27 October 2013 (13:08 UTC-07 Tango)/22 Dhu’l-Hijja 1434/05 Aban 1391/23 Ren-Xu (9th month) 4711

“All these years of getting nothing, then all of a sudden, they want to lay this tax on your back and still not give you nothing! For the last three years, we’ve been paying $128 a year for garbage collection. I don’t even have my green garbage can. Where’s my can? You can call 911, but nobody gonna squeal up to your front door, so forget it.”-Cornelia Bailey, 9th generation resident

In Georgia, U.S.A., the McIntosh County commissioners have reappraised property values on the island of Sapelo.  Some property owners, who can trace their roots back to pre-War Between the States, are facing a 600% increase in taxes as a result!

The county officials ordered a property value reassessment back in January.  The move by county officials could be a way to push out residents so the property can be sold to developers.  Starting in 2010, property owners have been pushed to sell their land to developers.  The large amounts of money that some homes have sold for are what county commissioners are using to justify their huge home value adjustments.

Before developers became interested in the island, homes were only worth an average of $10-thousand USD.  But in the past two years developers have been paying more than $100-thousand for the homes.

The main streamer U.S. news media is making this story sound like a cultural/descendant of former slaves issue, but that’s a red herring.  What this is, is another way that U.S. home owners can have their homes taken away from them, even if they’re paid for.

Sapelo Island can be accessed by boat or plane only.  Most of it is owned by the state.