November 15, 2007
By: Sid Riley
This column presents a non-partisan, conservative viewpoint about items of interest in our community and our lives. Focus is on items that are impacting your pocket book, your personal freedoms, and your rights. I hope that you will read the column regularly and that it occasionally influences your opinions and actions. Now, on to the subject of the week:
Taxes went up 9% this year in Jackson County due to increases in property assessments. The millage was slightly lowered, but the net result was raising the total tax revenues for our beloved bureaucracies from $17,557,346 in 2006 to $18,218,902 for 2007. And thus the growth and expansion of local government continues. The system is set up to hide the fact that they are actually increasing their "take" from us each year.
When approached about taxes, the commissioners will proudly tell you that they held the line and even "rolled back" the millage to a point equal to or less than the previous year. Unlike Paul Harvey, they are not telling you the "rest of the story". Every year they are actually significantly increasing the taxes harvested from the county’s citizens. It is this false "holding the line" attitude that they try to sell that turns me off. Why don’t they just admit that this year the property assessments were increased by 9%, and that the tax revenues were increased by 3.8%.
They must think we are pretty stupid. Where else would they get the money to pay for the new positions they approve and the 3% raises, and the $900 bonus checks for every county employee?
They have to be raising taxes and revenues.
The property tax notices came in the same week that our local gasoline prices shot past the $3.00 mark, immediately forcing a dent into everyone’s available funds. Thus, it was a "double whammy" week!
Add to those factors the fact that my wife has been busy reading Christmas catalogs and warming up her "credit card swipe" motion, and I see nothing but bad times ahead. I didn’t get a 3% raise and a $900 bonus check.
The statistics shown in the charts on the front page tell the story of where the money has come from to pay for the huge staffs, automobiles, eleven paid holidays, raises and bonus checks for the swelling bureaucracy that has overflowed from the court house that once safely housed them all. They now fill almost every building surrounding the court house square….and they are busy planning to build more space for the "crats" of the future.
Property assessments are up an astounding 48% during the past six years! And the money they have sucked out of the pockets of the property owners has risen by 25% during that period! How much can the property owners stand? Meanwhile the bureaucracy is steadily growing like a variety of money eating kudzu at a rate of 4% per year.
A couple of weeks ago in this column I forecasted what things would be like here in another thirty years, and by looking at the history of the past six years you can sadly see the truth of that forecast. It is time for us to begin electing people that are dedicated to NOT letting that forecast come true! The trend can be stopped and reversed.
The school system employees just approved a 7% increase for teachers and staff, retroactive to August 8. Now, I believe that most tax payers do not mind seeing the teachers get a significant raise. Lord knows I wouldn’t want to have to try to control a class room with the restrictions of today’s politically correct environment. The problem with this raise in my opinion comes when they add the words "and staff".
Years ago I saw a detailed listing of the salaries of the school system employees. At that time there were around 240 teachers listed that were barely making enough to survive (from $22,000 to $30,000 per year). Then there was page after page of "staff", counselors, dieticians, administrators, librarians, assistant librarians, principals, assistant principals, cafeteria managers, maintenance staff, and on and on. These "staff" people were all making significantly more than the poor teachers.
The tactic of the union and the associated bureaucracy is to attach all of these "staff" people to any increase given to the teachers. I would rather give the teachers a 10-12% raise and get their salaries up another $10,000 to $15,000 per year….and only give the already well paid "staff" a small increase. The union and the "system" will not allow that sensible approach to be taken, so they give a 7% increase across the board to the teachers AND the staff. This approach only widens the dollar disparity between the two groups.
Of course the school system has been steadily increasing its staff and budgets through the years, even though the number of students in the system has remained steady and at times has even decreased. The tax dollars spent per student has dramatically increased over the years, while the overall quality of the average educated graduate has not improved appreciably, if any.
Elections are coming. Before you vote meet with that candidate and demand a commitment from him/her to not continue to increase the portion of the budget that will be under the control of that position. We must elect people that will not play the same old games with our hard earned money. Growth in bureaucratic budgets should only occur when our population increases enough to justify it.
Push to eliminate unnecessary, unwanted, unneeded services. Eliminate excesses. Stop the growth and continued intrusion into our lives. Our hard earned tax money should be spent by the bureaucracy in a respectful and appreciative manner on services that are absolutely necessary for our society to function. Place an increasing demand on good management and a frugal approach and you will be "Getting It Right".
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