Warren among protesters against Winn-Dixie tax break|[9/05/06]
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, September 5, 2006
Warren is among six Mississippi counties protesting efforts by Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. to get back more than $1.4 million it paid in property taxes.
Winn-Dixie, which operated Sack ‘n’ Save on South Frontage Road in Vicksburg, is seeking to have assessments made in 2004 and 2005 rolled back as part of its reorganization plan.
“The company has a duty to its bankruptcy creditors to avoid paying unjust or excessive tax assessments,” company spokesman Robin Miller said.
In addition to Warren County, Madison, Marion, Forrest, Copiah and Yazoo filed protests by a July 31 deadline. Those protests will be taken up when the company’s overall reorganization plan is presented before a bankruptcy judge in Florida on Oct. 13.
The Warren County property has been taken off the tax rolls for 2006, Deputy Tax Assessor Jim Agent said. It was assessed at $171,490 for 2005.
The company paid $22,356 in taxes for 2004 with $20,547.93 still owed for 2005, plus interest and penalties. Under the reorganization plan, Winn-Dixie would pay Warren County a total of $11,548.58 for two personal property parcels, Warren County Tax Collector Pat Simrall said.
With the 2004 taxes having been paid to Warren County, Simrall said, the situation is not as dire as in other counties where the company owes hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“We’re in better shape than most of the other counties. But it is still not good if they are able to do this. You don’t wait until 2006 to pay your 2004 taxes,” Simrall said.
Other counties said they would have protested, too, had they been notified. Many counties now are asking for help from the state attorney general’s office.
In Hinds County, the rollback could mean repaying Winn-Dixie $358,612 at a time when the city and the city school system are all seeking tax increases. Winn-Dixie still owes Hinds County $621,025 in taxes for 2004 and 2005. Under this ruling, however, the company will be liable for less than 45 percent of that amount, or $262,413.
“We need every penny we can get,” said Hinds County Tax Collector Eddie Fair, noting the county’s tax base is eroding as people move to neighboring counties.
Winn-Dixie, based in Jacksonville, Fla., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2005. The company, which closed 29 of its 45 stores in Mississippi, hopes to emerge from bankruptcy in October.
Winn-Dixie operated seven stores in Rankin County, where it paid $161,515 in taxes for the contested years. Under the plan now before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Jerry Funk, the revised assessment totals $69,932 for those two years.
Rankin County Tax Collector Judy Fortenberry said her office would have protested the reduction but, like some counties, she said Rankin County never received notice.
Fortenberry, who has turned all the paperwork over to a private attorney who specializes in bankruptcy, said if the county is ordered to roll back assessments, she has no idea how that will be carried out, noting it’s just too early to know.