducting a special census and how you can be counted.