Barry
I also think it would be a nightmare for anyone filing
a mortgage in this state if the rates vary from town
to town.  What does your Town Clerk think?

--- Barry Isaacs <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

---------------------------------
John Cushing et al.

Here is a note I sent to the league for their
consideration. Comments???

Barry Isaacs

Date: Tue, 18 Feb 200312:58:52 -0500
To: VLCT_Jeffrey
From: Barry Isaacs <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: House Bill 31
Cc: Mendon_New_Staff

Steve, I discussed this with Harry Chen and then the
Mendon Selectboardkicked it around again last night.

Everybody is for the bill, the question is the revenue
hit on thetowns.

Why is it necessary to have single, state-wide, fixed
rate for mortgagerecording?  We propose that this fee
be set at the town level.

Think about this,

(a) The current draft of the bill is not "revenue
neutral" tothe towns.  This will exert more upward
pressure on the localproperty tax impacting a group of
tax payers that is already on the vergeof mutiny due
to educational funding.

(b) In Mendon's case $85 dollars makes us
"revenueneutral".  In some other towns the number may
be $50.  Inothers it may be $150.  A state wide fee
will not and cannot satisfyall the towns.

(c) In many cases (fortunately Mendon is not one of
them) these feesserve as part of the Town Clerk's
compensation package.  Do youreally want to mess with
that can of worms?

I'd like the league to consider this.  It would be a
shame to losewhat is conceptually a very good bill
because we can't agree where to setthe local
compensation bar.

Cheers,

Barry


Barry M. IsaacsSelectboard Chair,Town of Mendon, Vt.


__________________________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, more
http://taxes.yahoo.com/