Negatives

Government funding by special taxing district, however, has several significant drawbacks:

Lack of flexibility in allocation of resources.

Three of the four special districts up for renewal carried fund balances of from 42 to 60 percent of their annual operating revenues into 1998. Only Fire District #4, as a result of a declining property tax base, carries a relatively small fund balance from year to year. Because the use of special tax district revenues is limited to the district, none of the large West Jefferson Playground fund balance, for example, can be used to supplement declining revenues in the west bank’s Fire District #4.

As shown on page 2, these districts had a total 1997 year-end fund balance of $42 million or 31 percent of total revenues for the districts. Large fund balances suggest that some districts may not require the same level of support from year to year that is derived from these dedicated funding sources.

Fragmentation of parish services.

The Parish’s 31 special taxing districts include eight fire districts, four recreation districts, three garbage districts, three drainage districts, two road lighting districts, and two ambulance districts.

Taxing inequities

The amount of revenue generated per mill varies greatly from area to area in Jefferson Parish, and, as a result, individual taxpayers in different neighborhoods in the parish pay different amounts for the same service. For example, one mill levied on the unincorporated east bank of the parish generates about $767,000 but only $377,000 on the unincorporated west bank of the parish.

Other inequities

Special taxing districts are inherently un-democratic. Residents of relatively high-income areas can vote themselves services that lower income areas without a sufficient tax base cannot afford.