I Can't Pay My Taxes: Being on the D.C. Council comes with a few perks—the chance to weigh in on important matters of public policy, the ability to use donations from powerful business interests to buy things to make your constituents like you, free Lady Gaga tickets. And oh, yes, also an average salary of $130,538 a year for a part-time job. So it's a bit of a mystery why Ward 8's Marion Barry has so much trouble filing federal income taxes properly. But he does, and the IRS has now filed a lien on the house he owns on Orange Street SE, seeking $3,267.19 in unpaid taxes from 2010. Which, of course, still doesn't even make him the councilmember with the biggest IRS worries. -2

Ho Ho Ho: 'Tis the season to be jolly, as the saying goes—or, perhaps, to attack your neighbor's Christmas light display with baseball bats, doing $7,000 in damage. Which is what happened in Fairfax Station over the weekend. Unfortunately for the grinchy teenagers suspected of doing the deed, the homeowners whose lights they smashed (and ran over with their Ford Taurus) caught the whole thing on a security camera. Someone will find out who's been naughty, in other words. -1

Boom: Metal detectors have popped up all over the city in the years since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and sometimes it's tempting to wonder whether they serve any purpose. Especially after the news that undercover police officers have managed to smuggle fake bombs into the Wilson Building and other government offices more than a dozen times recently. Only the security at Metropolitan Police Department headquarters was able to catch every attempt to bring a simulated explosive into the building. -2

Snow Problem At All: The District will not be caught unawares the next time a snowstorm hits. So vows Mayor Vince Gray, who lined up snow removal equipment on Pennsylvania Avenue NW yesterday to demonstrate all the tools at the city's disposal to keep roads clear in icy weather. The new plan for dealing with winter actually mostly involves keeping people where they are, rather than sending them all out onto the street at the same slippery time. Another key piece of the official D.C. strategy: "Build snow people." Meanwhile, new forecasts say there probably won't be much snow to worry about this winter, anyway. +1

Yesterday's Needle rating: 37 Today's score: -4 Today's Needle rating: 33

In a warning to those who owe the District, authorities seized a Chevy Chase man’s rights to his house because he allegedly owes more than $17 million in back city taxes.

The action, completed Friday, comes as city officials say Barry A. Morewitz failed to pay his share in income taxes from 2004 through 2009.

Morewitz owes more than $8 million in back taxes and $8.9 million in interest and penalties, according to liens issued against him. The Office of Tax Revenue has billed Morewitz as the city’s “top delinquent taxpayer,” noting that no other resident owes even $1 million in back taxes.

It should be noted that the house authorities seized—that is, they get money if the guy decides to sell—is worth less than $800,000.

Let's All Go To The Lobby And Pay Some Taxes: Seeing movies in the theaters these days is an expensive proposition. There's the tickets themselves, which cost more than $10. There's the Metro fare to the theater. There's the $7 monthly payment to Netflix that meant you could have just held out a few months and seen the damn thing on your couch. And now, if a new proposal by Mayor Vince Gray becomes law, there's the concession tax. The additional 5 percent sales tax on popcorn and sodas would go to a dedicated fund that would either help lure a movie theater east of the Anacostia River or help lure movie productions to the District. Which means you could be paying for the next Transformers sequel. -2

Next on Fox, Schools Begging For Cash: In today's installment of "The Decline and Fall of the American Empire," we look at a sad tale of how major entertainment corporations have become the funder of last resort for cash-strapped schools. Not less than five D.C.-area elementary, middle, and high schools have entered a contest where Glee viewers can vote, in classic reality TV fashion, on which one of them should get a share of a $1 million prize. The prize would pay to keep the music education program at the school from being closed—something which, apparently, local governments can't manage on their own. -3

Ethics R Us: Various law enforcement agencies have spent an impressive amount of time lately looking into how members of the D.C. Council conduct their business. Which isn't exactly good news with an election year coming up. So the council today spent hours and hours talking about how to comport itself in a manner more befitting an august legislative body. We wonder how long it will take for the council to do like the feds do with issues they want to bury, and appoint a blue-ribbon panel to look into ethics reform. -1

Surrender, National Weather Service: The year has already brought heat waves, an earthquake, and a tropical storm to Washington. So chances are no one was particularly surprised to see a tornado warning issued for the area today. Except in this case, the impending weather doom was a hoax: the National Weather Service accidentally sent test warnings out as if they were real. You may now go back to worrying about whether it'll snow on Saturday. -1

Yesterday's Needle rating: 61 Today's score: -7 Today's Needle rating: 54

Everything In Its Right Place: In retrospect, the idea that one of the biggest rock bands in the world would want to do a literature drop at a random street corner in Brightwood Park should have seemed off to begin with. But that didn't stop people from getting excited about the prospect that Radiohead's The Universal Sigh would be distributed, as the band's website promised, near 8th and Jefferson streets NW—a corner where the only landmark is a church and some rowhomes. Turns out the band actually meant 8th and Jefferson SW, near the Hirshhorn Gallery. Moral of the story, which American military planners circa 1812 might have done well to remember: Brits can't handle quadrants. -1

Next Stops, Tysons: For the most part, it's fairly easy to figure out where a Metro station is based on its name (though we're still not sure how Howard University got put in the Shaw station name instead of the U Street one). The Silver Line may be destined to break that pattern. Fairfax County officials have proposed starting the name of four of the nine stations in their jurisdiction with "Tysons," while two would be called "Reston" and two "Herndon." Of course, since the nation's willingness to put any money in actual infrastructure dwindles each day, we're not sure the Silver Line will ever actually open—so maybe this won't really be a problem. -2

Raise Taxes, Please: The survey Mayor Vince Gray's administration announced about the budget, a few weeks before the budget was due to be released, clearly didn't seem to be a serious attempt at gauging public interest; if it were, it might have come out a little sooner. But the results are interesting, nonetheless—respondents overwhelmingly want the government to consider raising taxes. Still not too late to add a new marginal interest rate on the top before Friday, Mr. Mayor! +1

Buy Me Some Prozac and Cracker Jack: And now, time for yet another installment of meaningless national rankings featuring the District! Today's episode: "Most Depressed Baseball Cities." A study compiled by some website you've never heard of ranks D.C. at the top—which is to say, the most depressed baseball city in the country. (Which, given there's only one Major League Baseball team outside the U.S., means in the world.) A complicated and, no doubt, highly scientific methodology ranked the cities based on psychiatrists and divorce lawyers per capita, drinking rates, suicide rates, and number of days per baseball team spent out of contention for the pennant. So the result was really no surprise; any ranking that measures a) lawyers and b) baseball losses is likely to put D.C. at the top. -1

Yesterday's Needle rating: 66 Today's score: -3 Today's Needle rating: 63

Gerrymandering for the People: Census figures out yesterday meant two things—one, the decennial shock that the city's demographics changed, and two, we now know what wards need to grow or shrink as the city redistricts its political boundaries. (Alas, we also know that despite gaining nearly 30,000 residents, we will continue to have a grand total of 0 voting members of the House of Representatives.) But there are some advantages to living in modern times. This is the first Census since Google Maps debuted, which means you don't have to wait for the Wilson Building wonks to draw ward boundaries anymore, because Greater Greater Washington has hatched a tool to crowdsource redistricting. Now you know what you'll be doing all weekend! +2

Read My Lips—New Taxes!: The District's budget deficit for this year is projected to be $322 million, a sum city officials seem to think would be best made up by cutting services to residents (and of course, fighting the never-as-plentiful-as-predicted "waste, fraud, and abuse"). Of course, for a city where the top 1 percent of wage-earners have an average income of $2.7 million and the top 4 percent earn an average of $443,700, there's probably room for higher brackets at the top of the tax structure. Which a group of protesters tried to tell Mayor Vince Gray today at the Wilson Building. Gray sent an aide, who promised to take the protest into account while the budget is written. We're not holding our breath, but we're glad someone's trying. +1

If You Don't Get It, You Don't Get It: Life in the news business is tough; there's layoffs, and pay cuts, and declining ad sales, all because no one really reads, well, anything except Twitter anymore. Life in the for-profit educational business, however, is not so tough, which we assume explains why the Washington Post Company reportedly paid Post publisher Katharine Weymouth $2 million last year. (And, apparently, paid her mother Lally Weymouth more than $300,000 to write a column.) We're envisioning a pile of eight million quarters, fresh from the newspaper boxes, being delivered by dump truck. -1

The Ron Brown-ing of America: Nearly 15 years ago, then-Commerce Secretary Ron Brown died in a plane crash in Croatia. This morning, a stretch of road near the Commerce Department was permanently given his name, thanks to legislation introduced by Brown's son, D.C. Councilmember Michael A. Brown. "Ron Brown Way" on 14th Street NW joins other memorials to the late, elder Brown, a D.C. native—including Ronald H. Brown Middle School here in the District; a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration research ship, Ronald H. Brown; the Ronald H. Brown Center for Civil Rights at St. John's University law school; and, later this spring, a new annex to the United Nations building in New York. Which puts our street in pretty good company. +1

Yesterday's Needle rating: 60 Today's score: +3 Friday bonus: +2 Today's Needle rating: 65

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Robert Wone's 'Meticulous' Habits Contrary to Cluttered Crime Scene," "Voice of Maureen Bunyan Pivotal To Robert Wone Case," "EMS Worker Was Suspicious of Robert Wone Pal Price"

Howdy. Good afternoon. Lots good stuff so let's get to it. First big news on budget transparency. Nonprofits and social service providers won a big victory yesterday. They had been grumbling behind the seems—and to LL—about how the haggling over the budget would be taking place mostly behind closed doors. Well, D.C. Council Chair—and mayoral candidate—Vince Gray responded to those grumblings and has agreed to broadcast the horsetrading on Channel 13 today. Gray wrote to D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute's Executive Director Ed Lazere with the news. The letter was then forwarded to the press by Gray staff. Gray writes:

"I am alerting your organization and others who wrote me on May 13th that I have arranged for the Office of Cable Television to air live on Council Channel 13 (Comcast) the informal Councilmember budget discussion at 10 AM on Wednesday, May 19th. In addition, I have opened Room 123 of the John A. Wilson Building for the public to view the budget talks via the television monitor in the hearing room at the same time they air live. As is standard, the public also can view the live proceedings on the Council web site at www.dccouncil.us. I am pleased to offer this new access to the public, which is in line with my continuing efforts to promote transparency in government.

As you may be aware, all Councilmembers and select staff attend these informal meetings in the Chairman’s Conference Room on the 5th floor of the Wilson Building. Last year, I opened the sessions to the press as very limited space allowed. I have made these sessions more open than ever by allowing press access. The news coverage has generated enormous feedback from the public through emails directly to members and to staff, phone calls and face-to-face conversations. In addition, pages and pages of public witnesses have testified at marathon budget oversight hearings and mark-ups in recent weeks, and have used these opportunities to comment on agency budgets, and on possible cuts and revenue raising ideas they learned about from numerous news reports, neighborhood list servs and other social media.

I hope that by witnessing these budget talks on television or online, District of Columbia residents will be motivated to offer even more feedback to Councilmembers as we face difficult decisions and the first vote on the budget on May 26th. We sincerely appreciate and consider this feedback to be important to the process of formulating a budget plan that meets the needs of our city in very challenging economic times.

Thank you for your steadfast interest in the fiscal affairs of the District of Columbia."

LL loves transparency. You should too.

AFTER THE JUMP: A congressional foe goes down, more from the Wone trial, a mysterious death on the Metro, the D.C. Council fails to address Fenty's fee increases, and much, much, more!

SEE YA, SOUDER: D.C. Wire's Mike DeBonis reports that Rep. Mark Souder's sudden resignation is a boon to the District as the congressman had been one of the most notorious meddlers in city affairs taking particular aim at our gun laws and our needle-exchange program. DeBonis gets great quotes from Councilmember David Catania on the good news. He writes: "Local self-determination advocates will remember Souder 'as one of the more outspoken people who was willing to impose his own views over the objections of the elected representatives and people of the District,' says Walter Smith, executive director of D.C. Appleseed, a think tank that advocates for D.C. voting rights. At least one city official made no attempt to disguise his glee at Souder's demise. 'Ding-dong, the witch is dead,' said At-Large Council member David A. Catania (I) this afternoon. 'You could almost hyperventilate explaining the hypocrisy of this man's career....I'm sorry for his wife, but I'm glad it happened to him. It couldn't have happened to a more deserving guy.'"

BROWN AND GRAY WIN ENDORSEMENTS: D.C. Wire reports that Gray and Brown have won pivotal endorsements from labor: "Council Chairman Vincent Gray picked up the backing Wednesday of the American Federation of Government Employees, a federal and D.C. government employee union that represents 600,000 workers. In announcing support for Gray in his mayoral bid, the group took aim in a statement at Mayor Adrian Fenty, who has had tense relations with city government workers throughout his tenure. 'We understand that this election is a fight for the soul of the District of Columbia. Will this be a city that supports working people or will it be a city that only supports the wealthy and well-connected? That is what we're fighting for and that is why we're supporting Vincent Gray.' Separately, the Service Employees International Maryland/DC State Council announced support Wednesday for Council member Kwame Brown (D-At Large) in his campaign to succeed Gray as chairman.The union, which represents 15,000 workers in the Washington region, pledged to help Brown with mailings and door-to-door campaigning as he faces former council member Vincent Orange in the Democratic primary. The group praised Brown for his support of legislation guaranteeing paid sick time for workers and for a measure that boosted wages for private security officers." D.C. Wire also reports that Brown is getting financial backing from the District's bigwigs.

FEE FIGHT: Yesterday, the D.C. Council decided it wanted to play no part in enacting Mayor Fenty's proposed fee increases as a way of increasing much needed revenue. The Examiner's Alan Suderman reports: "The D.C. Council on Tuesday came close to passing Mayor Adrian Fenty's proposed increases for more than 600 fees and fines — including a tenfold increase for some driving tickets — before having second thoughts and telling the mayor to do it himself. 'If you want to nickel-and-dime residents ... then take full responsibility for it,' said Councilman Phil Mendelson, D-at large. Fenty proposed more than $7.5 million worth of fee and fine increases effective June 1 to close a budget gap in the fiscal year that ends in September. The increases are wide-ranging and include higher fees for businesses and nonprofits as well as raising the fines for 71 vehicle citations." More coverage via D.C. Wire, WTOP, WBJ.

METRO DEATH: WaPo's Martin Veil reports on a man who was found dead riding the Red Line: "As recounted Tuesday by Metro, based on a preliminary investigation, the man apparently boarded the train at the Twinbrook Station about 10:15 a.m. He remained onboard as the train headed south into the District and then on to Silver Spring. After the train turned around there, the man apparently was still onboard as it headed back into the District, and then on to the Red Line terminal at Shady Grove. At Shady Grove, it was taken out of service about 11:55 a.m. and went into the rail yard there. The body, which apparently had remained on the train, in the yard, for three hours, was found at 2:55 p.m. as the train was prepared for afternoon service. According to Metro, emergency personnel were summoned, and the man was pronounced dead. The agency said he was in the last car of eight." More coverage via The Examiner, NBC4.

ROBERT WONE TRIAL DAY TWO: Again, the bloggers at Who Murdered Robert Wone provide a super detailed account of the conspiracy trial's second day of testimony. Robert's widow Kathy Wone testified about the demeanor of the three roommates in the aftermath of the murder—they seemed shell shocked. Neighbors testified about hearing a scream the night of the murder. The big news: D.C. Police detectives waited three weeks to interview them. Then came an EMT worker. The bloggers write:

"EMT Jeff Baker, first to arrive at 1509, took the stand. He relayed his 14 years of experience answering calls in DC, minor and traumatic. He’s seen several hundred violent crime scenes including many stabbings. He described the typical atmosphere he sees as 'chaotic.' He arrived at 1509, saw Zaborsky on a phone at the stoop and proceeded upstairs with a Reeves stretcher. He says he saw the unresponsive Ward even before getting to the top of the stairs. In the guestroom he observed Price sitting on the bed with his back to him, a leg tucked up underneath.

Baker volunteered, '…hair stood up on the back of my neck.' A moment later, the entire defense table seemed to erupt with an objection, as if they’ve been waiting years for that moment. Sustained.... [AUSA] Kirschner asked Baker about life saving measures and was told that in the ambulance on the way to GW, a firefighter was compressing Robert’s chest while his EMT colleague was hooking up an IV. It went into the bend of the elbow while Baker worked Robert’s airway. It was en route to GW that Baker noticed the striations on Robert’s abdomen. 'It looked like it was wiped down,' and that the imprint of a towel’s texture was visible. 'It looked like a light film,'… moist with linear marks.

Kirschner showed Baker a large blow up of an autopsy photo, government exhibit #381, and it was briefly visible to the audience. Members of the Wone family were crying even before that. Baker was asked about other needle puncture marks and said he was not authorized to insert needles into a patient’s chest. He also said there would’ve been no reason for any resuscitative needles in Robert’s feet or ankles. While hooked up to monitors in the ambulance, Baker said Robert was ‘P.E.A’, meaning Pulseless Electrical Activity. Flat line."

More coverage via WTOP, WaPo, NC8, the Examiner.

MAYOR'S SCHEDULE:
10:45 a.m.
Remarks re: Washington Kastles Season Kick-Off
Location: Old Convention Center Site
11th and H St. NW

And here's a table of neighborhood values, arranged from greatest decline to least:

Zone	Name	2010	2011	Difference	% Change
28	Hillcrest	$996,193,250	$844,101,930	($152,091,320)	-15.27%
16	CongressHeights	$886,867,990	$769,896,320	($116,971,670)	-13.19%
18	Deanwood	$1,383,747,220	$1,209,813,050	($173,934,170)	-12.57%
22	FortDupontPark	$798,205,650	$710,623,840	($87,581,810)	-10.97%
43	RandleHeights	$609,120,470	$543,355,080	($65,765,390)	-10.80%
2	Anacostia	$399,807,210	$362,915,100	($36,892,110)	-9.23%
56	Woodridge	$879,926,880	$799,573,190	($80,353,690)	-9.13%
12	Chillum	$346,126,430	$315,058,890	($31,067,540)	-8.98%
5	Brentwood	$200,972,750	$182,955,030	($18,017,720)	-8.97%
32	LilyPonds	$295,641,920	$269,935,100	($25,706,820)	-8.70%
19	Eckington	$706,814,760	$645,712,450	($61,102,310)	-8.64%
42	Petworth	$2,023,266,640	$1,856,836,320	($166,430,320)	-8.23%
52	Trinidad	$751,677,870	$692,358,920	($59,318,950)	-7.89%
3	BarryFarms	$121,846,120	$112,399,790	($9,446,330)	-7.75%
33	MarshallHeights	$268,540,150	$248,036,670	($20,503,480)	-7.64%
36	MountPleasant	$1,326,523,455	$1,226,541,600	($99,981,855)	-7.54%
7	Brookland	$1,824,198,660	$1,698,176,370	($126,022,290)	-6.91%
47	RiggsPark	$801,995,840	$753,060,440	($48,935,400)	-6.10%
51	Takoma	$249,970,300	$234,728,240	($15,242,060)	-6.10%
15	ColumbiaHeights	$2,364,839,950	$2,235,460,270	($129,379,680)	-5.47%
6	Brightwood	$1,464,305,880	$1,384,541,150	($79,764,730)	-5.45%
38	ObservatoryCircle	$627,636,150	$593,793,570	($33,842,580)	-5.39%
55	Woodley	$261,237,430	$248,250,730	($12,986,700)	-4.97%
21	ForestHills	$1,264,984,060	$1,207,982,820	($57,001,240)	-4.51%
13	ClevelandPark	$1,445,719,610	$1,381,363,780	($64,355,830)	-4.45%
48	ShepherdPark	$589,603,540	$567,269,060	($22,334,480)	-3.79%
49	16thStHeights	$1,020,982,451	$985,033,790	($35,948,661)	-3.52%
20	FoggyBottom	$197,782,079	$191,281,550	($6,500,529)	-3.29%
35	MichiganPark	$331,917,250	$321,014,630	($10,902,620)	-3.28%
46	R.L.A.SW	$185,945,830	$180,422,950	($5,522,880)	-2.97%
14	ColonialVillage	$510,574,300	$495,649,010	($14,925,290)	-2.92%
34	MassAveHeights	$710,582,570	$690,606,120	($19,976,450)	-2.81%
24	Garfield	$489,414,630	$476,290,350	($13,124,280)	-2.68%
31	LeDroitPark	$625,517,380	$608,863,400	($16,653,980)	-2.66%
66	FortLincoln	$93,026,100	$90,575,240	($2,450,860)	-2.63%
27	Hawthorne	$247,725,780	$242,286,140	($5,439,640)	-2.20%
40	OldCityII	$3,477,086,349	$3,401,033,980	($76,052,369)	-2.19%
29	Kalorama	$1,460,346,060	$1,429,457,330	($30,888,730)	-2.12%
25	Georgetown	$3,743,858,260	$3,666,092,440	($77,765,820)	-2.08%
23	Foxhall	$283,833,220	$277,959,930	($5,873,290)	-2.07%
1	AUPark	$2,036,222,130	$1,996,331,260	($39,890,870)	-1.96%
53	Wakefield	$334,409,320	$328,669,750	($5,739,570)	-1.72%
9	CapitolHill	$2,311,179,300	$2,275,405,000	($35,774,300)	-1.55%
54	WesleyHeights	$968,531,110	$954,472,770	($14,058,340)	-1.45%
50	SpringValley	$1,575,432,380	$1,557,377,740	($18,054,640)	-1.15%
8	Burleith	$773,130,490	$765,983,200	($7,147,290)	-0.92%
11	ChevyChase	$4,145,679,275	$4,110,300,640	($35,378,635)	-0.85%
39	OldCityI	$5,530,087,535	$5,502,049,290	($28,038,245)	-0.51%
37	NClevelandPark	$684,121,410	$681,203,330	($2,918,080)	-0.43%
17	Crestwood	$622,516,970	$621,425,390	($1,091,580)	-0.18%
41	Palisades	$860,095,210	$859,655,990	($439,220)	-0.05%
26	GloverPark	$706,231,790	$708,065,650	$1,833,860	0.26%
10	Central	$199,633,540	$203,796,910	$4,163,370	2.09%
30	Kent	$1,096,089,550	$1,134,551,260	$38,461,710	3.51%
4	Berkley	$998,840,330	$1,057,883,210	$59,042,880	5.91%
	Total:	$59,110,562,784	$56,908,477,960	($2,202,084,824)	-3.73%

]]> http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/02/26/map-of-d-c-property-assessments/feed/ 11 http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/02/26/city-property-assessments-drop-by-6-percent/ http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/2010/02/26/city-property-assessments-drop-by-6-percent/#comments Fri, 26 Feb 2010 14:09:35 +0000 Mike DeBonis http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk/?p=48491 The assessed value of city property has dropped by about six percent since a year ago, the Office of Tax and Revenue announced this morning.

But the news might not be great for homeowners looking for a break on their upcoming tax bills: Most of the drop is due to falling commercial property values; residential properties have declined only 3.7 percent on average over last year.

Not only has the commercial property market been increasingly weak, but city assessments have been taking a beating through the appeals process—with commercial landlords having their tax bills in some cases drastically cut on appeal, it has affected city revenue projections, in turn complicating the city budgeting process.

A quick look at residential assessment data broken down by neighborhood shows that the middle-class Ward 7 communities of Hillcrest (-15.3 percent), Fort Dupont Park (-11.0 percent), and Randle Heights (-10.8 percent) took some of the most drastic plunges. Traditionally upscale neighborhoods in Wards 2 and 3—Kalorama, Georgetown, Spring Valley, Chevy Chase, Palisades—saw much less precipitous drops, of 2.5 percent of less. The Glover Park, Central (West End), Kent, and Berkley (Foxhall) neighborhoods actually saw modest rises in value.

Assessments will be mailed to households before the end of the day today; property owners have until April 1 to file appeals. Full press release after the jump.

GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
OFFICE OF THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
OFFICE OF TAX AND REVENUE

IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, February 26, 2010

DC's Assessments Reflect a Slight Decrease in Real Estate Values

(Washington, DC) — The Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR) announced that it will begin to mail assessment notices to all real property owners in the District of Columbia today. A total of 190,000 taxable and exempt real properties have been reassessed to reflect current market values as of January 1, 2010. The overall change in assessments for all taxable properties in the District is – 6 percent from the previous year’s assessment.

“The Tax Year 2011 assessments reflect a real estate market in the District of Columbia that has declined in some areas but is attempting to stabilize in others,” said Richie McKeithen, director of the Real Property Tax Administration.

Property owners are encouraged to review their assessment notice upon receipt. The 2011 notices contain not only the proposed assessed value for a property, but also the estimated taxable assessment and important information related to property tax relief programs such as the homestead benefit and the owner-occupied residential tax credit. Included on the notice is the assigned assessor’s contact information for taxpayers who wish to discuss their assessment. The property owners will not be taxed on the new assessed value until March 2011.

Property owners who believe that their assessment is not equitable in comparison with similar properties or that their assessment does not reflect the market value must file an appeal with OTR’s Real Property Tax Administration by or before April 1. Information about the appeal process and the assessment appeal application is available on OTR’s website at taxpayerservicecenter.com under “Real Property Service Center.”

”I was just distracted, frankly.”

—Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry, Feb. 10

When it came out in January that Barry had failed to file tax returns for the eighth time in nine years, it was a classic shock-but-no-surprise. After all, the guy's been the Teflon Taxpayer, repeatedly avoiding jail time for his lax attitude toward his 1040. But this time, the flouting was so blatant that everyone expected U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah A. Robinson to finally sink her teeth into the mayor-for-life. But then Barry produced the deus ex machina, revealing that he was ailing from a failed kidney—hence the "distraction." After transplant surgery, Barry was hauled before Robinson, who took a more skeptical view toward prosecutors than the guy who'd failed to pay his taxes. Barry got off with an extension of his probation, but no jail time.

Photo by Darrow Montgomery

More from LL's Quotes of 2009

For three months of the year—tax season—Don and his wife, Linda, move into an office above a jumbo slice shop in Adams Morgan. In the third-floor space, there's a futon where they sleep at night. By day, it's set up as a spot for clients to talk with Linda, who does the initial work on the computer before Don gets you your money back from the federal government (he has less luck with D.C., unfortunately).

Linda's lovely and about to be 60. Don got there a few years back. When they're not smelling pizza in the place they live and work, they've got a nice, big house near the Chesapeake in Virginia. When they're not in either of those places, they're at train shows (Don's the collector; Linda likes the hotels) or traveling around Europe. It's quite a life. This year, they've added a fat Jack Russell terrier to it and put him on a dry-food diet after finding him overfed fried chicken and other delights by Don's recently deceased aunt.

Visiting this operation this time of year is a quaint and adorable experience for the client. Unless you're white.

If you're white, Don assumes you want to spend at least an hour and often more listening to him bloviate about how there are no "Americans" at MIT because American schools are bad and the kids aren't smart enough to compete with the foreigners. MIT, he says, is instead filled with Persians. Or Indians.

Don, he'll tell you, is fluent in several languages. He speaks Spanish in Spain and French in France and English in England—"I like to travel four to six months out of the year, but I don't go anywhere I don't speak the language." And although he has Spanish heritage, he says, he doesn't trust the Hispanics. Several of his Hispanic clients, "I won't say who," are cheats.

He's a little more careful about what he says about the Blacks. At least he was this year. I mean, he did vote for Obama, after all.

Today another client came in to talk to Don as I was finishing up with Linda. I noticed that Don got right to his taxes (a 10-minute process) instead of expounding at length on the non-Americans and the Hispanics. Then I noticed that the other client wasn't white. This happened last year, too.

It won't happen next year, though. Don works magic with the numbers and I am mercifully getting a refund. But I am, also mercifully, not going back. I can't take any more of his ethnic BS and this year I finally let him know it.

So: Anyone know a good Persian who will do my taxes?

Flickr photo by Paul Keleher

Federal prosecutors this afternoon filed court documents saying not only did Marion Barry not file his federal tax return, but that he failed for seven months to repay back taxes owed the very government he's been elected to serve.

The revelations come in a memorandum [PDF] submitted ahead of a April 2 hearing before federal magistrate Deborah A. Robinson on prosecutors' motion to revoke Barry's probation.

After Barry pleaded guilty to tax violations in 2006, the IRS began garnishing $1,350 from his biweekly paychecks the following November, the filing says. But, according to sources consulted by LL, the District government chose not to garnish his wages but negotiate a modest monthly payment plan with Barry. According to the filing, Barry hasn't paid stopped paying the District government last July, and "it was only after motions by the government and the Probation Office [in February] that he renewed his repayment schedule" with the District.

Another notable item: When it came out earlier this year that Barry hadn't filed his 2007 return, it had been postulated that he may well be owed a refund. Well, according to the court filings, Barry in fact owed $6,512 in unpaid federal taxes and an undisclosed amount in District taxes for 2007.

In total, according to a IRS affidavit, Barry owed the feds $277,688 in back taxes, penalties, and interest as of Jan. 8.

Barry's lawyer, Fred Cooke, did not immediately return a phone call, but he is likely to argue next week that his client's kidney disease is the reason for any delinquency. Prosecutor Thomas Zeno, unsurprisingly, doesn't buy it: "Given the many activities in which the defendant engaged instead of filing his tax returns, it was not beyond his power to file his tax returns on time."

Zeno again asks that Barry be jailed: "During his probation, the defendant continually flouted the standards applicable to all persons who reside in the District of Columbia, who work for a living, and who pay a portion of their income to support his salary. In addition, the defendant has wasted the time of this Court, the probation office, and the government by his recalcitrance to file the tax returns required of every citizen. The defendant has proven his unworthiness to reap the benefits of probation. The defendant’s probation should be revoked. He should be sentenced to some period of incarceration, such as weekends or community confinement. In the alternative, a two-year extension of his probation should be imposed."

UPDATE, 3:35 P.M.: Attorney General Peter Nickles says he's "very concerned that the councilmember has not met the commitment he made to the District."

Nickles says he is planning to pursue garnishing Barry's wages in order to pay down what he owes the District. Barry was required to pay $350 per month under his original 2006 arrangement with the Office of Tax and Revenue, Nickles says.

As for the total Barry owes the District, Nickles said that information remains under seal. But, he says, "It's significant."

UPDATE, 4 P.M.: LL changed the headline and other passages to reflect that the filing indicates that Barry renegotiated his payments to the District after prosecutors pressed him in February and is ostensibly again paying what he owes.

Details of the fee have been reveled in draft legislation submitted to the council today: The fee will be assessed on your Pepco bills. Residential customers, under the proposal, will pay $4.25 a month ($51 a year); commercial customers will pay $16.75 monthly ($201 yearly), and all others $42 monthly ($504 yearly).

Now, the proposed legislation pumps all of this money into a separate streetlight fund to be held separate from the city's general operating fund—so there's little danger the city will use your streetlight money to, say, pay for potholes. Also, the language provides that low-income residents can get assistance paying the fee from the city energy assistance office.

The D.C. Council, of course, has to approve this. Don't like it? Call your home councilmember, and you might also drop a line to Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham, who oversees the transportation department—(202) 724-8181.

In these troubling times, Barry has a simple request for his council colleagues: Shut the hell up.

In a memo addressed to "Councilmember Members" on Wednesday, Barry asked his colleagues to "refrain from discussing the matter with anyone including members of the media."

The full memo:

There have been several reports in the media regarding the status of my health. This is a very private and personal matter. For those reasons, I would ask that you refrain from discussing this matter with anyone including members of the media. I would ask that you simply provide "no comment" to anyone requesting an interview. Furthermore, the only people authorized to provide comment to the media in regards to my health are my doctors and myself.

I thank you in advance for your cooperation and understanding in this very private matter.

At least one member declined to respect his wishes—Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham defended the mayor-for life thusly, to WRC-TV: "Isn’t there somebody who’s secretary of the treasury today who didn’t pay taxes?"