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Friday, July 1, 2016

WTU Headquarters On The Auction Block: Union Prez Liz Davis Doesn't Pay Property Tax! The Washington Teacher

The Washington Teacher:

WTU Headquarters On The Auction Block: Union Prez Liz Davis Doesn't Pay Property Tax!

June 30th is the last official day of WTU Prez Davis' constitutional term. Malcolm Barnes explores this unfortunate scandal in the article below. What remains ahead is anybody's guess especially with Davis obstructing WTU elections from moving forward. Ballots are due by July 8. If you didn't receive one- please email JWRIGHT@WTULOCAL6.NET  It's imperative that you vote. Peterson slate is #1 on the ballot...Candi Peterson

By Malcolm Lewis Barnes

The Washington Teachers’ Union (WTU) Pennsylvania Avenue headquarters building owes over $24,000 in unpaid back real estate taxes and is on the Monday, July 18th Tax Sale schedule, which could result in the forced sale of the building at worst, and the union being hit with thousands of dollars of legal fees to fight off a tax lien sale.

A current Real Property Tax Property summary of Square 1019S, Lot 0040 reveals that the WTU has a total of $46,648.35 in unpaid taxes over the period from 2013 to the first half of tax year 2016. During President Liz Davis tenure and Treasurer Diane Terrell, the WTU racked up over $10,000 in penalties and interest in every year but 2014, and as recently as the first half 2016 bill for $19,199.93 the union incurred $1,919.93 or ten percent in penalties and an additional $863.90 in interest charges.
The $24,365.55 that caused the WTU to be placed on the Tax Sale list was the result of 2013 through 2015 delinquent taxes that the union failed to pay during the first two-and-a-half years of President Davis’ three year term. Ironically President Davis is the incumbent candidate for reelection under the “Responsible Leadership Team: Integrity, Experience & Experience” and this level of financial malfeasance and neglect is likely to result in an immediate investigation of why the union did not require the real estate taxes to be escrowed after a series of multi-million dollar loans were acquired from M&T Bank and Amalgamated Bank of Chicago.

In the opinion of former WTU General Counsel Johnnie Landon, who served under George Parker until 2010 and was later dismissed by former WTU President Nathan Saunders, "The former Presidents' of WTU should have never executed loan documents without it first undergoing a legal sufficiency review. Whoever was advising them at the time of the building acquisition as a bare minimum should have set up an escrow account."


As the former general counsel under WTU President George Parker, attorney Landon has history with the WTU’s plans to purchase a property and was assigned to investigate the acquisition of an inexpensive The Washington Teacher: