LETTERS

Running on a platform to cut taxes

Posted 8/4/16

To the Editor:

On March 22, 1765 the British parliament passed “The Stamp Act,” a tax on newspapers, mortgages, contracts and many more paper items. Every American colonist felt the sting that …

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LETTERS

Running on a platform to cut taxes

Posted

To the Editor:

On March 22, 1765 the British parliament passed “The Stamp Act,” a tax on newspapers, mortgages, contracts and many more paper items. Every American colonist felt the sting that was required on so many items that had never been taxed before. A colorful stamp indicated payment of the tax.

Protesters called “Sons of Liberty” held protests and boycotts throughout the colonies, often meeting “under a liberty tree.” The movement grew so fast and so many in number that a year later, on March 18, 1766, Parliament wisely decided to repeal it.

In Warwick, we have the unfair car tax, the unfair personal property tax, and real estate taxes that are increased and decreased at the political whim of the mayor. Case in point: I own a piece of land in Potowomut that has kept the same exact value for over 10 years. Now that I am running against the mayor my assessed value this year has tripled. That means my taxes have also tripled. Tripled! At the same time my four-unit house at 1115 Greenwich Ave. is now being taxed as a five-unit for some mysterious reason. I appealed to the tax assessor but was denied. I am sure that was the work of Mayor Avedisian.

This isn’t bad enough, but 200 Atlantic Ave., a home owned by Scott Avedisian, had his tax assessments and taxes actually go down, as did his relatives in the neighborhood. Under my administration, tax assessed value will be entirely determined by market value, not “political value.” The car tax, presently calculated much higher than neighboring East Greenwich, will become consistent with that town and other surrounding communities. Further, I propose that seniors and veterans should pay half. There are seniors that are paying more for their car tax than they could sell their car for.

Finally, the personal property tax is so unfair that many taxpayers have already protested it to the point that they have refused to pay anything, making a bad situation worse.

Folks, it’s time for the Warwick Tax Revolt. My name is Richard Corrente. I am the endorsed Democrat for mayor and if I lived in the 1700s you can bet I would be a proud “Son of Liberty” I believe in fair taxes, but when Avedisian increased taxes every year for 16 years in a row, it’s time to say “enough is enough.”

It’s time for a change. It’s time for a new mayor. It’s time to be a son or daughter of liberty, right here in Warwick. I am having a fundraiser at Lemongrass, 1138 Post Road, on August 8 from 5 to 8 p.m. You are cordially invited. Thank you in advance for your support.

Richard Corrente

Endorsed Democrat

for Mayor

Comments

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  • KaptainMorgan

    Wow, delusions of grandeur combined with extreme extreme paranoia.

    Kudos to Rob for distancing himself from candidate fruit-loop, but credit where credit is due, Rob is still a D-Bag..Don't get me wrong, the captain is intelligent, and actually I don't disagree "most" of the time, but you don't need to be an a-hole to make your point.

    Friday, August 5, 2016 Report this

  • CrickeeRaven

    Ah, the last desperate gasps of a losing campaign -- calling for "revolt" and claiming inspiration from the Sons of Liberty because... well, because he doesn't like Scott Avedisian.

    Listen, Dick Corrente: Your platform was already a disaster before your dark conspiracy theories about the mayor 'and his relatives' getting a property tax break -- and you fail to mention that the address you list as home [177 Grand View Drive] had an assessment that stayed level for three years prior to this year's increase [maybe due to the fact that it's a two-family and Red Stick Acquisitions of LOUISIANA owns it, making it not an owner-occupied property], and that the drop in the mayor's assessment amounted to a whopping $1,700.

    Oh, and as for your assessment , the amount this year is $357,200 while last year it was $287,500 -- that is FAR less than triple, Dick.

    [You're not the only one who can look at the city's tax assessment database for information, Dick.]

    So, Dick, here's what we learned today: You very likely pay NO TAXES on the property where you live since it's owned by an out-of-state corporation, yet you criticize the city's valuation of taxable property; you call for revolt, yet in the real days of the Revolution, you'd get no standing to vote because you don't own the property where you live; and you still have nothing but anger at the mayor informing your campaign approach, such as it is.

    Now, let's be clear, Dick: I'm not calling you a liar, although you clearly are. No, what you really are is a failure, and this is just the latest evidence. You sold your property at a $143,000 loss in 2012 after buying it in 2007 [funny, since you claim to run a successful real estate firm], and now you're attacking the mayor for getting a slight decrease in the assessment on his home that he's owned -- really owned, and really paid taxes on -- since 2003. Then again, maybe you are a real estate genius and 'sold' your home to dodge any responsibility for the taxes, water use fees, and sewer costs that real homeowners bear.

    Either way, you're not the stand-up-for-the-taxpayer guy you claim to be.

    The one good thing I can say about your campaign, Dick, is that there are only about 90 days left of it.

    Saturday, August 6, 2016 Report this

  • JohnStark

    Mr. Corrente, It's time to get down to some brass tacks.

    1. Warwick's current tax rate on residential property is $20.24 per $1000 of assessed value, and $30.36 on commercial property. In terms of "cutting taxes", to what extent would you reduce these rates, specifically? Looking for a dollar amount here.

    2. Warwick currently spends about $18,000 per student in public education. Would you support a plan by which high school-aged students were given a voucher valued at the current tuition of whatever public, private, or parochial school would accept the student? Under the plan, if a student chose to attend, say, LaSalle Academy ($14,500), the city would retain the $3500 difference. Anything more than the $18k would be on the parent. This would force local public schools to compete for top students (enhancing quality), force them to keep an eye on spending, save taxpayer money, and give parents a genuine choice in where their child attended school. Would you endorse such a plan, or continue with the status quo in the Education Blob?

    3. Employees in the private sector are paid commensurate to their value in their organization. Would you endorse merit pay for teachers, whereby evaluations and classroom effectiveness would play a part in teacher compensation?

    4. Which specific regulations in the city would you revise or eliminate to make the city more business friendly?

    Warwick citizens have a multitude of additional questions, but this is a start. And it's time to be specific.

    Sunday, August 7, 2016 Report this

  • CrickeeRaven

    Hey JohnStark:

    I'm afraid you're barking up the wrong tree if you expect specifics from Corrente. He's been running for more than 500 days [give him five seconds and he'll brag about it] and has yet to outline anything more specific than "If Scott Avedisian is for it, I'm against it."

    You won't get a dollar figure for tax rate cuts, for example, because he really can't quantify what he wants to reduce in the city budget. He's calling for a "full audit," which was a favorite talking point of the failed tea party Republican in 2014, but can't explain what that would actually prove, other than that he wants to waste money on something that is produced on a yearly basis already.

    And as far as Warwick schools are concerned, vouchers will never pass. Any such proposal would have to go through the General Assembly -- and because it represents, in effect, a loss in funding for local school districts, it will never happen. So, even if Corrente had an answer for you, it's kind of a pointless debate.

    Also, the school department isn't paying "$18,000 per student" in actually delivering education -- the consolidation showed that it was spending almost $6 million more than it had to [or about $6,000 per student] in order to keep half-empty high schools open. Now it has that money to pay down its own debts, which reduces that per-student cost to something closer to reality.

    Not to mention, the burden on the city has been small in terms of paying for schools because they've essentially been level-funded for about a decade.

    I do get the feeling, though, that Corrente might like some of your approach since it reads like the tea party's greatest hits -- school vouchers, "merit pay" for teachers, elimination of regulations -- and Corrente has proven himself to be perfectly aligned with that sort of thinking.

    Sunday, August 7, 2016 Report this

  • JohnStark

    Crickee, Just looking for something resembling specifics. The guy posts here on everything from city council meetings to school plays, but responses seem to take a similar tune: 'Yes, it was a great school play. Therefore, let's talk about pensions.' Mr. Corrente, here's your chance to outline specifics.

    Monday, August 8, 2016 Report this

  • CrickeeRaven

    Oh, I understand you, JS. I'm just saying, don't get your hopes up.

    Monday, August 8, 2016 Report this