PERSPECTIVE: Leave non-profit exemptions in place

These are tough times, and everybody is having to sacrifice in some way.

For Prince William County, this means finding ways to save money.

For area non-profits, this might mean doing without property tax exemptions. But they should not have to.

Tuesday, county staff presented a proposal to enact a moratorium on real estate and personal property tax exemptions for incoming charitable organizations.

Organizations like the Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots Foundation, which has a new 21,000-square foot facility in Triangle, and The Arc of Prince William County /Insight Inc., could be affected.

The money these kinds of organizations would give up would be a relative pittance for the county.

County coffers would increase by about $26,000 for the coming year if Toys for Tots lost its property tax exemption, and the Insight building would add about $4,500 to that.

That kind of money is not going to help the county make up its projected $82 million budget shortfall.

But it certainly would help out these charitable organizations, which, given the state of the economy, are probably experiencing a slowdown in public goodwill, at least as expressed in dollars.

County Finance Director Chris Martino pointed out that $26,000 could save a county worker his or her job.

And that would be a great thing, but don’t take from charities to make it so.

Comb through the rotund county budget and make up the funds another way.

Also, if the county revokes these exemptions for charities, it is putting an unfair burden on such organizations.

The organizations have been acting on the assumption that they can expect to have a certain amount of money

To suddenly remove their tax exemptions would make budgeting difficult and would not be fair.

Besides, charities provide needed services.

If they have less resources, the lack will have to be made up somewhere, and that responsibility will probably fall on the county.

So, in the end, the county might not save any money after all.

Charities serve the most hard up, those who suffer the most.

In difficult financial times, the burden on the people who cling to the bottom financial rung of our societal ladder is increased.

Now is not the time to essentially cut funds to the organizations, which help these people.

There will be a public hearing on this topic, probably in January or February.

We look forward to hearing what county residents say.

We hope they too see the necessity of continuing these exemptions to charitable organizations.
— The News and Messenger
(Prince William County)