Can someone explain something

[chipperi]

My MIL was looking at property in Kingsport and currently lives in Sullivan County near us. Why if you live in the county you pay only county tax but if you live in the city you pay both city and county tax?? When I lived in MD if you lived in Baltimore city you paid city tax, if you live in Baltimore county you only pay county tax. Also what the hell is with annexation??? I had never heard of it before moving here.

[Oh Shoot]

My MIL was looking at property in Kingsport and currently lives in Sullivan County near us. Why if you live in the county you pay only county tax but if you live in the city you pay both city and county tax?? When I lived in MD if you lived in Baltimore city you paid city tax, if you live in Baltimore county you only pay county tax. Also what the hell is with annexation??? I had never heard of it before moving here.

It's pretty simple: if you live in a city, you are also living in the county that encompasses that city. Here, of course, property owners pay both city and county property taxes, businesses do same, plus both city and county business license, etc.

I'm surprised that ANYwhere in US doesn't tax residents/businesses for both. Double dipping is the norm. I guess there is one alternate taxation scheme, the "metro" government, where city/county is combined, with one tax bill, but of course, the total is essentially same as if city/county were "separate".

You Nashville folks, you are "metro", yes? Maybe can explain your tax structure.

Annexation is simply when a municipality takes an outlying area contiguous to it a part of it's own. Charges city taxes, while providing city services. Different legal ways to get it done, the unincorporated area can sometimes successfully prevent it, but it happens all over US. How else do you think cities grow?

- OS

Edited November 3, 2008 by OhShoot
add'l info, syntax

[323ssplt]

Baltimore and that whole area are considerably older than cities and towns "down here" and have therefore already done all the annexing that they can or want to do. At least that's my opinion. That's probably why you never heard the term or discussion thereof.