Editorial: Untenable taxation

A combination of factors is driving property tax increases in Storm Lake. The state has been shifting the tax burden from income to property for years. We are paying off construction bonds for a growing school district. The city and county don’t know how to manage money well, as evidenced by their useless lawsuit over misplaced tax increment financing revenues.

So what does the city do? It proposes to increase the tax rate by 11.5% to pay for a fire truck and replenish insurance fund reserves.

These types of rate increases and assessment hikes are not tenable.

Many of us can barely afford to live in Storm Lake for the tax increases.

The property tax bill on our humble metal office shed along Railroad Street increased 76% last year to more than $5,000.

Legislators say they are doing something about it, which makes a penny pincher nervous. Things got testy when local legislators tried to explain themselves at a legislative coffee. John Brostad is good with numbers and is tenacious, and they shushed the retired math teacher. His letters to the editor run a little long, too, but hey, patience for the facts would be a good legislative guide. Listening is supposed to be the point. We are overcome by nostalgia.

These days, you pursue the money no matter. Our city manager is paid more than the governor, who is paid plenty at $130,000 per year. In order to write generous paychecks like that, the money has to come from somewhere.

The city spent down its insurance fund reserves through the years, such that the tax rate must climb so steeply. That suggests poor management. Those are difficult conversations. The insurance package isn’t that great, since there is no payout when you get stiffed by the county on tax payments. We are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to Des Moines lawyers so the city and county can battle in court. Clearly, the city and county have no limit on their spending. Everybody just keeps rolling on getting raises and sending us the bill.

The legislature doesn’t want to deal with the math. It’s hard.

The city council keeps on with the gang that can’t cipher. The board of supervisors steeps itself in hubris and refuses to pay the city what is owed. Just raise the levies.

The local officials blame the state, and the state blames the local officials, and the church-mouse owners of 220 West Railroad Street get to pay and pay and pay, while Geneseo Street is a wreck. Glad for a new fire truck — this is what a city is supposed to do. We should be able to rotate the fleet without strangling the community. That becomes difficult when you lose track of millions in tax revenue due to the city by the county, and when you are feeding expensive law firms.

This should not go on. This is why you get Elon Musk dancing around on stage in sunglasses with a chain saw, wreaking havoc. People get these outlandish tax increases along with a fresh pothole and wonder what they are paying for. It makes you want to fire somebody. Nothing happens, then all the sudden they take it out on Park Ranger Rick. Maybe you will get a federal tax break to cover a bagel and coffee. We can almost guarantee that your home and office property taxes will increase by double digits. Water fees are going up, up and up. We can’t afford to go on like this.

The widespread feeling is that government on every level is pretty much out of control. Conservatives and liberals can agree on this. You can’t talk sense to a legislator. You can’t do anything about incompetent local officials. Joe Biden didn’t do this to us. Neither did Donald Trump, Kim Reynolds, the city manager or the county supervisors. We did this to us by letting them all get away with it. Everything can be fine if you just look away, but eventually you have to open the mail and get that property tax bill. John Brostad should be raising hell. Bore them to death with the numbers until they submit. It’s the only way to get back to the facts: this ship is heading toward the shoals.