Ascension Parish extends waiver of permit fees for flooded homeowners, gives up on tax fight – The Advocate

DONALDSONVILLE Ascension Parish government has extended its waiver of residential permit fees another six months for homeowners still rebuilding from the August 2016 flood.

But parish officials warned that residents must still apply and receive parish permits for their work, though the permits will remain free through Nov. 13.

Ken Dawson, chief administrative officer for parish government, said Thursday the parish is extending the waiver because some people are still working on rebuilding their homes nearly a year after the flood.

"Because it's such a long process, and as you know, going through what you need with insurance and what you need with FEMA and that kind of thing, some people were still at a point where they were not done," Dawson said in a brief interview.

An estimated 6,800 homes and businesses flooded in the parish and its municipalities in the August disaster.

Dawson spoke minutes after the Parish Council agreed to the 180-day extension to waive fees on residential occupancy permits, plan review, residential construction permits, and electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits.

The resolution brought forward by Dawson prompted little debate from the six of 11 council members present at Thursday's meeting.

But Parish Attorney O'Neil Parenton Jr. reiterated the warning that homeowners should still pull permits.

"Because if someone has a problem with a contractor and they don't have a permit and we go out there, we have no way to trace these people down," Parenton said.

He said he was asked about a case earlier Thursday in which the contractor performed substandard work but no one ever pulled permits for the job.

In other council action, the council agreed, 6-0, to drop its appeal of a court ruling upholding the Legislative Auditor's decision not to certify the 2016 property tax rates.

The effect of the Legislative Auditor's decision was that the Parish Council could not roll forward millage rates in the 2016 reassessment year. Property owners paid their taxes based on millage rates that were adjusted lower due to rising values from reassessment.

As a result, property owners got a small tax break that largely blunted the effect of the reassessment year.

The parish sued the Legislative Auditor, but a state district court judge in East Baton Rouge Parish upheld the state auditor's finding.

"We appealed that decision, but now looking into that further, if we actually won the appeal, it would cause us to go back to the constituents, to the residents of the parish, and re-bill them for the 2016 bill," Parish Council Chairman Bill Dawson said.

These extra bills would have been relatively small amounts for many homeowners. The added tax bill for a $200,000 home with homestead exemption, for instance, would have been between $12.50 to $28.75 depending on the area.

In reassessment years, local governments must reset millage rates to a new adjusted property tax rate that accounts for changing values on the tax rolls.

When values are on the rise, adjusted rates are lowered but are set so they generate the same revenue as the year before.

Once local governments adopt the adjusted rates, often known as "rolling back," they can then vote to "roll forward" property taxes to the prior year's maximum rate, netting a windfall of additional revenue.

The Legislative Auditor's Office refused to accept the roll forward last year because of problems it found with public notice requirements.

Follow David J. Mitchell on Twitter, @NewsieDave.

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Ascension Parish extends waiver of permit fees for flooded homeowners, gives up on tax fight - The Advocate