Fresh Loaf

Holy shit! The new flyer by Mary Norwood is by far the dirtiest, most negative message to come out of this mayor’s race so far. In fact, it prompted me to wonder what the legal boundaries are for Constitutionally protected political speech.

As you can see, the headline reads:

Kasim Reed: Late paying his taxes, but wants to raise yours.

OK, it’s clear that Norwood’s not going to let this tax allegation drop, even though the AJC’s Jim Galloway offered a self-described “fact check on taxes” that thoroughly rebutted Norwood’s claims:

My AJC colleague Cameron McWhirter and other reporters spent weeks vetting the major mayoral candidates this summer.

In the course of that reporting, McWhirter checked Fulton County tax records. Reed met with him and provided detailed documentation about his financial holdings, real estate and tax payments. Reed owed no back taxes at the time of the meeting and owes none now.

The flyer provides a link to a story that WSB-TV ran after getting a tip from the Norwood campaign, but even that two-and-a-half-minute piece shows the unpaid tax claim to be a non-story.

Then there’s the other allegation: that Reed wants to raise taxes. I’ve interviewed Reed several times, sat in on numerous debates and forums and read all his campaign material — and yet I have no idea where this claim is coming from.

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State senator and mayoral candidate Kasim Reed held a hastily called press conference today at the shuttered Fire Station No. 7 in the West End to make two proposals:

1. The city should reopen No. 7 and keep all existing fire stations open.
2. The city should raise taxes by 1 mill — and no more — in order to end police and fire department furloughs.

“There’s a crisis in Atlanta,” he said at the start of the press event. “Public safety is critical to Atlanta’s future and we need to do what it takes to end the furloughs.”

(Apparently, Andy, Reed doesn’t believe the crime problem is simply one of perception.)

Mayor Franklin has proposed, in a budget now on its way to the full Council, that the city raise property taxes by 3 mills — an increase that will allow one-day-a-week furloughs to be ended for all city workers. But Reed advocated for a 1-mill increase, saying that’s enough to put police and fireman back on the job.

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Shirley aims to raise taxes

As we blogged on Tuesday, Mayor Shirley Franklin appeared before the City Council this morning to propose a 3-mill tax increase for the city’s 2010 budget, which kicks in on July 1. If approved as proposed, the unpopular furloughs for the police and fire department would end in three months.

How much is 3 mills? Franklin told the Council it was roughly a 7-percent increase for taxpayers. According to her, the way it would work out that if you own a $200,000 house, you’ll pay an additional $200 this fall. For anyone with a $1 million home, the hit is closer to $1,200.

The mayor is actually proposing less spending than was approved in the current budget — $541 million, compared to $573 million. That’s because city revenues have been steadily falling. Unfortunately, budget projections suggest the city will only collect about $485 million next year — hence, the proposed tax hike.

Last year, the Council voted unanimously to reject a much smaller tax increase, asking Franklin to instead cut personnel and services. The result was the furloughs. It’s already quite clear that this time around, it’s a whole new ball game.

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