Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Half-Baked Holiday Fare, Part 1: Marty Griffin Putting The "Asses" Back In Assessments

Even before the wonderful store of Christmas cookies has been exhausted, 'tis the season for half-baked arguments in InsolvenCity.

KDKA Radio's Marty Griffin (left) is self-righteously railing about Allegheny County assessments this morning, spreading stories of scary tax increases that, he says, are soon to confront residents of downtown Pittsburgh and the Strip District. Griffin's claims -- that owners of Strip District homes will soon experience ten-fold increases in property taxes, for example -- turn out to be more slapstick that scary, however, if examined even briefly.

The reason tax bills in the Strip District are certain to increase in general is that luxury condominiums have supplanted abandoned warehouses. The (rare) owner of an unimproved Strip District home may encounter a slight tax increase because of the Strip's general rising tide (which makes that home more valuable), but Griffin is conflating granite-and-mahogany penthouses with siding-and-spackle tenements. A (subsidized) $1.2 million loft will -- and should -- generate a far greater tax obligation than did the broken-window rathole it replaced. The outrage is that the loft-dweller has been permitted to shirk civic obligations for years by Dan Onorato's Reverse Robin Hood Theory Of Low-Rent Politics Taxation.

Griffin's half-cocked rant also overlooks the crucial role of tax rates in calculation of tax obligations. Most assessments will increase, because values have increased, but an increased assessment does not necessarily signal an increased tax obligation. To the contrary, an increased assessment could generate a reduction in tax obligation, because Pennsylvania law will obligate taxing agencies to reduce tax rates in proportion to the increased assessments.

Reassessment does not involve the aggregate burden of real estate taxation nearly so much as the identification of which property owners are forced to shoulder that burden. Dan Onorato, Rich Fitzgerald, and Marty Griffin prefer that average (and below-average) property owners subsidize discounts for the affluent.

Griffin's statements could support an inference that he doesn't even know what he doesn't know, but we believe it more likely that Griffin is aware of the factors that render his simplistic analysis so misleading. Which, for him, is worse; profound ignorance would reflect far better on Griffin that any of the other conceivable explanations.

Infytune: Take The Power Back," Rage Against The Machine
Infytune: The Great Pretender," Freddie Mercury

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Infinonymous:

Or perhaps his concerns lie a tad closer to home -- specifically the one he owns in Mount Lebanon.

Just a thought...

Proud Hater said...

Here's a New Year's resolution for all Infy readers and writers: Don't listen to Griffin's show. The last thing he needs is more encouragement.

still waiting said...

I kept waiting for Marty to get to the real life details after spouting off on all the sensational stuff. But he never did. He should be ashamed of himself for lying and scaring people, imagine really thinking your property tax was going up 10 times next month for the same old house you been living in for many years. Was this just payback by Marty for Onerato giving a final interview? We' re almost rid of one liar -Onerato - maybe Griffin should be next. Or hey Infy maybe you should try and get a show.

Conservative Mountaineer said...

@still waiting.. Nah, we'll still have a liar as County Executive.. only difference is that Fitzgerald is a HOT-HEADED liar.

Anonymous said...

At CM: Look over there!

deegazette said...

Cheese Louise Infy!! You just gave Marty three hours worth of talk for the next show and elevated his importance in his own mind by including him in a post. Now I guess I will have to listen just to hear how many times he uses your tag in his show.

Anonymous said...

Don't stoop to Griffin's level Infy. Even if I don't agree with Infy all of the time he knows what he's talking about. Griffin is just hot air.

An Infy show would be a great idea.

Conservative Mountaineer said...

@Anon.. OK, I'll keep this on topic. Marty Griffin is a blow-hard. I can't stand him and will not listen. I miss Mike Pintek in the morning. Now, my radio stays off until 12:06.. then, Rush Limbaugh!

deegazette said...

When screaming at Rush got to affecting my health and caused me to drink more (okay, maybe a bigger connection there than I first thought) I started listening to Marty and thought there were plenty of people who could do a better job, but this is a one horse town (that I love and wont't leave!) so what is a girl to do?

Infinonymous said...

We recommend Rush and Marty, but solely in the event a physician prescribes brain rot.

Marty can be explained by InsolvenCity's solidfying status as a third-tier market. In other words, country and doo wop concerts, monster truck rallies and truck pulls, 'rasslin, low-budget revival meetings, and Marty Griffin.

Rush? That's like trying to explain the Trump-Palin-Bachmann-Perry-Cain-Gingrich procession.