So you thought you could open up a property where you could offer a free getaway to wounded veterans.
Well, you thought wrong.
Operation Second Chance had opened its property up to wounded veterans and their families, but then a "green" tax came their way, or should I say, a lack of a green tax break.
Operation Second Chance hosts battle buddies, caregivers, families, groups, and individuals from around the United States in cabins accessible for amputees and wheelchair users.
The experience is free for guests, including travel expenses, activities, and food. The organization also provides grants to wounded veterans facing financial struggles, helping with house and car payments, medical supplies, and emergency assistance.
Sounds like a nice place; and a great idea for that matter. Veterans don't get the respect in this country that they used to, and an organization like Operation Second Chance is something that these men and women just deserve as a thank you for their service.
However, just as Operation Second Chance started to get the ball rolling, they ran into some tax problems in one of the two counties they inhabit.
Two years after the organization bought the property, an unexpected tax bill arrived from Adams County, Pennsylvania.
The bill, for more than $92,000, is the sum of a seven-year claw-back of a property tax discount through Pennsylvania's Clean and Green Environmental tax break program.
Heroes Ridge is a 275-acre, mostly wooded property with 25 acres in Frederick County, Maryland and the rest in Adams County. The Frederick County portion is tax-exempt because Operation Second Chance is a nonprofit. But Adams County hasn't granted the same exemption.
The previous owner of the property paid property taxes under the Clean and Green program, which allowed them to pay lower taxes due to the fact that they weren't developing the land and essentially just using it for its forest and agriculture. But now, since Operation Second Chance is running the place and fixing up some of the buildings, it's somehow a big deal and not green enough.
The previous owner put the land in the Clean and Green program for forest preservation in 2011 and paid a lower tax rate, according to records from the Adams County Register and Recorder's Office. Ms. McGrew continued to pay at that rate until she received that phone call [concerning the tax bill].
The tax bill came with a fine for non-payment of $588 a day, Ms. McGrew said, which came to about $17,600 a month. Attorney Joseph Erb of Hanover, Pennsylvania, advised her to pay the bill to avoid racking up more fines and to then ask the county to return the money.
By then, Operation Second Chance owed more than $93,000, so Ms. McGrew wrote a check to Adams County and paid the bill.
What's more, McGrew says she never received the letters informing her of the penalties, and when the county finally dropped another letter off in person they had the wrong name and address on it. Of course, this is according to McGrew, so I'll take those words with caution.
Anyhow, Operation Second Chance now has had to cut back on their charity, handing out only $10,000 in scholarships to high school students with wounded family members instead of their usual $35,000.
Good news, however: Operation Second Chance has asked Adams County for the tax money back and it looks like Adams County might be willing to grant it. They'll make their decision in mid-November and we hope they'll make the right one.
For your viewing pleasure, here's a little advertisement for Operation Second Chance:
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