Kentucky New Era from Hopkinsville, Kentucky • 28

6D KENTUCKY NEW day July 17 1996 Group wants amendment to allow city taxing power By MARK CHELLGREN Associated Press Wrier RANKORT Ky (AP) Some local officials say they need more flexibility to raise taxes in cluding a constitutional amendment to allow a local sales tax and fewer guidelines on property taxes Legislators were immediately skeptical think either one of those ideas would said Senate Re publican loor Leader Dan Kelly of Springfield Senate Democratic loor Leader David Karem of Louisville said the city leaders will find that raising the issue of taxes in an election year for members of the General Assembly is not a good strategy 130 of the 138 will say not for any new Karem said The Kentucky League of Cities conducted its own study to back up the claim The study the increasing difficulty of local govern ment to finance critical public ser vices for citizens from existing tax revenue said a statement from a news conference Tuesday But the study did not include any survey of cities that take advantage of all the tax options now available And league officials said they did not know of any city governing bod ies that voted to impose a property tax increase that would be subject to very unpopular city councils who advocated that would probably not be re Honeycutt said Lexington Mayor Pam Miller who has had to weather the political fallout from an increase in the city payroll tax said a sales tax is much more popular could actually lower the pay roll tax if we were allowed to have this local option for sales Miller said Sylvia Lovely executive director of the league said there were no specific proposals for a city sales tax such as whether the same exemp tions would apply as the state tax or what rates should be allowed There are no restrictions on the rates on payroll or business taxes that a city may impose except in Louisville and the smallest cities Property tax rates can also be in creased by any city governing body But any increase that would gener ally raise 4 percent more revenue than the previous year may be sub ject to a voter referendum Karem said legislators are leery of taking the political heat to allow local governments more leeway to raise taxes The experience has been that local officials try to duck re sponsibility and blame legislators Karem said Even if the legislature approved an amendment to allow a local sales tax Karem said he could not imag ine any pitch that would make vot ers approve such a constitutional change House Appropriations and Rev enue Chairman Harry Moberly Richmond was said the guidelines on property tax increases were still very popular nearly 20 years after they were imposed not politi cally Moberly said Some local tax changes might be possible but only as part of overall tax reform in state and local govern ments Moberly said Here are some selected taxes and fees that cities may impose: Payroll tax (limited to 1V percent In Lou isville) Business license tax (limited to VA per cent In Louisville) Insurance premium tax Sixth class cities may only Impose flat payroll and business taxes Maximum 3 percent restaurant tax In fourth and fifth class cities Maximum 3 percent motel tax Property tax Service fees for water sewer utilities garbage collection Auto stickers Animal licenses Inspection fees ranchise fees for utility service a referendum Officials acknowledged that the issue can be one of politics rather than finances some cases it is a lack of political said Bill Thielen gen eral counsel for the league Glasgow Mayor Charles Honey cutt said property tax increases are BILLY GRAHAM SYNDICATED COLUMNIST DEAR DR GRAHAM: I know I ought to believe in Jesus and fol low him so I will go to heaven some day but I just bring myself to turn my life over to him I know what the prob lem is Do you have any idea why I feel this way? MD DEAR MD: I have found that the biggest problem most people have with Christ is that they sim ply do not want God to control their lives Instead they want to keep on running their own lives and they know that if they give themselves to Christ they can no longer go on living any way they want to Is this your problem? I know Perhaps instead some particular sin is keeping you from Christ But whatever the reason I challenge you to face it and then not let it remain a barrier be tween you and God any longer He has done everything pos sible to bridge the gap between you and him by sending Christ to shed his blood for your sins Only Christ can give you eternal life and only he can give you true life now You see some people have the mistaken idea that if Christ comes into their lives then life will become dull and boring But he gives us a new reason for living and when we follow him life becomes a constant adven ture Jesus said thief (Satan) comes only to steal and kill and destroy I have come that they may have life and have it to the (John 10:10) I invite you to commit your life without reserve to Jesus Christ His way is the only true path in life be misled but open your heart to him today 1996 Tribune Media Services Inc Time Warner says Turner deal has OK By ARRELL KRAMER AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) Time Warner said today the ederal Trade Commission staff has agreed to approve its $75 billion purchase of Turner Broadcasting System that would create the largest media and entertainment company The TC staff had been scruti nizing the deal over the possibility it would hurt competition and had raised the possibility of blocking the combination Approval by the agen cy represents the last major hurdle to tne deal completion The five commissioners who met with Turner chairman Ted Turner and Time chief on Tuesday must still vote on the recommendation but their ap proval is expected The agreement is to be presented to the commissioners for a vote on riday said TC spokeswoman Vic toria Streitfeld in Washington She provided no other details hollowing the announcement Time Warner shares rose $1372 to $3462! in late morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange Turner Class shares advanced $125 to $2525 on the American Stock Exchange came sooner than I think peo ple were anticipating given the com plexity of the deal and the parties said Jill Krutick an enter tainment analyst at Smith Barney a brokerage Time Warner said the agreement in principle included the approval of Tele Communications Inc which owns 21 percent of Turner the owner of CNN The merger of Time Warner and Turner has received enormous at tention both for its size and the personalities involved They include outspoken Ted Turner and John Malone chief executive of TCI the largest cable company ownership stake in Turner which would become about a 9 per cent interest in Time Warner after the deal is complete had become a big competitive issue Time Warner provided no details of the agreement in its three paragraph statement CNN how ever reported that Malone and activities would be restrained under the TC agreement A Time Warner spokesman de clined to comment beyond the statement A Turner spokesman said the company was confident the deal would be approved About a month ago the deal cleared its other major hurdle a lawsuit by West Inc The phone company based in Engle wood Colo has its own cable TV and programming venture with Time Warner and contended that Time Warner had no right to merge with a competitor That argument was rejected June 6 by the Dela ware Chanceiy Court The two had been partners since late 1993 when the phone company paid $25 billion for a 25 percent stake in Time Warner Enter tainment which owns the Warner Bros studios HBO and cable televi sion systems Concern recently over Time acquisition of Turner fo cused mainly on competition over cable programming Turner based in Atlanta owns some of the best known cable net works including TNT and Headline News as well as CNN TCI also based in Englewood owns stakes in a number of cable channels chiefly through its Liberty Media subsid iary New York based Time Warner wields a lot of control over pro gramming that area with Home Box Office and Warner Bros film and TV studios Time Warner is the second biggest cable system opera tor with about 115 million subscrib ers after 14 million The combination would push the combined Time Warner past Walt Disney Co as the largest media and entertainment conglomerate Take your heart locourt Exercise wives you right American Heart Auoclatlon WERE IGHTING OR KXJRUE 0 TODAVJ995 YOUR name YOUR ADDRESS CITY STATE ZIP NATIONAL CHECK ADVANCE NEED CASH TODAY We will cash your personal check for up to $20000 NOW! and hold it until your next payday! 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