Here is the article I wrote that came out in yesterday's Kenosha News. Of all the Republican View articles that I have written, this one by far has gotten the most reaction from people. I have gotten several emails. Plus, I actually had stranger stop me in Walmart to discuss the irresponsible spending in Pleasant Prairie.
Entitled- Are our tax dollars being properly managed?
It is December, folks, and here they come--our tax bills are on their way.
Tax season is just around the corner, and the question that we are asking ourselves is whether our taxes will go up this year.
Judging from the recently released local and county budgets, it is a safe bet that our taxes are going up again.
Most of us do not mind paying taxes. We understand the need for good schools, good roads, fire and police protection, etc....
However, we do care that our taxes go up because of money mismanagement from our elected officials. As taxpayers, we have a tendency to get upset when this happens.
Are our elected officials managing our tax dollars properly?
That is a hard question to answer. Some elected officials are making an honest effort to manage our tax dollar efficiently. However, some elected officials are not even trying to keep our taxes down to a reasonable level.
Anyone watching the squabble that is taking place in the Village of Pleasant Prairie realizes there is a serious budget problem. In a tentative budget proposed earlier this year, village officials had already increased property taxes to the maximum level that the state would allow. Believing they needed more money, village officials decided to go to the taxpayers and ask for additional tax increases in the November referendums.
Village officials decided that the tax increases they had already proposed were not nearly enough to cover for a new ambulance, a new snowplow, heart monitors, and a Hurst tool.
The taxpayers of Pleasant Prairie soundly rejected the tax increases proposed in the November referendums.
Village officials then went back and looked at their original budget proposal to see what they could do to fund the ambulance, snowplow, and the heart monitors.
Guess what? Just like magic, village officials found plenty of money to fund these new items.
They did not really need the extra money after all!
So where did village officials find the extra $433,000 to fund these new items?
Apparently, they had some money in a reserve fund, and their health care insurance was not going to go up by $163,000 as they had originally budgeted.
Didn’t Village President John Steinbrink and Administrator Michael Pollocoff notice that they did not really need more money before they went to the taxpayers demanding more tax dollars?
Apparently not. This is the kind of stuff that frustrates us as taxpayers. This is ridiculous! Did they look at the budget and the tax increases before they actually proposed it?
I read in the paper a couple of weeks ago that some Pleasant Prairie village officials were upset because they are being accused of “mismanaging” the village finances.
Well, after watching this fiasco in Pleasant Prairie play out in the newspaper- what else would you call it?
It is extremely irresponsible for Pleasant Prairie officials to demand additional money from taxpayers that they did not really need.
Taxes are unavoidable and we are willing to pay them. However, we demand responsible government officials who are looking out for the best interest of the taxpayers.
3 comments:
Whoaa it's time for a reality check here.
If you actually believe that the Pleasant Prairie Board spends irresponsibly then you are just plain clueless. Pleasant Prairie operates with the 2nd lowest budget in the State of Wisconsin for a community its size according to the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance. Pleasant Prairie ranks far better fiscally than any other government in Southeastern Wisconsin including the City of Kenosha and Kenosha County itself. The tax rate in Pleasant Prairie is $3.11 while in the City it is over $9.00. At the same time, Pleasant Prairie provides outstanding full services such as police, fire, rescue and public works.
Ask the Realtors, they'll tell you that this is one of the main reasons why real estate in Pleasant Prairie is so desired.
You need to move beyond the rhetoric and find the facts or perhaps you have another agenda and are not interested in the facts, "read: liar". Either way, when you start calling people irresponsible. perhaps you should take a look in the mirror.
Don't tell me that you would be so stupid as to come on this website and call me a liar?
Apparently you are saying this.
By the way, the facts and figures you are spouting can be checked.
http://www.wistax.org/facts/0606%20Web%20Villages.xls
The best in Southeast Wisconsin? You better check again. There are some lovely places, like Williams Bay that has a better tax rate.
Of course, we can play the facts and figures game all day long. In the end, all that matters is what the voters say.
On November 7th, the voters were screaming loud and clear to Steinbrink and Pollocoff. The vote for the tax increases was not even close-
http://www.co.kenosha.wi.us/countyclerk/election_results/voteresult.phtml
And just to make matters worse, Steinbrink and Pollocoff "found" the extra money needed to fund the items for the village. They did not need the tax increase after all. That is extremely irresponsible.
The reality is that the voters have had enough in Pleasant Prairie.
Whether or not Steinbrink likes this or not, this is the reality. The people in Pleasant Prairie believe they pay plenty in taxes already and they are sick of the tax increases. That is reality!
Is this guy a clone of Steinbrink?? My goodness what a rant from the way left.
He's just mad the ppl of the Prairie didn't let him spend money for a snow plow. ha ha ha
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