• Harrisburg's LVT mayors
  
  
• Program
  
  
• Plenary Sessions
  
  
• Rates &
  Reservations

Harrisburg: A Tale of Two Rival Pro-LVT Mayors

Mayor Stephen Reed introduced land value tax to Harrisburg, and credits it for playing a key role in Harrisburg's recovery during his 28 years as mayor. Reed was defeated in 2009 by the current mayor, Linda Thompson. Although Reed and Thompson are bitter political rivals, they both agree that land value tax is good for Harrisburg, and the Thompson administration has proposed to expand the land value tax. We have invited both of them to address our conference (although not at the same time), and are asking both of them to avoid campaigning against one another. Harrisburg is fortunate to have two rival mayors that both support land value taxation. With Pittsburgh's "fall from grace," Harrisburg is now the nation's largest land-taxing city.

A Perfect Conference for Conversation

The Program

Plenary Sessions

Welcome to Harrisburg: A welcoming reception featuring mayor Linda Thompson (invited), hosted by Ted Gwartney. Monday 7:30 PM

Open Mike. Speak for up to three minutes at a time on any topic. Tuesday, 8 AM, 4:35 PM, Wednesday, 8 AM, Thursday, 8 AM, Friday, 8 AM.

Public Officials on Land Value Tax: Elected officials from Pennsylvania's LVT cities on their impressions of how land value tax has affected those cities. Hosted by Ed Dodson, Tuesday, 10:30 AM.

Georgist Assertions in a Nutshell: One-minute statements of common Georgist assertions in support of land value tax, delivered over lunch. Tuesday, 11:50 AM, over lunch

Public Officials Respond to Georgist Assertions: The same elected officials talk about which Georgist assertions about land value tax come across as most and least compelling to them and their constituencies. Hosted by Ed Dodson, Tuesday, 1:15 PM.

Replace real estate taxes? A debate on whether to replace property tax with a non-real-estate tax. Joshua Vincent and Dan Sullivan challenge the strongest anti-property-tax advocates in the state. Free to the Public. Tuesday, 7 PM.

Whose shale is it anyhow? A panel on the hot Marcellus Shale controversy, focusing on collecting a royalty or severance tax and on including mineral rights in the property tax. Alanna Hartzok hosts speakers from the Keystone Budget and Policy Center and Penn Future. Free to the public. Wednesday, 7 PM.

Banquet: Harrisburg's former mayor Steven Reed (invited). Thursday, 7 PM.

Putting What We Have Learned into Action: A roving brainstorming festival with an organization at each table. Friday, 8:30 AM.

Friendship Brunch: Our traditional conference close, where we remember past Georgists, express our fondest hopes, and toast our fellow Georgists with champagne.

No-Lose Concurrent Sessions

All concurrent sessions are repeated in such a way that nobody has to miss his second or third choice in order to attend his first choice. There will never be more than three events at one time. This allows us to accept more presenters, and to have smaller sessions with more interaction. The emphasis on this year's conference is interaction.

LVT = higher Buildings, more revenue, and increased land values. An interactive seminar by Mike Curtis. Tuesday, 8:30 AM, Thursday, 10:30 AM.

Mannahatta: The Henry George institute's snazzy new seminar on the Laws of Distribution. Wednesday, 8:20 AM, Thursday, 3:30 PM.

Land Rights Online Course: - Alanna Hartzok, Earth Rights Institute

Sales and VAT taxes: Polly Cleveland, drawing on analysis by Mason Gaffney, Eric Jacoby Hawkins on sales and excise taxes in Canada.

Marketing Basics.Who is your target audience? What do you want from them, and what will induce them to give you what? Dave Harrell, Walt Rybeck, Joshua Vincent. Tuesday, 8:30 AM,  Wednesday, 8:20 AM,

Strategic Planning. What is a winnable objective for your organization? Why is that objective important to the Georgist movement? How can you get what you need to win that objective? Paul Justus, Dan Sullivan, Joshua Vincent. Tuesday, 3:00 PM, Wednesday, 10:20 AM.

Networking, Collaboration and Skills Exchange. What do you need? What can you offer? How do we match talent with opportunity? Bill Batt, Eric Jacoby Hawkins, Jacob Schwartz-Lucas. Wednesday, 10:20 AM, Thursday, 1:30 PM.

Toastmaster-Style Speeches. Speak for 5 to 10 minutes on the topic of your choice. You can sign up for this at any time until all slots are filled. After each speech there will be a short critique of the presentation quality (Toastmasters style), followed by a brief discussion of content. This is a great opportunity to make a personal statement to fellow Georgists. These sessions have been very popular in the past. Contact Dan Sullivan to reserve a spot. Tuesday, 3:00 PM, Thursday, 10:30 AM.

The Law of Rent never changes, but our schedule may -- without notice.

Contacts:

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