Is

the disagreement between Fayette County and local

cities over tax equity heating up into a

full-blown rift?

That

depends upon who is telling the story, but it's

clear the controversy is heating up.

"I'm

probably the most impatient person that's dealing

with this," admitted Tyrone Town Councilman

Ronnie Cannon. "I want it resolved

now."

But

Peachtree City Mayor Bob Lenox also has stepped

up the rhetoric.

"We

decided to have a study done by an independent

consultant and abide by his results. Now that we

have the results, the county wants to ignore

them, and I don't think that's right," Lenox

told The Citizen following a recent City Council

meeting.

Lenox

said he plans to meet with the two other cities

this week to develop a plan for approaching the

county about the issue.

"If

we agree on some things, we'll forward it to the

county. And I expect the county to respond

promptly," he said.

But

Fayetteville officials seemed comfortable with

the progress that's being made on the issue.

"We certainly

think there's an issue there," said City

Manager Joe Morton. "That's evident by the

consultant's work." But Morton said the city

is open to discussion on the accuracy of the

consultant's figures.

"We're

progressing," said Mayor Kenneth Steele.

"I think, from Fayetteville's standpoint, we

can reach a mutually agreeable solution in the

not-too-distant future."

County

and city governments pooled resources and hired

the consultant to study the tax structure and

services of the cities and county after Tyrone's

Cannon voiced the opinion that the town's

residents were being shortchanged in county-wide

services, and officials in Peachtree City and

Fayetteville later joined in the refrain.

In

times past, the city officials' opinions might

never have stirred any action at all, but

counties and cities are now under state mandate

- with a Dec. 31 deadline - to work out

cooperative agreements on numerous aspects of

government services in order to improve

efficiency and eliminate double taxation.

After

studying the services and tax structures of all

the governments involved, consultant Stephen

Burnett said city residents are indeed overtaxed,

mainly for services from the Sheriff's, Public

Works and Recreation departments.

The

alleged inequity amounts to about eight tenths of

a mill in property taxes, or about $57 in taxes

on a $200,000 home.

Burnett

offered several suggested ways the county and

cities might address the inequities, including

placing county facilities more evenly around the

county for easier access by city residents,

setting up special tax districts so that only

residents who use a given service will be taxed

for it, and other cooperative agreements.

County

and city officials have met to discuss those

options several times, but in the most recent

meeting, County Commission Chairman Harold Bost

brought out new data and asked the officials to

consider the new information as they negotiate.

Burnett's

study did not include several categories of fees

collected by the county and turned over to the

cities even though the county provides all the

services involved, Bost said.

He

submitted figures that he said show that city

residents receive more than their fair share of

services for franchise taxes, beverage taxes, the

insurance premium tax, permit and inspection

fees, business licenses, zoning fees, emergency

medical services and the county property transfer

tax.

"These

are clean, clear-cut credits that should go to

the county residents" in deciding tax

equity, Bost said.

"If

he wanted those things included in the

discussion, he could have brought them up when

the consultant started his study," said

Cannon. "There was an opportunity, and he

could have brought them up."

During

his three years as a Tyrone councilman, Cannon

said, "we've had one road resurfaced, and

then we had to hire a contractor to finish the

job. We've got some frustrations," he said.

Bost

said the cities and county agreed to limit

Burnett's study because they couldn't afford a

more exhaustive study, but added he believes all

factors should be included.

"All

I'm looking for is equity," Bost said,

"but I want it equitable for 100 percent of

the people. I'm responsible to 100 percent of the

county residents, and what I'm trying to do is be

sure as we move forward that we look at

everything and not just part of it in a

vacuum."

During

the last group meeting, Bost asked Peachtree City

Mayor Lenox to update figures he presented two

years ago suggesting that his city's residents

were being shortchanged. Lenox's figures could

provide additional information for the

negotiations, Bost said.

Cannon

said the information requests amount to nothing

more than stalling tactics. "We could keep

going and we're right back to where we were

before we had the study done. We're in the same

place we were two years ago," said Cannon.

"We're

not trying to drag our feet," insisted Bost.

"I certainly don't have all the answers and

I'm not going to accept somebody else's answer

until I feel comfortable with it."

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