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Questions remain about land transfer tax

There are many questions to be answered concerning a Land Transfer Tax and I do not recall hearing or seeing anything about a public forum for discussion on the subject.

These are just a few of the questions that I have.

Would this Land Transfer Tax also apply to a life-long resident of the county giving some of their property to his or her children? If the property is sold to the son or daughter for $10, would the Land Transfer Tax be based on the fair market value?

How much would the land transfer tax be on, for example, 10 Acres of land valued at $250,000? Aren't our county commissioners living on land that was given to them by their fathers? How would they like to pay a Land Transfer Tax on that property?

T he school is expected to cost about $10 million and the payments are estimated to be around $600,000 per year. I have never known a county project to be completed on budget. If the costs are higher than projected, would we also receive a property tax increase in addition to the land transfer tax?

C ould grants not be obtained to assist in the construction of a new school? Could the cafeteria be expanded to accommodate all the students? There seems to be room there for expansion.

S ince the revenue from the Land Transfer Tax has to be placed in the general fund, how can we be assured that any of it would go toward the building of a school?

The county is already searching for funds to pay for the new court house and the new jail. Might the administration decide to use the money for these projects instead? Is there anything in writing to prevent this from happening? There have been less than 50 homes sold in Clay County so far this year. Would the Land Transfer Tax on these sales meet the need?

Would imposing a Land Transfer Tax in Clay County not drive buyers to the surrounding counties that do not have a Land Transfer Tax?

I wonder why the school's administration was moved into the vocational building instead of placing a modular unit on the site of the old administration building. Could the space not have been used for the students?

How is the space in the basement of the vocational building being used since most of those classes have been done away with, such as agriculture, auto mechanics and brick masonry? Is Hayesville High School trying to phase out its technical skills classes and just offer college prep classes?

I hope asking these questions do not make me appear to be "anti kids or anti school". That is not true. I am the mother of two students at Hayesville High School. I want the best school for all of our children. However, I do not think a Land Transfer Tax is the answer. This would encompass such a small segment of our community. Would it not be more logical to increase the sales tax? This would be a much fairer solution and more likely to create the revenue needed and could be ear-marked for a new school.

Debby Woody

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