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Business Privilege Taxes?


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36 minutes ago, cixelsyd said:

As the article points out, Allentown is already going after a hospital for this "business privilege tax".  And the Parkettes claim to be a school.  So no, it is not as simple as you say.

I suspect it is even more simple.  Find the non-profits with the biggest pockets, and go after them.

And I believe some hospitals operate on a for profit basis. They can’t turn away people but can operate under the idea they are trying to make a profit. So much for the helping the underprivileged angle.

As for Parkettes claiming to be a school I’ve got to get popcorn to hear that justification.

Not arguing just bringing up some points

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15 hours ago, MikeD said:

I wonder if the tax would only apply to businesses. Gov Phil "never saw a tax I don't like" Murphy here in NJ is proposing the same at the state level.

Mruphy's  proposal for N.J. would be a logistical/technical nightmare.

Its obvious that the people who put this together  never bothered to talk to any engineers.

First off,the tax would be based on runoff, not impervious/pervious surfaces.

Why does that matter ?

In N.J., large (over 1 acre) projects must reduce the volume of existing  runoff by up to 50%.

They would be producing less runoff.Therefore,they would have to get a tax credit.

The tax would be municipal.

If a municipality wanted to implement it,they  would have to create a Storm Water Commission .

That commission would then have to  determine how the tax was administered and the amounts.That would mean calculating how much runoff every property in a town generates.

It would be just like real estate taxes.

The tax would have to proportional to how much runoff any property generates.

You couldn't restrict it commercial properties.

If a property owner does any work that either increases or decreases runoff,their tax would have to be adjusted.

As they say,the devil is in the details.

 

Edited by rpbobcat
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13 minutes ago, rpbobcat said:

 

If a property owner does any work that either increases or decreases runoff,their tax would have to be adjusted.

As they say,the devil is in the details.

 

Went thru the runoff change when putting in a HC ramp and adding a driveway outside. This was just making sure a certain percentage of my property was open and could absorb rain. Had to calculate everything that covered ground including house, sidewalk, old driveway and shed.  To adjust the taxes would have been a real mess in my few thousand person community. Lol tax collector works out of her house.

Edited by JimF-LowBari
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2 hours ago, cixelsyd said:

As the article points out, Allentown is already going after a hospital for this "business privilege tax".  And the Parkettes claim to be a school.  So no, it is not as simple as you say.

I suspect it is even more simple.  Find the non-profits with the biggest pockets, and go after them.

Take a look at the number of inpatient surgeries and emergency visits. Both are zero. That has an impact on whether or not they can refuse non paying patients and the BPT assesment for a hospital. I am not trying to defend the city, justtrying to see their point of view.

http://www.hospitals.net/usa/pa/good-shepherd-rehabilitation-network/

Edited by Stu
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53 minutes ago, Stu said:

Take a look at the number of inpatient surgeries and emergency visits. Both are zero. That has an impact on whether or not they can refuse non paying patients and the BPT assesment for a hospital. I am not trying to defend the city, justtrying to see their point of view.

http://www.hospitals.net/usa/pa/good-shepherd-rehabilitation-network/

Doubt if this one is legally a hospital. Checked the link and this is a rehab facility. If anything like the ones in my area of PA there is no walk up checking in or emergency admissions. All patients are referred by doctors or hospitals (and insurance companies)  as patients come in with specific needs. 

Just trying to clear this up as the legalities get murkier. And interesting they used the word hospital in the write up. 

And oh man have I had experience dealing with rehab facilities the last few years....

Edited by JimF-LowBari
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1 hour ago, rpbobcat said:

Mruphy's  proposal for N.J. would be a logistical/technical nightmare.

 

From Wikipedia, the Maryland stormwater-fee law... called by some the "rain tax":

"A stormwater management fee was established via House Bill 987 (April 2012) and signed into law by then-governor Martin O'Malley, affecting the largest urban jurisdictions in Maryland (nine counties and the City of Baltimore) in order to meet the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act as it concerns the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The Tax Foundation states House Bill 987 "was passed in response to a decree by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) formally known as the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load, which identified mandatory reductions in nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment that damage the Chesapeake Bay." This mandate from the EPA was mandated to the states of Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. Maryland is the only state that has levied a tax to meet the EPA’s standards. Polluted runoff is the only source in the Chesapeake Bay watershed that is still increasing, as of 2018. This tax, of course, does not tax rain but has been implemented in varying ways at the county level, such as a flat fee per property owner, or based on impervious surface square footage.

The law specifies that accrued funds must be used for specified stormwater pollution-related purposes.[7]

This law was modified in 2015 to make the county-assessed fees optional rather than mandatory while still holding the counties responsible for making progress on managing polluted runoff."

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2 hours ago, cixelsyd said:

As the article points out, Allentown is already going after a hospital for this "business privilege tax".  And the Parkettes claim to be a school.  So no, it is not as simple as you say.

I suspect it is even more simple.  Find the non-profits with the biggest pockets, and go after them.

As the saying goes.... it's all about the Benjamins.

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And to go with Frans Chesapeake run off post. Live 80 miles or so from mouth of the bay. Just got notice regarding the run off fees and think it might be driving big changes to how my town handles run off. Forget if going to get hit with the fees or improvements to handling run off (hello sewage fees jacking again) or both....

If a town wants a way to get more money they can find a legal way to do it

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16 minutes ago, JimF-LowBari said:

And to go with Frans Chesapeake run off post. Live 80 miles or so from mouth of the bay. Just got notice regarding the run off fees and think it might be driving big changes to how my town handles run off. Forget if going to get hit with the fees or improvements to handling run off (hello sewage fees jacking again) or both....

If a town wants a way to get more money they can find a legal way to do it

Or what they deem to be legal, at least. :tongue:

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8 minutes ago, Fran Haring said:

Or what they deem to be legal, at least. :tongue:

Lol and try to get back what you paid if later found illegal... 

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