| Coral
Bay Community Council,Inc. |
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Update: Sept 30th, 2009A hearing was held recently, and another is scheduled for Oct 15th. Essentially, everything is still on hold, but the Judge seems to be willing to spend a bit more time on it and scheduled a hearing for next month. There also is more talk about reassessing St. John as a solution. 2006 taxes are still not due. http://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/index.pl/article_home?id=17639432 Update: June 16th 2009 The
Federal Court of Appeals has affirmed the District Court ruling that
the VI government was in contempt of court for sending out 2006 tax
bills, that the 2003 settlement still stands due to its constitutional
basis, and that the District Court still has to rule that the new tax
system is fair to all tax payers, including the appeals process -- prior
to any 2006 bills being sent out under the new tax system. As you know,
we have expected this to be the court ruling -- it was the only decision
that made sense under the US Constitution, under the law and under normal
judicial procedure. Here is a link to the ruling: UNITED
STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT Update: May 16, 2009 The Federal Courts have made no decisions since the hearing held by the Court of Appeals in early 2009. This
week the Governor issued a new executive order to collect the 2006 taxes
( the same ones billed last summer) -- again with NO authorization to
do so from the Federal courts in the on-going litigation. http://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/index.pl/article_home?id=17635766
Here is the link to a letter CBCC wrote to the Governor in February
- with no response from the Governor to date.
Letter to Governor John P. de Jongh, Jr. on property taxation 2-11-2009
It provides our considered thoughts on the stance of the government
and the process -- and the need for fairness in taxation. We need some
individuals well-versed in property tax strategies in the US to help
design and implement a fair system here -- for all taxpayers. Update: March 5, 2009 PROPERTY TAXES: Nothing has changed... a possible court decision by the end of March. However, a concern has been raised that some mortgage banks which received the tax bills may feel pressured to pay them - so if your mortgage holder receives the tax bills, you may want to inform them in writing that you do not want the bill paid, because it's legitimacy is being contested in court. Update:
January 13, 2009 Given the time that has passed, it seems likely that new bills, with new dates, would have to be mailed out to collect the 2006 taxes. What about 2007 and 2008 bills, that in the normal scheme of things would also be payable by now? It is going to be politically difficult for the government to collect more than one year’s due taxes each year. There will probably be an extended payoff schedule without penalty, when this happens. (Practical note: This information should be taken as “the well-meant opinion and analysis of a reasonably knowledgeable friend” and nothing more. Call the Property Tax office – or drop by at their new location on St. John – in the Islandia building, or seek professional advice, if you have any concerns.) As 2009 begins, the Lt. Governor's office has FINALLY updated their property tax website to discuss the new law upon which the 2006 bills are based. The site encourages people to continue to discuss corrections of their property's valuation with the tax assessor's office. Do it! Let them know about other properties that are wrongly characterized and valued too. http://ltg.gov.vi/real-property-tax-system.html Update Sept. 14th 2008 The
District Court Judge ruled on Sept. 11, 2008, that the VI Government
is in contempt of court for issuing the 2006 property tax bills, prior
to the court’s ruling, and ordered the bills rescinded. The court
also ruled that the appeals process is not currently sufficient and
the revaluation process is not court-approved yet, and therefore, the
court does not find the taxation system “ready for prime-time”.
Here are newspaper articles with details: Update August 30, 2008 People
are starting to receive the property tax bills for 2006 in the mail
– at the new higher property valuations. The VI government has
decided to send out the bills prior to receiving the District Court’s
OK, under the long-standing lawsuit. Update on VI property tax: June 5, 2008 On June
2, an agreement was reached under the “old” property tax
lawsuit to allow 2006 property tax bills to be issued at the new rates,
with the provision that if you enter a formal appeal to your valuation
after you receive your bill, you will only have to pay tax at the old
rates while the appeal is pending. This is good for allowing the VI
government to collect needed income, but does not yet resolve the revaluation
problems on St. John. Latest tax calculation model - this calculates at "new rates". (link) Update on VI property tax: March 11, 2008 Governor's letter and line-item vetoed bill (link) Update on VI property tax: February 5, 2008 Taxation:
On Feb. 5th, the Governor introduced amended property tax rate legislation
– the most significant difference is only issuing one tax bill
in 2008 (instead of the planned two bills). However the other provisions
remain the same, and we still do not have the revaluation information
necessary to understand the impact on St. John. The Governor has called
the Legislature into Special Session Thursday, February 6th, to urge
them to move quickly on the legislation – but nothing has really
changed since the Legislature avoided passing the bill two weeks ago
(vote 7-7, with one abstaining).Here is the Governor's latest tax bill
to be discussed by Legislature in Special Session, Thurs, Feb 7th Tax
bill. Update on VI property tax: January 15, 2008The
VI Legislature Committee of the Whole is meeting to discuss property
tax legislation on Friday, January 18th at 9:30 am, on St. Thomas at
the Legislature bldg. CBCC has asked to testify. Here is a copy of the
tax bill (Tax
Bill). Anyone is welcome to attend. We will report back to you on
the hearing.
Also - here is a listing of 2007 St. John property sales for your information (property sales). The corrections and updating of the 2006 property assessments on St. John continues. We were told by the Tax Assessor's office on Jan. 4th that the work continues and the information on the website will be updated shortly....Stay tuned. Update on VI property tax: November 19thRevaluation:
Taxation:
PROPERTY TAX REVALUATION PROCESS The Virgin Islands is under a federal court-ordered property tax revaluation, to bring all property valuations in the Virgin Islands to their accurate market value, for a given year, currently January 2006. This process is being supervised by the Court, and all property owners are invited and encouraged by the VI Tax Assessors office to participate in correcting errors in the draft revaluations that are being circulated now. Have you checked your revaluation value? – If not, see CHECKING YOUR INFORMATION. Resources: www.vipropertyrevaluation.com Doing comparative property analysis: comparative property analysis CBCC letter to the Lt. Governor Sept. 13th: Click Here Contacts for sending your taxation policy letters: Click Here Comparative Property Sales: Coral Bay Sales 2004 to 2007, all St John sales: www.islandiavi.com or some of the other local realtor sites. ACCURACY OF YOUR VALUATION: Is this the market value of your property in January 2006? That is what the number is supposed to represent. If not, call NOW (CHECKING YOUR INFORMATION) and ask questions and ask to be put on the list for revaluation. As of September 26th, revised information on characteristics should be available on the website, including updated data collector visit information and date of inspection, where completed. If you requested it, and yours does not show as of this date, call and request again, just to be sure...You may also be able to get information answered or give them information over the phone or by going to the St. John office at the Battery. DO NOT DELAY: MANY valuations on St. John are too high, or done “wrong” – the errors can be fixed easily now IF property owners point out the errors to the property valuation office. (If you wait, you may have to go through a much more complicated legal process to get your valuation corrected. Now it is relatively easy – since they are working on the DRAFT values.) TAXES:
So how much tax will I pay? Don’t start calculating… Nobody
knows yet. Yes, taxes will go up. They have NOT since about 1998. Click on the documents for more information. This page will change regularly, as more information comes in.
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CORAL
BAY COMMUNITY COUNCIL, INC.
Office: 8-1 Estate Emmaus, Coral Bay, St. John, U. S. Virgin Islands Mailing: 9901 Estate Emmaus, St. John, VI, 00830-9587 |