2011 Omaha Budget = Tax Increase

[Brad]

2011 Omaha Budget = Tax Increase

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100720/N ... more-taxes

Dining out, registering a car and owning a home in Omaha would all cost more under Mayor Jim Suttle's 2011 budget proposal.

Stressing the need to "put the city's financial house in order," Suttle outlined two tax increases and a new restaurant tax that would generate a total of $44 million in new revenue. Suttle presented his plan to the City Council Tuesday.

The tax increases wouldn't put a dent in only Omahans' wallets. Anyone who eats at the city's restaurants, drinks at a bar or hires a caterer would pay more. So would motorists who live in Omaha or in most Douglas County subdivisions.

Suttle said the city needs new sources of revenue to climb out of a $33.5 million budget shortfall projected for next year.

[Brad]

Dining out, registering a car and owning a home in Omaha would all cost more under Mayor Jim Suttle's 2011 budget proposal.

Check, Check, and Check.... Got me three times

[Big E]

No helicopter tax?

[Brad]

No helicopter tax?

Its an Iowa Helicopter and we fly out of the Council Bluffs Airport, so I am safe for now! I am guessing there will be some airspace tax soon

[DeWalt]

Tax increases are usually the answer to most of the budget problems facing municipalities. Eventually there will be a tipping point where the tax rates work against the city.

[S33]

It's a bit ironic how aggressive they are to tax personal transportation, yet offer little to no public transportation. Probably doesn't look very enticing to prospective newcomers.

[joeglow]

Per WOWT, "In a briefing with reporters, Mayor Suttle reiterated that property tax rates went unchanges for almost a decade while costs increased exponentially."

Yeah, no shlt, Sherlock. This is because the tax levy is supposed to stay the same, while the values of homes go up roughly by the rate of inflation over the mid to long term. Thus, the levy should NEVER go up. Either this guy is a flat out, mouth breathing idiot or he thinks all Omaha residents are. All this while he REFUSES to touch the firefighters and their blowing of their budget year after year.

I literally cannot fathom how this retard got elected.

[Erik]

Per WOWT, "In a briefing with reporters, Mayor Suttle reiterated that property tax rates went unchanges for almost a decade while costs increased exponentially."

Yeah, no shlt, Sherlock. This is because the tax levy is supposed to stay the same, while the values of homes go up roughly by the rate of inflation over the mid to long term. Thus, the levy should NEVER go up. Either this guy is a flat out, mouth breathing idiot or he thinks all Omaha residents are. All this while he REFUSES to touch the firefighters and their blowing of their budget year after year.

I literally cannot fathom how this retard got elected.

Sigh.. I miss Daub and Fayhe

[cdub]

Per WOWT, "In a briefing with reporters, Mayor Suttle reiterated that property tax rates went unchanges for almost a decade while costs increased exponentially."

Yeah, no shlt, Sherlock. This is because the tax levy is supposed to stay the same, while the values of homes go up roughly by the rate of inflation over the mid to long term. Thus, the levy should NEVER go up. Either this guy is a flat out, mouth breathing idiot or he thinks all Omaha residents are. All this while he REFUSES to touch the firefighters and their blowing of their budget year after year.

I literally cannot fathom how this retard got elected.

That might be an argument if the levy had been left at a reasonable level originally. Omaha had (perhaps before last years change) the second lowest levy in the metro behind Papillion. Central cities are not usually low man due to older infrastructure and a higher percentage of tax exempt property than suburbs. Factor in free trash and it was the lowest. That isn't sustainable whatsoever. If you want to look at the root of the problem, look at the 7 tax cuts in the 90s, 6 of which I believe were Hal Daub buying friends and votes. The city became, and still is, too reliant upon sales tax, which as we now know is unreliable. 40% of the general fund is sales tax, only 26 is property tax. By the way, the OPS levy is much larger, wheres the indignation about their high taxes?

[joeglow]

Per WOWT, "In a briefing with reporters, Mayor Suttle reiterated that property tax rates went unchanges for almost a decade while costs increased exponentially."

Yeah, no shlt, Sherlock. This is because the tax levy is supposed to stay the same, while the values of homes go up roughly by the rate of inflation over the mid to long term. Thus, the levy should NEVER go up. Either this guy is a flat out, mouth breathing idiot or he thinks all Omaha residents are. All this while he REFUSES to touch the firefighters and their blowing of their budget year after year.

I literally cannot fathom how this retard got elected.

That might be an argument if the levy had been left at a reasonable level originally. Omaha had (perhaps before last years change) the second lowest levy in the metro behind Papillion. Central cities are not usually low man due to older infrastructure and a higher percentage of tax exempt property than suburbs. Factor in free trash and it was the lowest. That isn't sustainable whatsoever. If you want to look at the root of the problem, look at the 7 tax cuts in the 90s, 6 of which I believe were Hal Daub buying friends and votes. The city became, and still is, too reliant upon sales tax, which as we now know is unreliable. 40% of the general fund is sales tax, only 26 is property tax. By the way, the OPS levy is much larger, wheres the indignation about their high taxes?

Omaha also has MUCH higher tax revenues from many more businesses of (many being very large businesses) paying a large share of property taxes. The simple fact is that this man touted himself as an Engineer who knew how to "think outside the box." So far, all he has come up with is new taxes, increased taxes and spooning with the firefighters. He is a complete and utter ratard!

[Big E]

Omaha also has MUCH higher tax revenues from many more businesses of (many being very large businesses) paying a large share of property taxes.

What kind of property taxes does ConAgra pay on their $1 annual lease?

[joeglow]

Omaha also has MUCH higher tax revenues from many more businesses of (many being very large businesses) paying a large share of property taxes.

What kind of property taxes does ConAgra pay on their $1 annual lease?

I assume you are asking about the horse shack that they paid for and lease to the city for $1. If so, clearly there is value that they ate up to pay for that on the city's behalf.

As for the buildings, as they are owned by OPUS, they pay whatever the taxes assessed to OPUS are (which ARE assessed and paid) as part of their rent payments.

[Brad]

Here are the lots

http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105184
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105022
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105014
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105004
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105190
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105164
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105094
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105070
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105306
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105044
http://webapps.dotcomm.org:8080/TreasTa ... 0805105034

TAXES PAID:
$20.52
$0.00
$381,662.84
$295,380.28
$20.52
$222,058.50
$439.399.22
$20.52
$20.52
$20.52
$20.52

TOTAL = 1,338,623.93 a year in Taxes for the Campus

[Big E]

I thought they leased the whole (or major portion) of that campus from the city for $1/year?

[Brad]

I have no idea. Would not surprise me if they bought the land for $1.

[S33]

I could of swore I remember a discussion here sometime last year stating that they had bought the land for next to nothing, however, the deal was that they had to assume demolition costs of Jobber's Canyon. The "they" could have been OPUS or ConAgra, idr.

[the1wags]

It took leaving to realize how |expletive| up Omaha taxes really are. Check this out. My condo in Omaha was last valued around 67k and the taxes are around $1300/yr. I'm looking at places in Denver right now and places that are 130-150k have taxes around $700-800/yr. I realize that Colorado brings in far more tourism dollars but that big of a difference is pathetic. This is before Suttle boosts them up too. FU Omaha taxes. Who wants to buy a condo?

[nativeomahan]

It took leaving to realize how |expletive| up Omaha taxes really are. Check this out. My condo in Omaha was last valued around 67k and the taxes are around $1300/yr. I'm looking at places in Denver right now and places that are 130-150k have taxes around $700-800/yr. I realize that Colorado brings in far more tourism dollars but that big of a difference is pathetic. This is before Suttle boosts them up too. FU Omaha taxes. Who wants to buy a condo?

My guess is that a 67k condo at Omaha's prices would cost double that (or more) in Denver. So really where is the savings to a family's budget?

[the1wags]

While true that the same condo would be more in Denver, you can see from my numbers that Omaha taxes must be pushing 4 times as high as Denver's. Over twice the "value" but half of the tax? Even if the property is double in Denver, (75k Omaha vs 150k Denver) the taxes would be half as much. Any way you slice it, Omaha taxes are a total joke.

[Bosco55David]

I bet Omaha taxes would be alot lower if we (and to a lesser extent, Lincoln) weren't subsidizing the rest of the state.

[TitosBuritoBarn]

According to a CNN article today, despite Omaha having a financial crisis, the state of Nebraska has the LEAST amount of debt of any state.

http://money.cnn.com/2010/07/30/news/ec ... s/?npt=NP1

[joeglow]

I bet Omaha taxes would be alot lower if we (and to a lesser extent, Lincoln) weren't subsidizing the rest of the state.

Agreed. However, as the saying goes: Democracy can only last until the public realizes the majority can vote to take from the minority to give to themselves. The real answer would be to consolidate the heck out of our school districts and counties. However, this will never happen because the majority (central and western nebraska) will vote to take money from the minority (Omaha).

[DeWalt]

In some ways I hope this financial crisis keeps going, actually gets worse, and a lot more heated.

It's then - and only then - that our elected officials are forced to become more open and accountable about where tax dollars are actually spent.

[icejammer]

In some ways I hope this financial crisis keeps going, actually gets worse, and a lot more heated.

It's then - and only then - that our elected officials are forced to become more open and accountable about where tax dollars are actually spent.

It's no secret where your tax dollars are already going, so I'm confused by how they can be more open and accountable?

[DeWalt]

In some ways I hope this financial crisis keeps going, actually gets worse, and a lot more heated.

It's then - and only then - that our elected officials are forced to become more open and accountable about where tax dollars are actually spent.

It's no secret where your tax dollars are already going, so I'm confused by how they can be more open and accountable?

Sure, you can find the information if you're as tenacious as a pit bull, and have the resources of a Private I. But not too many people are geared that way.

For instance, who knew that the recently resigned/fired "parks director" made almost $90,000 per year plus benefits? And for doing what? And what was the job he had previously lost when he got shifted to Parks Director, and had to take a huge pay cut?


I'm not necessarily bagging on what people earn, but when a taxpayer-funded municipality is in a financial crisis, it's fair to call into question why so many public employees are paid so danged much money - and for who knows what? Why is a paper-shuffling city official making twice as much money as a school teacher? Whatever happened to "public servants"?

[icejammer]

Sure, you can find the information if you're as tenacious as a pit bull, and have the resources of a Private I. But not too many people are geared that way.

Actually, with a quick "Google" search, the entire Omaha City budget can be accessed in under a minute, down to what each employee makes (by position, not name).

[DeWalt]

Sure, you can find the information if you're as tenacious as a pit bull, and have the resources of a Private I. But not too many people are geared that way.

Actually, with a quick "Google" search, the entire Omaha City budget can be accessed in under a minute, down to what each employee makes (by position, not name).

Actually, it is extremely broad and ambiguous. For instance, in the Parks/Recreation Budget report, it says "Employee Compensation - $48,775" (heckuva lot of money for mowing lawns). But right under it there's the entry "Purchased Services - $269,262." That really clarifies things, doesn't it?

We both know that publicly-funded entities are MASTERS at avoiding financial accountability. They know darned good & well that if John Q Public ever found out what was being spent on what, there would be public outrage.

[Big E]

One would like to think that maybe the local news organizations would do some regular digging. All of this should be easily attainable through routine public records requests.

[DeWalt]

One would like to think that maybe the local news organizations would do some regular digging. All of this should be easily attainable through routine public records requests.

Right.

And what about scaling back services - not for political shock value (like closing libraries and swimming pools), but in an intelligent and reasonable way.

The church I attend is experiencing tight finances right now. Not a crisis, but things are tight. So when our part-time custodian resigned, we decided to have members do the cleaning - on a rotation basis - for the immediate future. If there's extra money in a couple years, we'll probably hire another custodian.

Why do publicly-funded entities never seem to be able to do things like that?


The City of Omaha could save MILLIONS of dollars, if it was done in a reasonable and intelligent way - and with community support. But honestly, they don't want to.

[Bosco55David]

Sure, you can find the information if you're as tenacious as a pit bull, and have the resources of a Private I. But not too many people are geared that way.

Actually, with a quick "Google" search, the entire Omaha City budget can be accessed in under a minute, down to what each employee makes (by position, not name).

Exactly.

[bbinks]

What still baffles me is how Suttle still says that he did not know about the problems and blames "prior mayors and councils". Was he asleep as the helm during those 4 years that he was on the council under Fahey and voted for many of the budgets that helped create this mess? He campaigned to "restore civility" to City Hall. He does not always get along well with the Council. I guess that is his definition of Civility. What about his campaign commitment to "lower property taxes". Suttle is worse than most other politicians. I expect a politician to be full of |expletive|, but Suttle is so full of it, that he is covered in it.

[DeWalt]

What still baffles me is how Suttle still says that he did not know about the problems and blames "prior mayors and councils". Was he asleep as the helm during those 4 years that he was on the council under Fahey and voted for many of the budgets that helped create this mess? He campaigned to "restore civility" to City Hall. He does not always get along well with the Council. I guess that is his definition of Civility. What about his campaign commitment to "lower property taxes". Suttle is worse than most other politicians. I expect a politician to be full of |expletive|, but Suttle is so full of it, that he is covered in it.

Politicians count on people having short memories.

They also count on people not thinking.

I can't say there's merit in trying to recall Suttle, but I sure as heck hope the people of Omaha aren't stupid enough to elect him to a second term!

[cdub]

I definitely don't like the line, "I didn't cause this problem and you didn't cause this problem," that he has been using at all the budget sessions. So, the entire City is blameless? I think M Night Shamalangadingdong should come do a movie about the mysterious beings that caused this budget crunch. Could be his best movie in years.

The fact is, as a Council Member he has some part and frankly as citizens we all have one as well. This issue wasn't handed down from the heavens, its been brewing for 15 years or more.

[Bosco55David]

I agree. People just need to accept that Omaha's tax revenue isn't high enough to run a city of it's size and that taxes have to go up. There's absolutely no way around it.

[bbinks]

Yes, our budget problems are party due to poor leadership shown by our politicians the past decade. ..... Fahey and the council at the time are hugely responsible, but the buck stops with all of them going back 30 years."

I would not think of Suttle as such an idiot if he accepted accountability for part of this situation. But he is more content blaming others. That in itself will not win him any support for a re-election bid.

[cdub]

Did anyone hear that so called expert on Pension systems on Becca yesterday? Wow, what a disaster. She's clearly getting paid to justify the current contract and was not doing a good job. Sounds like what they did was took the gold plated fairy tale pension agreement as a baseline so that every departure from that was given a value in the negotiations. That's like going to a dealer to buy a car and having him start the negotiating price at 50k for a Ford Focus. Even if you beat him to death you still end up paying 30k for a 20k car.

[HskrFanMike]

Did anyone hear that so called expert on Pension systems on Becca yesterday? Wow, what a disaster. She's clearly getting paid to justify the current contract and was not doing a good job. Sounds like what they did was took the gold plated fairy tale pension agreement as a baseline so that every departure from that was given a value in the negotiations. That's like going to a dealer to buy a car and having him start the negotiating price at 50k for a Ford Focus. Even if you beat him to death you still end up paying 30k for a 20k car.

Isn't that how most salary/benefit negotiations go forward? It's downright naive to think you can do just the opposite and go into a car dealership and start negotiating at 10k for a 20k car.

Negotiations are a give-and-take thing, and in the case of the police and fire unions, because of their importance to public safety, they can't go on strike. Instead, there is the council on industrial relations who will mediate things if an agreement can't be reached, they'll decide for you.

So then the question is: can you negotiate a better deal than the CIR will dictate? And so far, in my limited listening to Radio Free WingNut (licensed as KFAB-AM on 1110), nobody believes that's possible. Instead, they hope to draw down the union at the negotiating table. Except that most of the people raising such a stink on RFWn want any part of negotiations; instead, they want to grandstand on the radio from 7 am to 11 am and from 4 pm to 7 pm.

[cdub]

Did anyone hear that so called expert on Pension systems on Becca yesterday? Wow, what a disaster. She's clearly getting paid to justify the current contract and was not doing a good job. Sounds like what they did was took the gold plated fairy tale pension agreement as a baseline so that every departure from that was given a value in the negotiations. That's like going to a dealer to buy a car and having him start the negotiating price at 50k for a Ford Focus. Even if you beat him to death you still end up paying 30k for a 20k car.

Isn't that how most salary/benefit negotiations go forward? It's downright naive to think you can do just the opposite and go into a car dealership and start negotiating at 10k for a 20k car.

Negotiations are a give-and-take thing, and in the case of the police and fire unions, because of their importance to public safety, they can't go on strike. Instead, there is the council on industrial relations who will mediate things if an agreement can't be reached, they'll decide for you.

So then the question is: can you negotiate a better deal than the CIR will dictate? And so far, in my limited listening to Radio Free WingNut (licensed as KFAB-AM on 1110), nobody believes that's possible. Instead, they hope to draw down the union at the negotiating table. Except that most of the people raising such a stink on RFWn want any part of negotiations; instead, they want to grandstand on the radio from 7 am to 11 am and from 4 pm to 7 pm.

As long as youre ok paying 30k for the Focus, I guess thats fine.

[joeglow]

instead, they want to grandstand on the radio from 7 am to 11 am and from 4 pm to 7 pm.

Really? Wow.....

Because they don't agree with bankrupting the city, they are grandstanding? Nice.

[Bosco55David]

instead, they want to grandstand on the radio from 7 am to 11 am and from 4 pm to 7 pm.

Really? Wow.....

Because they don't agree with bankrupting the city, they are grandstanding? Nice.

I don't know that grandstanding would be the word I use (that's reserved for tools like Stothert, Thompson and Nabity) however they're solutions range from illogical (disband OPD and let the Sheriffs handle it) to impossible (declare bankruptcy) and downright illegal (fire all the cops, hire non-union ones).

In short, it's a bunch of people who don't know what the |expletive| they're talking about, taking to the safe haven of AM talk radio.