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Mommar Gadaffi Does Not Pay Property Taxes
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2011 Mar 30, 8:11am 1,914 views 9 comments
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Sensationalist posturing. You've omitted the key part:
"intended mainly as a weekend getaway for the Libyan U.N. ambassador and his family".
By the international conventions on diplomatic relations and US laws related to UN hosting that afford all UN missions diplomatic status, the property owned by foreign diplomatic missions and used for non-commercial purposes is free from any taxation whatsoever. So are the weekend getaways of US embassies and ambassadors abroad, incl. in Libya.
Damn, tax evader. It sounds like it is the IRS kick his arse, not military. lol.
I thought only embassies and U.N. missions were tax exempt.
Yes. One weekend vacation house per embassy/mission in the vicinity of its location has always been viewed as a part of such embassy/mission and, as long as not used commercially (such as rented out), is tax exempt. Russia has a very nice one in Glen Cove on Long Island, btw.
HousingWatcher
2011 Mar 30, 2:05pm
Glen Cove? Really? What's the matter? Vladimir Putin can't afford the Hamptons?
Glen Cove? Really? What’s the matter? Vladimir Putin can’t afford the Hamptons?
That property is theirs way back from the USSR times, at least since 1960-s.
Sorry to inform, but Putin and others up there now (and not even so much up)
have very little interest in vacationing anywhere in the US.
They rather prefer UK, Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain (roughly in that order).
Can't blame them.
HousingWatcher
2011 Mar 30, 2:26pm
Interestingly, Gadaffi's next door neighbors include a Rabbi and a Jewish school. No, I am not making this up. I know the area where Gadaffi's house is somewhat well and it is very Jewish.
Diplomatic Immunity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplomatic_immunity#Financial
Taxes and fees
Diplomats are not necessarily exempt from paying government-imposed fees when there are "charges levied for specific services rendered." In certain cases, such as London's congestion charge (a daily charge on all cars entering central London), the nature of the fee may lead to disputes, but there is an obligation for the receiving state not to "discriminate as between states"; in other words, any such fees should be payable by all accredited diplomats equally. This may allow the diplomatic corps to negotiate as a group with the authorities of the receiving country.
In August 2009, it was reported that the Government of the UK believed the United States owed £3,500,000[43] in unpaid congestion charge fees.[44] It was also reported in 2006 that at least one embassy has agreed to pay the disputed charges.[45]
Diplomats are exempt from import duty and tariffs for items for their personal use. In some countries, this has led to charges that diplomatic agents are profiting personally from resale of "tax free" goods. The receiving state may choose to impose restrictions on what may reasonably constitute personal use (for example, only a certain quantity of cigarettes per day). When enacted, such restrictions are generally quite generous so as to avoid tit-for-tat responses.
So in addition to slaughtering innocent people, Gadaffi does not pay property taxes on his house in New Jersey. If your a honest person, you have to pay property taxes. But if your a murderous dictator, no problem. NO TAXES!
Moammar Gadhafi and Libya still pay no property taxes on N.J. estate
Bergen County is one if the highest tax paying counties in the nation. But it receives no help from one of its most infamous property owners — Moammar Gadhafi and Libya.
The Libyan government paid $1 million for a multi-million dollar mansion in 1982, six years before its agents blew up Pan Am Flight 103.
The Huffington Post reported the estate, called Thunder Rock, has been the center of controversy for decades, partly because Libya was exempted from local property taxes after winning a court battle in 1985.
In 2009, Gadhafi lost a battle to erect his traveling Bedouin tent on the lawn during a U.S. visit.
According to the latest Census Bureau information, the tax bill for Thunder Rock in 1982 was about $14,000. Last year, the mansion was assessed at $5.5 million, and estimates say the annual taxes would be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Englewood officials estimate that the estate would have generated more than $1 million in property taxes by now, and they have formally requested that Libyan authorities issue a payment in lieu of property taxes.
Officials say they see an opportunity now, amid so much criticism of Libya's crackdown, to possibly collect back taxes or even seize the mansion that has been a source of discord and occasional embarrassment to the city.
According to NorthJersey.com, Englewood Mayor Frank Huttle confirmed that he had quietly set in motion the beginnings of possible legal action against the mansion, which has been owned by Libya since late 1982. Huttle said he had directed the city attorney to attempt to revoke the tax exemption Libya's government has enjoyed for nearly 30 years.
In addition to not paying taxes, the estate has occasionally received extra police protection from Englewood, most recently in mid-February after Gadhafi ordered his military to attack protesters.
http://173.201.187.68/international/moammar-gadhafi-and-libya-still-pay-no-property-taxes-on-nj-estate