Elderly homeowners need our help

Guest columnist Mark Norris, R-Collierville, is a Tennessee state senator from District 32 and senior member of Armstrong Allen, PLLC.

Commercial Appeal

January 11, 2004

While efforts to reform or replace TennCare will necessarily occupy much of the Legislature's time during the upcoming session, other important issues must not be neglected.

They include reforming our workers' compensation laws to ensure that West Tennessee will not continue to lose jobs to surrounding states. There must also be continued scrutiny of the need for tort reform, as increasing numbers of Tennesseans, particularly physicians, lose confidence in the judicial system. This adversely affects physician retention and recruitment, as well as individual access to health care.

I hope Shelby County legislators can agree, however, that one of the most important issues is the need to provide senior citizens with relief from skyrocketing property taxes.

As property taxes continue to rise, many older residents feel punished for a lifetime of fiscal responsibility. Those on fixed incomes are hit hardest because they do not have extra income to pay the increased tax assessed upon the appreciated value of their home.

Senior citizens should not have to choose between paying for their prescriptions or paying property taxes.

It is time for a senior citizens' homestead exemption in Tennessee. Our state should join others that freeze the property tax on a homeowner's principal residence at the amount assessed in the year he or she turns 65.

Such a law was passed in 1979, but was ruled unconstitutional after a court found that the Tennessee Constitution prohibits distinctions between taxpayers that are based on age or income. The Constitution's provision in Article II, Section 28, which requires all property be taxed according to its value and that such taxes be equal and uniform, can be changed only with a constitutional amendment.

I have filed the legislation necessary for a referendum to amend the Constitution to provide tax relief for seniors. The General Assembly must approve this legislation in two successive sessions. If passed this year and next, a constitutional amendment for the homestead exemption could be on the ballot in 2006.

Tennesseans deserve the opportunity to vote on this important issue. Encouraging home ownership and recognizing the sacrifice of our seniors is as important as implementing lottery scholarships for Tennessee's high school students. The process for amending our Constitution is the same.

It has been nearly a generation since the General Assembly first determined that 65-year-olds deserve credit for a lifetime of sound investment in their homesteads. Now it is time to deliver.