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Growth Impact Action Committee
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Two major points: 1. Impact fees
are not new taxes; they are not fees on existing homeowners. They simply
transfer costs that would otherwise be borne by existing homeowners to those who
require new or expanded public facilities -- such as new home buyers. Development impact fees will ultimately be passed on to the benefited newcomers requiring new facilities, thereby transferring some of the tax burden of population growth from locals. We recognize that this is only one of many issues our elected officials will have to deal with, but a potential representative's position on impact fees tells us much of his or her overall perspective. One objection raised to impact fees is that they could stop a local just starting out from buying his first home. In some cases this may be a red herring, in others it may be a sincere concern. But state law allows counties to exempt affordable housing from impact fees -- ("affordable to families whose incomes do not exceed eighty percent of the median income for the service area"). Also in accordance with the State Tax Relief Act, a local owning a home valued at less than $100,000 paid less than 17% of the millage attributed to school operating costs this year. Finally, government programs and lenders offer programs to make it easier for people to buy their first home. And a $1,000 impact fee amounts to $6.66 a month with a 7% 30 year loan. But, if there is still concern, given the political will, surely some additional means can be found to subsidize local resident first time homebuyers to the extent of the required impact fees. Some feel that impact fees are an unfair way to enhance the coffers of local government. But state law requires that the financial impact be proven and that if they are not used to offset the additional costs caused, they must be returned. Furthermore, state law precludes impact fees being charged for any item costing less than $100,000, such as police cars or ambulances and it precludes impact fees being charged for new school construction, period. The bottom line is that impact fees only partially pay for the added costs of population growth. They merely require some of the cost for increased facilities otherwise unrequired to be borne by those who benefit.* * As to the economic costs to local residents, as a whole, because of population growth, refer to the book Better not Bigger by Eben Fodor. This book cites many statistics and studies on this issue. As to the costs to Horry County government, reflected in your tax increases, refer to the various reports on impact fees and revenue issues by impact fee consultants Tischler & Associates, Inc. These last were prepared at a cost to Horry County of $100,000 in the year 2000. To view a report Tischler & Associates, Inc. (Horry County Council's paid expert consultant) gave to the Horry County Impact Fee task force on impact fees, South Carolina law on impact fees, and Horry County's situation, click 2nd. Impact Fee Task Force Mtg - (Tischler Presentation) 1/16. Click here for quotes from selected portions of the "South Carolina Development Impact Fee Act." If you wish or prefer to view the entire impact fee act click here and scroll down to section 6-1-910. Note: There have been instances in which an angelfire (our Web host) ad has totally covered off-site links such as this; simply clicking the "x" in the upper right hand corner of the page has removed the ad so you can see the site itself.. Angelfire provides free web hosting on the condition that their ads are allowed on the site, but I will complain about this. For further information on an effort to allow imposing impact fees on new school construction, click Impact Fees for Schools. Click here to return to the top of this page . |
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