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Don't force SLOC to pay taxes, councilman says
By Amy Joi Bryson
Deseret News staff writer
He may have lost the fight, but he is not willing to give up the war.
Salt Lake County Councilman Winston Wilkinson said Tuesday the Winter Olympics, put on by SLOC, qualifies as a charitable effort and therefore SLOC should not have to pay $230,000 in taxes on its personal property from 2001.
Wilkinson wants his fellow council members to reconsider fighting a recent decision by the State Tax Commission that said the Salt Lake Organizing Committee should be exempt from paying taxes on personal property.
But last month, Wilkinson was on the losing side of a 6-2 vote by his colleagues on the council. Acting as the Board of Equalization, members said they disagreed with the tax commission's Feb. 1 decision and were prepared to take the issue to court.
The foray started months ago when the county voted SLOC should have to pay taxes on the value of its property used to furnish some downtown apartments and office buildings.
SLOC appealed to the commission, which ruled it should be tax-exempt. Now it is the county's turn to ask for a second hearing before the commission. If the ruling is upheld, the county can take its case to 3rd District Court.
Wilkinson, who sits on SLOC's board and has steadfastly argued on SLOC's side, passed out a letter Tuesday to his eight colleagues asking them to reconsider fighting the commission's decision.
"I think the commission's ruling was pretty clear, and I think SLOC did a pretty good job when they made their presentation. I think some of the (board members) got caught up in the feeling that SLOC was being too pushy."
Wilkinson said the board members, rather than being caught up in the emotion of SLOC's appeal, should examine the evidence presented that day.
"I believe the committee made a factually sound presentation," he said. "The property was used for public purposes not for any personal benefit."
Although Wilkinson's request is not scheduled to be discussed until next Tuesday, at least one board member said it would do nothing to change his mind.
"If anything, the letter made me more adamant that we have made the right decision," board member Joe Hatch said.
"I have gone over the commission's opinion, I have heard the briefings from the attorneys and I am going to want to hear from Wilkinson that they presented a sufficient case," he said. "It should be an insult to every taxpayer in the county if we don't hold SLOC to the same standards we hold everybody else to."
Wilkinson, who is seeking the GOP nomination for the 2nd Congressional District, said his position on the SLOC Board of Trustees has nothing to do with his request.
"Frankly, I just don't think we can win."
E-MAIL: amyjoi@desnews.com
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March 22, 2002
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