For Immediate
Release: September 21, 2005
Sen. Jeff Rabon
Sen. Rabon Says State Must Repay Debt to Counties
Before state lawmakers start making plans for future
tax rebates, cuts or other expenditures, they must repay millions
of dollars owed to Oklahoma counties. That’s according to
State Sen. Jeff
Rabon who said repaying the counties must be a top priority
in the 2006 legislative session.
“The bottom line is we owe about $15 million dollars to
counties for reimbursements that haven’t been made during
the past three years. This is money those counties depend on to
fund local government, schools, health departments, libraries
and career-techs,” said Rabon, D-Hugo. “Before anyone
starts dreaming up new ways to spend surplus revenues, we need
to pay our bills.”
The money is owed due to various ad valorem tax breaks approved
starting in 1985. The exemptions were aimed at attracting business
and jobs to the state at the height of the oil bust. As more exemptions
were added in later years, including double homestead exemptions,
the original one percent of state income taxes that was earmarked
to repay counties for the lost ad valorem taxes was not enough
to cover what was owed. In 1986 the tax exemptions totaled $143,000,
but by fiscal year 2004, they jumped to $51 million. Officials
with the tax commission estimate that total to reach $57 million
this year.
“How can anyone in good conscience be talking about additional
cuts or rebates when we’ve left our county governments and
services hanging like this? Before we talk about putting limits
on growth revenue, tax cuts, or funding any new programs, we need
to do right by our counties,” said Rabon.
“In the coming months I am going to do everything in my
power to ensure this matter gets the attention it deserves by
our legislative leaders. I am mystified by all the people who
say they want to run government as efficiently as a business and
then they want to spend the revenues on everything but the bills
that are owed. An operation like that wouldn’t stay in business
long.”
Some counties are reportedly considering legal action to force
the legislature to pay what is owed.
“It shouldn’t take legal action or a constitutional
amendment to do what is right. There should be an absolute legislative
agreement to pay our debts first when we’re writing the
state’s budget,” Rabon said.
