French Society honors tax crusader

By Kristen Hankla
The Post and Courier
Friday, October 26, 2007

The Charleston man who led a successful movement to reform state property taxes was honored Thursday by a local group of French descendents.

The French Society awarded Emerson Read Sr. its Humanitati Award, an honor given annually to a person who improves the human condition either in his community or the world at large.

"Like a savior, he was there when we needed him," member Jack Simmons told the crowd gathered at the Carolina Yacht Club. "And by 'we' I mean every single South Carolinian and potentially every United States citizen."

Read founded NoHomeTax.org in 2005, and spent 14 months and thousands of personal dollars campaigning to abolish property taxes in exchange for raising the state's sales tax rate by 3 percent.

Lawmakers raised the sales tax by 1 percent and eliminated the school operations portions of property tax bills, leading to substantial reductions in property tax bills for most homeowners. The increase also allowed for the elimination of state sales tax on most groceries.

Read's group later succeeded in getting reassessment increases capped at 15 percent for residential properties that had not changed hands.

Not all agreed with swapping higher sales taxes for property tax relief, including The Municipal Association, school districts and some taxpayer groups. The change is most beneficial to people with higher-valued property.

"I'm going to accept this award on behalf of myself as chairman and all of those who helped me," Read said, including the approximately 350,000 members of the nohometax.org coalition and the 740,000 people who voted in favor of the reassessment increase cap.

He will try again to eliminate all property taxes during his 2008 campaign, which he told the society will not begin without a budget of $250,000.

In a letter congratulating Read on the award, state Sen. Glenn McConnell wrote, "You have a reputation as an incredibly talented, intelligent, and deeply caring leader who has been a prominent voice of strength in a committed force for positive legislative action. This honor is well earned."

Previous recipients of the Humanitati Award include Parker Petite, developer of a fetal heart monitor; Paul Gelegotis, founder of Charleston's EMS system; and George and Molly Greene, founders of Water Missions International.

The French Society, or La Societe Francaise de Bienfaisance, was founded on King Street in 1816 by men who came from France to aid America in the Revolution, refugees driven from their homes in France by its Revolution, and from San Domingo by uprising. The society's goal is "to give succor to those in misfortune."

The Humanitati Award was created in 1981 by Julian V. Brandt Jr., father of current French Society President Julian "Vic" Brandt III.

Reach Kristen Hankla at khankla@postandcourier.com or 937-5548.
Copyright © 1997 - 2007 the Evening Post Publishing Co.

June 22, 2006

Emerson Read Wins Battle in War on Property Taxes

by PATRA TAYLOR

In our current political atmosphere, in which many elected members of our state and federal governments increasingly seem driven by something other than the will of the people, it is rare for a citizen leader to step up, inspire and sustain a statewide grassroots effort that challenges the status quo. Emerson B. Read, Sr. is such a leader.

Perhaps it is serendipitous that Mr. Read’s company, Read & Read Inc, Realtors is located on historic Broad Street and has had an expansive view though the centuries of a nation in the making. It is a street where the influences of our forefathers still linger: where signers of the Declaration of Independence once trod; where men from across the state gathered to ratify the United State’s Constitution; and a short walk from where the Ordinance of Secession was adopted.

Mr. Read is a founding member of a family business established in 1947. The walls of his Broad Street office are covered with historic documents, family photos and plaques and other memorabilia from his long successful career. Along one wall near his desk is a row of neatly organized files filled with charts and graphs, research studies, correspondence, drafts of House and Senate bills and letters to the editor that most editors across the state wouldn’t touch, all pertaining to the topic of his intense attention… property tax relief for homeowners in South Carolina.

“There’s a lot more files than that,” he smiles, nodding at the row. “A lot more.”

Mr. Read’s initial involvement in the tax relief issue began more than ten years ago, when property reassessment resulted in the first wave of rising tax bills. “Everybody was up in arms,” recalls Mr. Read. “Some of my friends started meeting and talking, but no one wanted to take the bull by the horns. So I ended up the chairman of the group to get something done.”

Then when property owners started receiving their tax bills late last fall after yet another round of reassessments, Mr. Read’s telephone began ringing off the hook. He began hearing horror stories about what he feared most – that the homes of some of the state’s lower-and-middle class citizens would have to be sold on the courthouse steps because of their owners’ inability to pay their escalating property taxes. The man who had essentially been drafted to spearhead the tax relief effort on behalf of his friends in Charleston was now being driven by a deep passion to help those whose voices were been ignored in Columbia.

Even as excitement filled the air on the opening day of the 2006 legislative session last January, House and Senate members of both parties were already abuzz with the hottest issue before them. Mr. Read was there, along with about 500 of the state’s most able-bodied supporters of property tax relief. These “South Carolina Tea Party” demonstrators wore Lipton teabags and stickers as they called for the elimination of property taxes on their homes.

During Mr. Read’s rebellion rally on the statehouse steps that day he said, “In December of 1773, approximately 150 angry American colonists boarded three British ships in Boston Harbor and dumped 342 chests of tea into the frigid waters of Boston Harbor.

First day of the Legislative Session – January 10, 2006 Property Tax Rebellion at the Statehouse. Senator Thomas of Greenville expressing his support for our position.

Their action, organized to protest England’s unfair taxation on tea, was quickly dubbed the Boston Tea Party, and became an instant symbol for American independence from a government that refused to listen to the people they governed.”

Statewide hearings had already reinvigorated Mr. Read and his growing number of fellow supporters. In the fall of 2005, Senator Glenn McConnell, present pro tem of the South Carolina Senate, initiated a series of town hall meetings across the state.

“We figured we better go up to Orangeburg to this hearing because many of the people of that area live in poverty,” recounts Mr. Read of one of the town hall meetings. “We thought they would certainly be against increasing the sales tax.”

But what Mr. Read and others discovered was quite the opposite. “We got there about 20 minutes before the meeting started,” he continued. “The meeting was being held in a 150-seat auditorium. We were able to sit down, but we were the last ones. When the meeting started, there were about 20 or 30 people standing.”

Mr. Read says that many who attended the Orangeburg town hall meeting were probably lower income people. “About 40 people spoke – that was all there was time for. And only three were against property tax relief – the county administrator, because he could see his ability to tax going down the sewer; the Democratic minority leader in the House; and a guy from Dorchester County who didn’t want to pay any more sales tax. Those were the only three who talked against it.”

One tenacious message he sent to newspapers across the state that they declined to publish stated:

“In the current debate over the elimination of property taxes, the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce has come out against the concept, and thus made clear who they support: Big business and the corporate CEOs who pull their strings. Their fight against the elimination of property taxes on homes defies logic, especially considering how the elimination of property taxes would lead to hundreds of millions of additional dollars pouring into small business investment and job creation.”

A couple of weeks into the 2006 legislative session, Mr. Read stood before a Senate sub-committee examining the issue. The statewide chairman of NoHomeTax.org boldly stated, “Standing here before you this morning, I realize how much in awe I am of the power of the Senate of South Carolina. You have the power to devastate further hundreds of thousands of already abused constituents who face the reality of having to sell their homes because of the tax burden laid upon them.”

Mr. Read continued, “Homeowners have had enough! Hundreds of thousands of your supporting constituents are asking you to take the taxes off of their homes. Middle and lower income homeowners have contributed to NoHomeTax.org’s efforts on their behalf. The home tax is criminal… it is devastating them.

The NoHomeTax.org Emblem With Tea Party Rally Teabag



View of Supporters at the January 10 th Rally in Columbia at the Statehouse

If you find it impossible to eliminate taxes from homes completely, we suggest you consider eliminating all taxes from 65-year-old and older homestead properties, which should resolve most of the problems. Your constituents have been abused long enough and they will not go away. Please do not disappoint them.”

The House, with overwhelming support from most of the Charleston delegation, quickly passed a bill that gave NoHomeTax.org supporters much of what they wanted. According to Mr. Read, the Senate was a different story. “I like to refer to them as the four horsemen of the apocalypse,” jokes Mr. Read, a glint of the devil in his own eye. “They fought us tooth and nail, every step of the way.”

Mr. Read is referring to Sen. Hugh K. Leatherman Sr. (R) from Dist. 31, Sen. John C. Land II (D) from Dist. 36, Sen. Larry A. Martin (R) from Dist. 2 and Sen. Scott H. Richardson (R) from Dist 46, names Mr. Read is not soon likely to forget. After a number of valiant efforts to pass a Senate bill, all thwarted by the four, the process came to a boiling point. Mr. Read believes that one critical turning point came when Sen. Jake Knotts of Lexington County dominated the Senate floor on behalf of the effort.

“Senator Knotts is the one who presented the House’s bill to the Senate,” explains Mr. Read. “All during Sen. Knotts’s eloquent presentation, Sen. Land kept demanding, ‘Give me the name of one person who lost their home, or couldn’t pay their taxes.’”

Mr. Read says that when Sen. Knotts completed his presentation, he took questions. Again, Sen. Land demanded the name of someone who had lost his home. This time, Sen. Knotts obliged him, giving him three names, three addresses and three dates the properties were sold for back taxes. “Sir,” said Sen. Knotts to Sen. June 10, Gov. Mark Sanford signed the new property tax bill, which effectively reduces most South Carolinians’ property tax burden by 60 percent, increases the statewide sales tax by one penny and provides net tax relief by reducing the grocery sales tax by 40 percent. The man standing beside Gov. Sanford at the signing was Charleston’s own Emerson B. Read, Sr.

Mr. Read will continue the fight. “A Constitutional Amendment enabling the property tax relief will be on the November ballot,” he says. “If voters statewide do not approve this Constitutional Amendment by a 2/3 vote, there will be no property tax relief!” ***Please see note after this article.

After one quick breath of relief, Mr. Read is back at it, gearing up for what will likely prove to be another definitive battle for the future of South Carolina. If you wish to help him, please visit www.NoHomeTax.org for details.

NoHomeTax.org is preparing its campaign to enable a majority vote in the November, 2006 Election Statewide Referendum amending the South Carolina Constitution to legalize the property tax legislation.

*** Voters statewide MUST approve this Constitutional Amendment by a MAJORITY vote or there will be no 15%Reassessment Cap which would result in property taxes escalating out of control AGAIN in the future.

Overhead in Columbia…

While in Columbia to lobby for property tax reform, Mr. Read was in the Statehouse and spoke with a South Carolina trooper about his purpose for coming to the capital city. Then, explaining that he regularly set his cruise control on 77 mph, Mr. Read asked the trooper if he should worry about being pulled for speeding. The officer replied that he would not ticket a man coming to Columbia to cut his property taxes; rather, he would give him a pat on the back.

Governor Sanford signs the property tax reform bill as supporters gather around him; those attending included Lanneau Siegling, Jim Lyles, Emerson Read, Becky Fagg, back row Victor Brandt IV and David Cannon.

Governor Sanford Signs Property Relief Bill Into Law

NoHomeTax.org, Emerson B. Read, Sr., Statewide Chairman – NoHomeTax.org, Becky Fagg, Chairperson – Property Tax Network, Representative Bill Cotty, Representative Joan Brady, Senator Greg Ryberg, Representative Nathan Ballentine and others witnessing the signing of property tax relief legislation into law by Governor Sanford at the home of Brenda Jones in Lexington, SC on June 10, 2006.