Wal-Mart seeks $100,000 tax cut from Rockland, eyes statewide reductions

[jpak]

Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine)

ROCKLAND, Maine — Wal-Mart has asked for a property tax cut of more than $100,000 from Rockland.

City Assessor Dennis Reed said Saturday that Wal-Mart is also looking into the assessments that municipalities have on all their stores in Maine.

Wal-Mart’s store in Rockland was assessed at slightly more than $8.5 million on April 1, 2013. The international retailer has asked that the assessment for 2013 be reduced by nearly $5.4 million to $3.1 million.

That change would reduce Wal-Mart’s property tax bill in Rockland by $105,240. The company was the third highest taxpayer in Rockland in 2013 with a bill of $166,232. The abatement, if granted, would reduce that bill to about $61,000.

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Read more: http://bangordailynews.com/2014/02/16/news/midcoast/wal-mart-seeks-100000-tax-cut-from-rockland-eyes-statewide-reductions/

[elleng]

1. Its probably standard for all commercial entities,

do as much as they can to reduce taxes of all sorts.

[randr]

2. So much for all the locally owned shops that never asked for "tax breaks"

Communities need to come to a real assessment of how Wally World really impacts their economies.
Profits sent off to corporate/family headquarters, manufactured goods imported with additional tax benefits, workforce at minimum wage sucking on the public tit, etc., etc.

[sabbat hunter]

8. This looks like a property assesment adjustment

case. It is something that happens all the time with companies large and small. Homeowners also frequently ask for reassessments on their properties.

What will happen a lot of times is that they will get some sort of reduction in assessment, the county, town and school district still need to have the same level of revenue. So as a result, the assessment level goes down, but then the property tax rate goes up for everyone to compensate.

So this is different than a company like Slave-Mart demanding a tax break.

[TexasTowelie]

10. The problem with commercial real estate is that when the properties are reappraised

they are usually valued much less than the market value of the property. I recall that several years ago the Dallas Morning News ran a comparison between the appraised value of the property versus what the commercial entity purchased the property. There were numerous instances where skyscrapers were being valued at $20-$30 million dollars, yet the property was bought in the $40-$50 million range. This has lead to incorrect appraisals on the residential base that are over-inflated compared to the real market value.

[sabbat hunter]

11. depends on the state and localities

in Nassau county, NY for example, recent property sales of similarly sized properties in the area are used for any adjustment.

So it is possible that a property was bought for 40 million, then declined in value due to the RE market collapsing, thus the assessed value went down.

Or the company way overpaid for a property in the first place.

But when a property is sold (at least in Nassau county), the new sale price becomes the assessed value.

Obviously the same amount of revenue is still needed by the locality. So what happens is that instead of property being taxed at a rate of $1.00 per $10,000 of assessed value. They are now charged $1.00 per $9,500.00 of assessed value.

[TexasTowelie]

14. I agree on all your points.

Unfortunately in Texas they don't use the actual sales price as the assessed value here. That means that the tax burden is skewed towards residences and usually towards the lower and middle classes.

[awoke_in_2003]

19. Funny how when homes are reappraised...

it is always for more than they are worth (at least in Texas)

[sabbat hunter]

20. that is not good

I know in Nassau county NY many homeowners had their assessments reduced.

[awoke_in_2003]

22. We don't have state and local taxes...

so they make sure to screw us on property taxes.

[leftyohiolib]

3. MEANS EVEN LESS MONEY FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS

[JDPriestly]

4. Walmart can demand the tax breaks it wants because it has no

competition. And the municipalities or counties or states must grant the tax breaks because they know that if they don't some other similar government entity will grant it.

Walmart is a giant, not a monopoly perhaps by our current definitions, but definitely one of he too-big-to-cross if not one of the too-big-to-fail companies.

I understand that in one town it came in, bought a centrally located property, built on it, got special permits to build in a flood plain and then, once its tax rate deal ended, bought another property just on the outskirts of town, built there and saved on taxes that way.

Problem is the former business section of town turned into pretty much a row of bars and fast food places. The town is no longer the quaint, picturesque place it once was. And you can only buy shoes at Walmart. If they don't have your style in your size, you have to travel pretty far to get to a shopping center with other stores.

Walmart comes in and pretty much takes over.

We need better antitrust laws that prevent companies from dominating markets through either vertical or horizontal control. We need to foster competition. That would solve a lot of problems. For one thing (although minor and more of a side-effect) the pay that now goes to one CEO would go to several or in some sectors of the economy many CEOs. Power would not be so concentrated. We might have more organizations of businesses like the Chamber of Commerce with different approaches to business strategy.

And life would be a lot more interesting. So would shopping. Hey! You might be able to find your favorite shoe style at one of the stores in the area. There would be more creativity in all kinds of things that we buy. And more opportunities for creative people although any one of them might not make it quite so rich as a very select group do now.

[DhhD]

5. It means a shift in the tax burden from the Walton's to the taxpayers of the area.

The Walton's are in need of more money and the community and its services and obligations are not in need of their own money. (Sarcasm) What audacity!

[RC]

6. Grant the tax breaks only if the entire amount of the tax breaks goes towards the increased pay

of their employees in that store.
Make it the law and watch the requests for tax breaks disappear.

[magical thyme]

16. that store is closed!!!! They opened a supercenter in the village to its immediate south.

Maybe 10 miles south of it, both on Coastal Rte 1. Furthermore, iirc, it is waterfront property.

I know of houses on waterfront that pay $5,000/year in property taxes.

Its taxes seem awfully low for the location and size of that ugly monstrosity. And it's sitting empty. What are they going to do if Rockland tells them to go eff themselves? Retaliate by closing the store? Too late, Welfare Wally.

[DeSwiss]

9. K&R

- When unemployment checks don't get printed and food stamps get cut, Walmart loses money. Imagine that. So they're squeezing everything for every nickle now, so they can save their cushy jobs and fat expense accounts. Oh, and the bonuses. Let's not forget the bonuses.....

• Walmart Earnings Could Trigger a WMT Selloff.
• Buy, Sell or Hold: Why Wal-Mart Shares Are No Bargain.

"No business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country." - President Franklin D. Roosevelt

[L0oniX]

12. Double their taxes! Fuck them! Make room for mom and pop stores.

[pa28]

13. They'd pay it too.

So what if they leave.

[magical thyme]

17. They already left!!!! They have some nerve...

The built a new supercenter maybe 10 miles to the south in Thomaston.

[tecelote]

15. I was going to make the same point.

Don't you hate going to a new place just to see the same old Walmart, McDonalds and Mobile gas stations?

If Walmart fails to benefit the community, bring back the local mom and pop stores who can.

It would be a much better world without these companies that profit from your community but give nothing back.

Shop local so your dollars create profits that stay in your community.

As mentioned above, raise their taxes. They'll pay it. If they don't... good riddance.

[magical thyme]

18. Just read the article. The sold the building (YAY!) in December to Ocean State Job Lot!

That's what they're basing their request on. Rockland should still tell them to eff off.

[blkmusclmachine]

21. NO hand outs to WalMart.

NONE!