BREAKING: Forsyth BOE Privately Discussed Changing Senior Property Tax Exemption
Emails obtained by a source via an open records request show Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Jeff Bearden and (according to Bearden) four members of the Forsyth County Board of Education supported adding a resolution to their December 2022 meeting agenda in favor of raising the age of eligibility for the Forsyth School senior property tax exemption from 65 to 70.
The documents reveal the Board met with the Forsyth Legislative Delegation to discuss legislative priorities. The topics included a floating homestead exemption on school taxes, which would cap the amount property taxes could increase year over year.
In an email to the Board, Bearden referenced a meeting with the Citizen Finance Committee and stated the Committee “ALL agreed that if there is a cap it MUST be accompanied by a change in the senior exemption.” and stated he was “going to be asking you to vote on the attached resolution on Tuesday evening”. Bearden then attached a resolution to his email calling for an increase in the age of eligibility for the senior exemption from 65 to 70 years of age along with a five percent cap on annual assessment increases.
Board Chair Wes McCall, whose name Bearden apparently placed at the bottom of the resolution, responded and asked Bearden if “we have at least two board members that agree on having this on next week’s agenda?” Bearden responded “Hi Wes, you are the only that has expressed any concern about having it on the agenda.” McCall responded “I don’t agree to add it to the agenda until two board members ask for it.”
If Bearden is correct, Board members Darla Light, Tom Cleveland, Lindsey Adams, and then member Kristin Morrissey all supported adding the resolution to the agenda.
It appears Bearden’s plans to add this to the agenda were stymied by the meeting with the Forsyth Legislative Delegation as an email sent after the meeting stated “After our meeting this morning…..there will not be a resolution….The stages has been set (sic) for continued dialogue.”
Our source tells us he obtained more details from those present at the meeting after obtaining the documents. “I’m told Bearden passed out the resolution and was immediately met with resistance from Chair McCall, new BOE Member Mike Valdes, Senator Greg Dolezal, and Representative Carter Barrett. They stated they strongly opposed changing the senior exemption and did not believe the floating homestead should be tied to a change to the senior exemption. Later that day, Bearden sent out the email retreating from his position and read a statement at the next board meeting that did not mention changing the senior exemption or the resolution he had presented to the board.
Our source also believes more documents related to this matter may exist and may not have been turned over during the open records request. “It appears McCall provided his replies to Bearden, but Bearden has not provided his initial email to McCall and others. The were no documents produced related to the creation of the resolution which I think is likely supspect. I’m told the school system does not have any email archive system, so all responses to open records requests are essentially on the honor system.”
