rodsullivan.org
SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
March 29, 2018
Sullivan’s
Salvos 4/3/18
In this edition:
*Happy
Birthday Jordan!
*Press
Citizen Debacle
*Dems
Hall of Fame
*Gun Hypocrisy
*Kaufmann Update
*Did You Know?
*Happy Birthday Jordan!
My daughter Jordan turns 24 on April 8th. Jordan
graduated a couple years ago from Western Illinois University, and is working
with youth in Memphis, Tennessee. More importantly, she is a really good
person. Man, am I ever proud! Happy Birthday, Jordan! I love you!
*Press Citizen Debacle
As you may recall, I
wrote a piece last week that was critical of the Press Citizen. That prompted
Katie Brumbelow of the Press Citizen to contact me and ask me to get a cup of
coffee. I followed up immediately, because I think good representative
government requires good local media.
Unfortunately,
the meeting was a disaster. I thought perhaps the Press Citizen was going to
make an honest, earnest effort to listen. I hoped they would make an honest,
earnest effort to improve. Instead, Katie wanted to lecture me as to how little
I know about the newspaper business.
Well,
I know enough to know that their paper is a joke. I know enough to know that
their readership, subscriptions, and advertising are all in free fall. I know
enough to know that whatever they are doing, it is not working.
Her
response SHOULD have been, “We’ll try to do better.” The minimum acceptable
response would have been, “Sorry.” I got neither. I got a line of BS about how
4-5 writers cannot possibly cover the School Board, City Council, and Board of
Supervisors.
Really?
Then explain to me how the Solon Economist does it with 2 writers? People who
read the Economist know exactly what is going on with the School Board and
Council there. Why is it that a 6 day per week paper with more staff in Iowa
City cannot accomplish what a smaller weekly does just 9 miles up the road?
(By
the way, I write these 1000-1500 word missives every week on top of a family,
volunteering, and a 40+ hour per week job. So forgive me if I am just not that
sympathetic!)
4
writers ought to, in theory, be able to churn out one article per day each.
With a 5-day workweek for each, that is 20 stories. (It also seems like a
pretty minimal expectation.) The paper runs 6 days per week. That means we
should expect 3 local stories every day, with an occasional 4th
thrown in. I showed her the paper. It had 2 local stories. As did the paper
right before it. As do most.
I should note – none
of this is intended to disparage any writers, past or present. The writers do
what they are told, and usually do it well. This is about management. Poor
management.
Katie
literally told me “people do not care what happens” at a School Board meeting.
I do not believe that for one second. Sure, if you post a School Board article
next to a bunch of Kardashian photos, it is entirely possible that more people
will click on the Kardashians. I do not find that to be the equivalent of a
scientific study demonstrating people do not care about the School Board.
More importantly, it
does not MATTER that more people click on the Kardashians! A big part of the
job of the paper is to tell us what we NEED to know. It may not be sexy, but it
is critical. That is the JOB, and they are simply choosing not to do it.
Here
is the really important point: Dating back to the dawn of our country, the
press has played a critical and irreplaceable role in the functioning of our
society. The Press Citizen has COMPLETELY and TOTALLY abdicated that
responsibility. And that is sad.
In pretty much any
other industry, this wouldn’t matter much. If a restaurant is lousy, there are
other places to buy a meal. If your gym doesn’t meet your needs, you can switch
to another. You can switch attorneys, banks, auto repair shops, etc. But local
media has no substitute. And without it, our civic institutions suffer.
The
Press Citizen is unwilling to do what it takes. Who out there will step up in
their place? Little Village? Economist? Gazette? Anyone? I will do my best to
help you!
As
for the Press Citizen? Shame on you! You have betrayed a sacred trust!
*Dems Hall of Fame
The
Johnson County Democratic Party is holding our Annual Hall of Fame Awards event
on Saturday, May 12 at 7pm at Brown
Deer. Please join us for coffee, desserts, and plenty of old war stories! A
cash bar will be available. Parking is free.
The
Hall of Fame inductees for 2017 are: Senator
Bob and Chairperson Sue Dvorsky. We
hope you can join us in recognizing this remarkable couple! In addition, this
year there will be a couple additional awards honoring local activists.
Tickets
are available for a $25 suggested donation. People who cannot afford that
amount should still feel welcome, but please call 354-7199 so we can get a
count.
Sponsorships are available
at the following levels:
$100 includes
two tickets
$250 includes
4 tickets
$500 includes
a whole table (8 tickets)
Checks can be mailed to:
Johnson County Democrats
PO Box 1773
Iowa City, IA 52244
If
you have any questions, please contact Rod Sullivan at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. We hope you will join us for a fun evening, and
lend your voice to those who are honoring these very deserving people. We look
forward to seeing you!
*Gun Hypocrisy
You
cannot take a weapon into the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC).
You cannot take a weapon into meetings of the Republican National Committee
(RNC). What – don’t they want to be safer?
*Kauffman Update
As
you may recall, last week I challenged State Representative Bobby Kaufmann to a
debate on HF2372. (I texted him the challenge before it appeared in Salvos.) I
have not yet received a response from Representative Kaufmann. I will keep you
posted.
*DID YOU KNOW?
Christian churches calculate Easter as the first Sunday after the first
full moon on or after the March 21 Equinox. That means the earliest possible
date for Easter is March 22, while the latest possible date is April 25.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
March 22, 2018
Sullivan’s
Salvos 3/27/18
In this edition:
*Kaufmann Hypocrisy
*My 2017 Schedule
*Gazette is Part Way There
*SILT Fundraiser
*Did You Know?
*Kaufmann Hypocrisy
I recently wrote the
following Letter to the Editor:
A
quick Google search will turn up several instances of State Representative
Bobby Kaufmann claiming to support “local control.” Unfortunately, his voting
record tells a very different tale.
Take
HF2372 for example. This Bill requires counties of over 60,000 to create
Districts for County Supervisor as dictated by Republicans in the Iowa
Legislature. Currently, voters in each county decide what type of
representation they want. This is the exact opposite of local control.
Unfortunately,
the hypocrisy doesn’t end there. The bill Representative Kaufmann voted for
strips the rights of voters in Linn, Scott, and Johnson Counties. Conveniently,
the same bill takes no rights from voters in Cedar County. Why the difference?
You can start by looking to Bobby’s father Jeff, (Chair of the Republican Party
of Iowa) who serves on the Cedar County Board of Supervisors.
To
recap – Representative Kaufmann voted to have the State Legislature decide
things for voters in Linn, Scott, and Johnson Counties. But Cedar County voters
get local control. Does this make any sense? Only if your last name is
Kaufmann!
I
hope voters in Eastern Iowa will hold Representative Kaufmann accountable for
this egregious display of hypocrisy.
Follow up: Representative Kaufmann mentions
this in his regular newspaper column. In that, he says a number of things that
I find to be half true at best. So, I thought – why not let people decide for
themselves?
So
I have challenged Representative Kaufmann to debate the merits of HF2372 at the
time and place of his choice. My only stipulation is that multiple people be
allowed to record it.
I
will let you know if he takes me up on this offer.
*My 2017 Schedule
Supervisors
received a little surprise on March 1 when we were hit with a Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA) request from the Gazette’s Adam Sullivan. Adam requested
our calendars for every day of 2017.
Let
me begin by saying that there is absolutely nothing wrong with this request.
While it feels a bit petty, it is fully within the law. We are public
employees, and our schedules should be made available to the public if they
request it. So no complaints there. It is just that this made for an
interesting request logistically.
Each
Supervisor has a different calendar, and each has a different way of
maintaining it. It sounds as though each of us will be able to comply with the
FOIA request, but that was never a guarantee. One Sup uses paper calendars;
luckily, he still had 2017. Other could easily have been using programs/systems
that deleted old calendar entries. For what it is worth, it seems the data is
all there.
Getting
it to print in a usable format was another matter. I don’t see my calendar
anywhere but my phone. There is no way to print from my phone, per se. It took
the help of our IT Director; I couldn’t figure it out myself.
Even
then, printing the whole year was basically visually unusable. Even printing a
month at a time truncated important data. So I opted for a format that shows a
week at a time. Once printed, this amounted to 75 single-sided pages in all!
Why
single-sided? Unfortunately, there were things I had to redact using a black
magic marker. For example, I had a Foster Daughter at my house all of 2017. I
had to redact her name about 50 times, from doctor and dental appointments to
school conferences to track meets. It was a pain in the butt.
Additionally,
I had several meetings that I needed to leave in, but had to redact cell phone
numbers that I had entered into the calendar.
This
was another twist; I only keep one calendar. Life is confusing enough – I
cannot imagine different calendars for work and personal events. I have always
kept it in a single calendar. I could have gone through and redacted every
personal event. But that was WAY too much work! So Adam also got my doctor and
dental appointments, my kids’ birthdays, and other assorted personal data. Oh
well.
Now
that Adam has this info, the question is what can he learn from it? I had to
laugh – I gathered all this information a couple of Fridays ago. I spent 6
hours in the office that day… and nothing was on my calendar! So I’m not
certain what he can divine there.
For
what it is worth, I have done 3-4 time studies during my tenure as a
Supervisor. Each one was about three weeks long. In each case, I averaged about
43 hours of work per week. (I know – boring, right?)
*Gazette Is Part Way There
While
the FOIA request was frustrating, at least a media outlet cared enough to ask a
question! I am actually really glad the Gazette hired Adam to comment on things
from the Libertarian perspective. It is a viewpoint that deserves some ink.
My
frustration is that the ONLY thing one reads about Johnson County is filtered
through that Libertarian lens. Yes, Libertarians are important. They are also a
very small percentage of the population. Johnson County has 91,500 registered
voters; about 500 of those are Libertarian. One half of one percent. So it is
ironic that the ONLY things we read about our County, cities, and schools come
through such an unrepresentative lens.
The
Gazette does a pretty decent job covering Linn County, CR, Marion, the CRCSD,
and the rest. I wish the Gazette covered Johnson County, Iowa City, Coralville,
the ICCSD, etc. But they do not.
Because
the Gazette doesn’t cover us, it is frustrating when their Editorial Board
wades into Johnson County waters. Frankly, I don’t know how they possibly think
they can endorse candidates or efforts that they don’t cover. The Editorial
Board doesn’t even call people from Johnson County before opining on their
issues! There is a certain irony there!
Columnist
Todd Dorman covers Linn County, CR, Marion, the CRCSD, and the rest quite well.
He is a good writer. Columnist Lynda Waddington covers issues of poverty,
equality, racial issues, women’s issues, environmental issues, and whatever
else she sees fit. Lynda, too, is a good writer. Adam offers a Libertarian view
on the Johnson County area. Again, another good writer. But the average Johnson
County reader is still out of luck.
The
Press Citizen doesn’t cover anything in Johnson County. I wish the Gazette did.
There is an opportunity here. Meanwhile, if you want to see what a good local
newspaper looks like, visit the Solon Economist and/or North Liberty Leader.
These papers routinely do an excellent job!
*SILT Fundraiser
Join
the Sustainable Iowa Land Trust (SILT) for a benefit concert to support local,
healthy food and farms. The event is Friday, March 30 at 7PM at The Mill in
Iowa City. Artists include Steve and Michaela McLain and Iowa City’s own Dave
Moore. You can purchase tickets at silt.org/tix.
*DID YOU KNOW?
By law, Supervisor Districts MUST be equal in population. There IS no
fair way to “guarantee” some type of rural representation. Otherwise, you
violate one person, one vote. For what it is worth, 2/5 Johnson County
Supervisors live in the unincorporated area.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
March 16, 2018
Sullivan’s
Salvos 3/20/18
In this edition:
*Polk County Sales Tax Vote
*Support for Conservation
*Voter Threats
*Did You Know?
*Polk County Sales Tax Vote
Polk County
voters recently rejected a one-cent local option sales tax (LOST) by the
narrowest of margins – less than 1%. That leaves Polk and Johnson as the only
two counties in Iowa without the LOST.
In almost every
Polk County jurisdiction, the tax would have gone 50% toward infrastructure and
50% to property tax relief. And there is the rub.
I have always
opposed sales taxes based upon the fact that they are the most regressive of
taxes. This means that the poor pay a
higher percentage of their income in taxes than do the wealthy. Again, sales
taxes are the most regressive taxes. Income taxes are the most progressive
taxes.
In
2003, a person with an income of $90,000 paid 3.2% of her income in taxes. A
person earning $19,500 paid 11.1% of her income in taxes.
Relative
to income, the poor pay twice what the middle class pay, and nearly 5 times the
amount the wealthy pay. Even with exemptions, sales taxes hit the poor hardest.
The
argument in Polk County was that infrastructure repairs are “progressive”. That
argument falls apart when the plan redirects 50% to property tax relief. If
infrastructure in Polk County is really as bad as they say, spend all the money
there. "Property tax relief" is simply code for giving more for those
who already have more.
Additionally, the argument was, “Pass the sales tax, or we
will need to raise property taxes." Why not just raise property taxes?
Polk County allowed business threats to scare local governments into punishing
those with less.
I listened to
the arguments in Polk County, and it basically came down to this:
Pro: We desperately need the
revenue! Once we get it, we will do progressive things!
Con: You can do progressive
things right now. Just raise property taxes.
Pro: We desperately need the
revenue!
Con: Aren't property taxes a
source of revenue?
Probably: We desperately need the
revenue!
Con: Oh, for Christ's sake! Rich
people oppose this, don't they?
Pro: We desperately need the
revenue!
Con: OK, I'll look myself. Yes,
99% of the wealthy people in Polk County want the associated property tax cuts.
Pro: We desperately need the
revenue!
Polk
County jurisdictions have the ability to fix their infrastructure problems
right now. They just need to have the courage to raise property taxes.
*Support for Conservation
Unfortunately,
the Johnson County Conservation Board and staff have come under fire recently.
I think it is all crap. I read the following statement in support of Conservation
on the evening of our budget vote.
I have heard several people talk about the "intent" of
the Johnson County Conservation Bond. I happen to know a thing or two about the
intent - because it was my idea.
Harry Graves and I sat at the Hamburg Inn in January of 2006,
where I showed him my plan to go to a vote of the people in 2008 for $10
million for Conservation. (That $10 million ended up being $20 million.)
Harry and I found a couple jurisdictions in the country where
something similar had occurred. Those places put us in touch with the Trust For
Public Land, which really helped us to understand both the possibilities and
the limitations of what I was suggesting.
Together, we came up with a budget and a plan. We came up with
ballot language. We enlisted interest groups. We also recruited citizen
volunteers to work on the campaign - two of whom went on to become County
Supervisors.
Even in the middle of the worst recession since the Great
Depression, the Conservation Bond passed, with just over 60% in what was then
the highest turnout election in Johnson County history.
Ten years later, the Conservation Bond has given us the Clear
Creek Trail, Ciha Fen, Pechman Creek Delta, improvements at Kent Park and
Sutliff, and a huge addition to the Cedar River Crossings. Many more great
projects lie ahead.
I am really proud of the work Johnson County Conservation has done
during my 13+ years as a member of the Board of Supervisors. I stand by the
Conservation Board and Staff, and I trust the Conservation Board and staff. As
far as I am concerned, they have lived up to the "intent" of the Bond
and then some.
*Voter Threats
The
Board just approved the County Budget for FY19. Unfortunately, the budget
passed with a handful of citizens writing emails to Board Members saying things
like, “If you vote for this, I will never vote for you again!”
I understand that much of this is hyperbole. I also understand
that people say things in the heat of the moment, then walk it back later. In
other cases, the letter writer means it 100%. That is fine; they have the right
to vote however they see fit. It is interesting, though, the issues over which
people decide to draw a line in the sand.
Here
is the thing: you cannot serve effectively in elected office and be motivated
by these threats. You would be terrible at your job. I know – I have seen
elected officials who try to make everyone happy. They were horrible at the job.
Elected officials have to be willing to do what they believe is right. Elected
officials have to be willing to lose their jobs to do the right thing.
I try to live by the idea that I am going to do what I believe is
right, repercussions be damned. Some of the critics are people I do not respect
anyway. But others are old friends. I have had old friends say they will never
vote for me again. I would be lying if I said that doesn’t sting. It does hurt.
We are all human. But I cannot allow those threats to force me into doing the
wrong thing.
I looked back at some old campaign materials the other day. I am
REALLY proud of my service to Johnson County! We have done some REALLY good
things in my 13+ years here. I cannot help but think - have I really earned
ZERO trust over these 13+ years? Apparently so.
OK, enough of my whining. There are people out there who are
really struggling. There are people with nowhere to live and nothing to eat.
There are people who are sick. There are people who are alone. I hope our
budget does some things to make life better for those folks. Meanwhile, I am
very lucky, and will be win or lose.
*DID YOU KNOW?
According to Pew Research, 71% of voters trust local governments. That
is steadily down from 81% in 1999, but higher than any mark achieved in the
1970s.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
March 8, 2018
Sullivan’s
Salvos 3/13/18
In this edition:
*Saint Patrick’s Day!
*Bob Sullivan
*Road Embargoes
*Closed Sessions
*Did You Know?
*Saint Patrick’s Day!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day on March 17! St. Patrick’s Day is one of
my favorite days of the year. While not an “official” holiday, this day has
long been celebrated heartily by my Irish family.
March
17 is a Saturday this year, so I have plenty of time to celebrate
correctly! J
As a matter of fact, we are hosting a Saint Patrick’s Day celebration
beginning at 5pm on the 17th. Stop by! Meanwhile, I hope each and
every one of you is touched by a little luck o’ the Irish!
*Bob Sullivan
March
17 holds a special place in my heart that goes beyond St. Patrick’s Day. That
was also the birthday of my late father, Bob Sullivan.
Dad
was a proud union man, Hawkeye fan, and Irishman. We were father and son, but
also best friends. I can honestly say he was probably the most fun person I
have ever known.
Unfortunately,
he left this world much too soon, and never got the chance to meet any of his
grandchildren. I miss him every single day, but especially on St. Paddy’s Day.
So,
if you are looking for an extra toast on St. Patrick’s Day, allow me to suggest
that you raise a glass to Bob Sullivan.
Happy
birthday, Dad.
*Road Embargoes
One of the sure “signs of spring” in Iowa is the list of embargoed
roads! Winter weather – primarily cycles of freezing and thawing – can do
tremendous damage to roads. In order to allow counties to protect the taxpayer
investment in these roads, State law allows County Boards of Supervisors to
impose weight restrictions.
The chip seal/oil road systems are most susceptible to damage and
are most likely to be subjected to embargoes. Late February through early May
is a very common time for the county to post weight restrictions on county
roadways. Once posted, the restrictions may be in effect for a period of ninety
days. In the past, posted roadways have been limited to any vehicle less than 8
gross tons. Please check the county website for additional information
regarding Board approval and weight restrictions for the 2018 embargo season.
The County Engineer may issue a special permit to individuals who
demonstrate a need to move market farm produce of the type subject to rapid
spoilage or loss of value, or the need to move farm feeds or fuel for home
heating purposes. The issuance of a permit may allow certain vehicles exceeding
the weight limit to operate on embargoed roadways.
We get asked for exceptions all the
time, but please note - permits will not be issued for any other reason -
including transporting construction materials or equipment that exceeds the
posted weight limit. Operation of over-weight vehicles on restricted roads
without a permit will be at the risk of prosecution. Using alternate routes
where possible and breaking down loads into smaller units are methods
encouraged to minimize damage to these roads.
Permits for qualified participants will be issued at
the Johnson County Secondary Road Department at 4810 Melrose Avenue in Iowa
City. The following information will be needed to complete the permit: vehicle
license plate number(s), driver’s name(s), type of material being transported,
and planned route or roads you plan to travel.
Again,
for a list of embargoed roads, see the Secondary Roads page on the Johnson
County website: www.johnson-county.com.
*Closed Sessions
Governmental
business is done almost exclusively in public. There are a few exceptions; we
refer to these meetings as “closed sessions” or “executive sessions”. These
exceptions are only granted for a few very specific reasons. The acceptable
reasons are laid out in Chapter 21.5 of the Iowa Code, and listed below. (I did
some editing for length, but you can view exact wording by looking at Chapter
21.5 yourself.)
A governmental body may hold a closed session only to the
extent a closed session is necessary for any of the following reasons:
To review
or discuss confidential records.
To
discuss application for letters patent.
To
discuss strategy with legal counsel.
To
discuss the contents of a licensing examination.
To
discuss whether to suspend or expel a student.
To
discuss a case conducted according to chapter 17A.
To avoid
disclosure of specific law enforcement matters.
To
evaluate the professional competency of an employee.
To
discuss the purchase or sale of real estate.
To
discuss patient care quality in a public hospital.
As you can see from the list, a couple of those do not apply to
County government. Of those that remain, they do not get used very often. The
most common use by far is in employee matters; we go into closed sessions to
evaluate our direct reports. Since we have about 12 direct reports, this
happens pretty regularly. There are also occasionally grievances or other
employment matters that are handled in closed session by the Board, but those
are extremely rare.
In my time on the Board, we have had a few instances where we have
needed to discuss strategy with legal counsel, and a few instances where we
were discussing the purchase of property. That pretty much does it.
While
there are recordings made of every closed session, what is said in closed session
MUST remain confidential! If you violate this law, the penalties can be severe
– up to a $500 fine, plus responsibility for all court costs. In addition, if
the person violating confidentiality is an Elected Official, she or he can be
removed from office.
So
why do I bring this up? Someone in Johnson County broke the law! We had a
closed session regarding the purchase of some property. There were
approximately 5 staff people in the room along with 5 Supervisors. A couple
days later, the results of our discussion ended up in a local person’s mailbox.
Someone
flagrantly broke the law. She or he ought to face consequences. This was not an
accidental slip. This was a purposeful, devious violation of the law.
If,
for some reason, you believe this is a bad law? If you believe it was
misapplied? In either case, as a matter of principle, you could refuse to sit
in on the closed session. That makes more sense than breaking the law and
hurting the county.
I am so very disappointed to know that someone in this group acted
in such a way. This person violated the trust of everyone in that room. More
importantly, you – the public – deserve better.
*DID YOU KNOW?
There are 33.7 million U.S. residents who are of
Irish ancestry. That number is almost nine times the population of Ireland
itself.
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
want the weekly E-mail, simply reply to this message, and type
"unsubscribe" in the subject line.
If you know
anyone else who might be interested, just forward this message. They can E-mail
me at rodsullivan@mchsi.com with "subscribe" in the subject line.
As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
March 1, 2018
Sullivan’s
Salvos 3/6/18
In this edition:
*Aging Specialist
*Conference Boards
*Property Assessment Appeals Board
*Did You Know?
*Aging Specialist
Johnson County has hired an Aging
Specialist to serve as a resource for the growing population of older adults in
the County.
Jeff Kellbach was hired for the
position in the Johnson County Social Services department. The position is a
new one for Johnson County, where persons 65 and older is the fastest growing
demographic.
In his role, Kellbach will provide
outreach, information, education and referral services to older adults, family
members, service providers and organizations, and caregivers. He will assist
individuals and family members with navigating social and community services,
and will develop and implement plans that identify and meet the needs of older
adults in the County.
Kellbach has nearly 20 years of
experience working with older adults. He served as Executive Director of
Pathways Adult Day Health Center from 2001 to 2017. He was a member of the
Johnson County Livable Community for Successful Aging Policy Board from 2012 to
2017, serving as chairperson in 2014. He holds a bachelor’s degree in
therapeutic recreation from the University of Iowa.
I
am very proud of the work Johnson County has done on behalf the seniors in our
community. I would argue that no other county in the state has dedicated this
type of resources to helping our seniors. This is just one more positive!
*Conference Boards
The
City and County Conference Boards met recently to discuss the performances and
budgets of the Iowa City and Johnson County Assessors.
Assessors
are the folks who determine the value of all our taxable real estate. Every
county has an Assessor; so do several of the larger cities. In some areas,
notably Des Moines/Polk County and Waterloo/Black Hawk County, the City
Assessor’s Office has been absorbed by the County Assessor’s Office.
The Iowa City Assessor handles all the property inside Iowa City
proper; the Johnson County Assessor does everything else. The IC Assessor is
responsible for about $5.5 billion in appraised value; the JC Assessor is
responsible for about $8 billion. Both serve about 75,000 residents.
Houses, businesses, farms and the like all go up and down in
value. Because Johnson County has historically been viewed as a very good place
to live, property values here have gone up steadily. While property values
across the country crashed as the housing bubble broke, property values in
Johnson County have remained fairly flat.
Property
tax-levying governmental units (county, cities, schools) are represented on the
Conference Boards. So the IC Assessor’s Office is overseen by Johnson County,
Iowa City, and the ICCSD. The JC Assessor’s Office is overseen by Johnson
County, ten cities (all but IC), and ten school districts (including the
ICCSD).
Now for some very good news: Assessors are measured
for accuracy and ranked every year. The IC Assessor’s Office ranked #1 in the
state out of about 115 offices. The JC Assessor’s Office ranked #2. That is
correct – Iowa City was number one, and Johnson County was number two! In all
my years as a Supervisor, they Johnson County has finished number 1 five times,
number 2 five times, and number 3 three times.
In addition to being number one as a simple matter of pride, we
should be extremely pleased by these results. This means that property tax
payers are likely paying their fair share. You are not likely paying too much,
nor are you paying too little, relative to all property tax payers. That is a
very good thing.
We are being well served by our Assessors. Congratulations to Iowa
City Assessor Brad Comer, Johnson County Assessor Tom VanBuer, and all their
employees on these tremendous accomplishments!
*Property Assessment Appeals Board
State
government is often guilty of “fixing” things that are not broken. One such
example is the Property Assessment Appeals Board (PAAB).
As
we just discussed: local governments (county, city, school) operate primarily
on property taxes. In order to know how much each property should be charged,
the property must be periodically assessed.
Here
in Johnson County, we are home to the very best Assessor’s Offices in the state
of Iowa! According to the Iowa Finance Authority, Iowa City and Johnson County
rank number one and two in Iowa in terms of the accuracy of their assessments.
And they finish near the top every year.
Why
does this matter? Because when it comes to taxes, fairness is paramount. People
need to be assured that both they and their neighbors are paying their fair shares
of taxes. In Johnson County, we can prove that statistically.
When
a property owner disagrees with her assessment, she can appeal the assessment
to the Board of Review. The Board of Review is a three-member panel of local
experts who review the available data, hear both sides of the issue, and set
the correct valuation.
Not
many cases go to the Board of Review; out of the tens of thousands of
properties that get assessed, only a couple dozen go to the Board of Review. If
a property owner is not satisfied with the decision of the Board of Review, her
final appeal was to District Court.
At
least, that WAS the system, until a few years ago, when the State of Iowa
created a PAAB. The PAAB has been a fiasco for many reasons. Here are a few:
For
starters, the PAAB consists of people who sit in Des Moines. They never visit
the property, and they see the same info the local experts get to see. Doesn’t
it make sense that realtor and banker from Johnson County would know Lone Tree
better than a realtor and banker from Des Moines?
Similarly, the system allows the State to “give away” tax revenues
that were intended for local governments. This is no big deal to the state, as
the revenue was never headed their way in the first place. But it has an impact
on local schools, cities, and counties.
Oh, but it gets worse! There is no cost (and therefore no risk) to
folks who appeal. The cost of the PAAB is paid through our state taxes. This
plays into the hands of the anti-government faction that will appeal no matter
what.
The opposite is true for counties, who bear the burden of proof.
There are considerable costs to the counties. Assessors need to spend countless
hours preparing, as do County Attorney’s offices. Yet there is no reimbursement
when they go to the PAAB and win.
This
creates a situation where big corporations appeal every assessment. Several
large corporations (Best Buy, for example) appeal EVERY assessment as a course
of doing business. Many jurisdictions decide to settle rather than fight, so the
PAAB in effect transfers tax dollars from local schools to out of state
corporations!
The
results thus far back this up; it is not the local farmer who appeals to the
PAAB and wins – it is the big box. So, when tax revenues decline, who gets
asked to pay more? The farmer, of course!
Finally, and most importantly, the previous system was not broken!
District Court was the perfect way to decide such disputes – fairer and cheaper
for all taxpayers.
I
hope our Legislators will heed the advice of County Assessors, and eliminate
the PAAB.
*DID YOU KNOW?
Coral Ridge Mall is the property in Johnson County with the highest
value, at just under $127,000,000. (That does not include any University of
Iowa buildings, which are tax exempt and therefore not assessed.)
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
If you do NOT
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As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
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