Douglas County Commissioner Freddie Ashmon Jr. Arrested?

DCTC has received a tip that Douglas County Commissioner was arrested this morning for assaulting a citizen at a town hall meeting in April. A $3000 bond was set.  DCTC broke the story on on May 1st.  More on this story later as it develops.

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Douglas County Ga. School Board $295,000 Lawyer Contract

Tax Group Asks School Board to Postpone $295,000 Attorney Contract Vote

Douglasville, GA:  The Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition (DCTC) has asked the Douglas County Board of Education to postpone the scheduled June 15^th 7:00 PM vote for a $295,000 services contract for legal services with board attorney Ken Bernard.

In a letter dated June 12, 2008, James Bell director of DCTC called the proposed fees “excessive and extreme”. Bell asked that the school board postpone the vote scheduled next Monday night until the board can do their “homework” and determine what other counties are paying for comparable services.

“Our research indicates other counties are paying around $100,000 to $150,000 for legal services”, Bell said. “We feel $295,000 pre year for a part time attorney is excessive and grossly out of line with comparable school districts.”

According to Bell the contract was written by Mr. Bernard for Mr. Bernard and little research has been done by the school board as to what is reasonable to pay for such legal services.

Bell said “in hard economic times the school board should be looking for ways to cut expenses especially when they are considering raising our property taxes to meet their enormous budgets.”

Bell points out that the school board consumes over 70 percent of the property taxes collected in the county.

“We need a school board that that will look after the interest of taxpayers and this means providing the best service for the best price. Overpaying by one or two times the going rate for a part time lawyer accomplishes neither”, said Bell.

For more information visit www.DouglasTaxes.com

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To: Chairman Jimmy Bartlett &

Douglas County Board of Education

From: James Bell

Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition

Dear Mr. Bartlett and School Board Members,

This concerns the proposed $295,000 services contract between the Douglas County School System and attorney Ken Bernard.

I respectfully request that the June 15^th vote on this matter be tabled and postponed until the board has the opportunity to research the contracts and fees of other comparable school districts.

Based on the information I have obtained from other school systems, the proposed fees are extravagant and grossly out of line with acceptable fees being paid. Other counties report fees ranging from $100,000 to $150,000 for legal services.

In a time when taxpayers are struggling to keep pace and with the threat of high property taxes and millage rates, it is incumbent upon you to prove the best service at the most reasonable price.

We find this contact proposal to be excessive and extreme. We ask that you consider a more reasonable alternative to legal council.

Thank you for your service and consideration,

James Bell

New Georgia law assures that property assessments won’t go up until 2011

By Shannon McCaffrey Story updated at 8:28 AM on Thursday, May. 7, 2009

ATLANTA – Property assessments in Georgia cannot rise until 2011 under a bill signed into law on Wednesday by Gov. Sonny Perdue.

Supporters say the new law will prevent local governments from hiking assessments during an economic downturn that has driven many property values down. But critics say it could lead counties and cities to boost millage rates instead, meaning tax bills will rise either way.

How to Appeal Property Values: Douglas County

In an effort to provide the public with information concerning the property tax/value appeal process www.BFTaxHelp.com (Ben Franklin Tax Help) has compiled a simple to understand time line of the appeal process. This report will help you better understand how you can keep your property values uniform with your neighborhood at little or no cost.

Visit: www.BFTaxHelp.com

Douglas County Property Assessments Mailed May 15

June 29^th Appeal Deadline (45 days)

Property owners, you should have received your notice from the Douglas County Appraisal Department last week. Notices were sent out May 15^th. If you do not agree with the value set by the county, you have 45 days (June 29^th) from the date of the notice to file an appeal.

Douglas County Commissioner Freddie Ashmon Attacks Citizen at Town Hall Meeting

by James Bell (info@DouglasTaxes.com)

May 1, 2009 – Lithia Springs GA: Douglas County District One Commissioner Freddie Ashmon’s Thursday night town hall meeting ended abruptly after Commissioner Ashmon become enraged by a question from a citizen.

Witnesses said Ashmon became angry after Jimmy Hulsey, a 55 resident of Douglas County, asked Ashmon to explain why he has missed numerous official meetings. Hulsey read a list of dates of commission meetings, obtained through an open records request which showed Ashmon’s absences. Ashmon attempted to talk over Mr. Hulsey, who had the floor and accused Hulsey of lying and attempting to discredit him.

Douglas County Ga: A Spending Problem… by James Bell

Property values should not become a political issue. A “fair market value” is just that.

The news media is reporting that because of falling property values, government will fall short of revenue. This is simple not accurate. Regardless of the value of the property tax digest, local governments use a millage rate to calculate tax collection.

During periods of economic growth, when property values are soaring and sales tax collections are high, county officials can either lower millage rates and pass the tax savings on to taxpayers or they can leave the rate the same and spend even more of our money.

Douglas County: 5300 Challenges Property Values

From:  www.DouglasCountySentinel.com

By Winston Jones
Staff Writer

Posted: Thursday, April 23, 2009 1:09 AM EDT

Nearly 10 percent of Douglas County property owners have filed challenges to their current property value assessments, according to Benny Waldrop, chief appraiser.

“We had about 5,300 property tax returns filed by the April 1 deadline,” Waldrop said. “We have around 53,500 parcels, so this is nearly a tenth of all owners. We typically have only 500-700 returns filed each year.”

Sam Adams Alliance “Sammies”

Sammie Sam Adams Alliance

Atlanta Ga. – April 7, 2009: The Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition is pleased to announce that director James Bell, 49, has won the “Tea Party Award” to be presented in Chicago on April 18 at the Sam Adams Alliance 2nd Annual Sammies Awards. www.samadamsalliance.org

Bell, who is celebrating his 20th year as a citizen activist was recognized for his efforts in helping to defeat 2 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) referendums in Douglas County Georgia, saving taxpayers more than $200 millions.

Thank you for NO SPLOST

Thank you for NO SPLOST

By scottj

Citizens of Douglasville,

Last year I remember being in one of the SPLOST public hearings and a woman stood up in the meeting. She was vocal about Dave Ramsey’s no debt philosophy and how we, as a community, were making a tragic decision with the massive debt being proposed in the SPLOST referendum. We all realize that everything can’t be purchased with cash, especially in a government environment, yet fiscal responsibility is and always will be appropriate. People thought this woman was crazy. I hope today she gets some gratification for speaking her mind. If the $166,000,000 ($166 MILILON!!!) SPLOST had passed, Douglasville citizens would be strapped with debt, and possibly facing bankruptcy in the near future, as Mayor Thompson himself today in the Douglasville Neighbor states “Sales taxes, which represent 25 percent of the General Fund budget, are down 18% from the same periods of the previous year”. Few people will ever think about the near catastrophic consequences had the SPLOST passed, and Mayor Thompson would certainly never acknowledge how fortunate the community is that this huge debt burden was not taken on (which was to be paid 100% by future sales tax revenues with an estimated GROWTH rate of 4% per year. Compare this to negative 18% growth this year). You, citizens of Douglasville, would have been heavily taxed in an attempt to even come close to meeting the debt service of this huge commitment. So to the citizens of Douglasville who were willing to vote and stand up against excessive, unnecessary, inappropriate debt, and thank you. Our children thank you. We have avoided the ugly situation that many local governments find themselves in today. We may not have everything we want, but we have everything we need….and more! We are blessed.