Everyone realizes that the China virus can make people very sick or die, but some people fail to consider its financial harm to tens of millions of Americans from lost jobs, greatly reduced incomes, and/or the failures of their businesses. Some workers and business owners in Belknap County have also suffered severe financial harm.
Therefore we should all applaud any level of government, like Belknap County, that reduces taxes.
Many family incomes are down by thousands of dollars, so the $38.90 savings proposed by the Laconia Daily Sun may not seem like much. But every little bit helps; $38.90 can pay for groceries, one or two pairs of children’s shoes, or a car fill-up or two to help a worker get to a more distant, lower-paying job.
The Belknap County Delegation has been attacked as if it made draconian budget cuts, but a 5% budget cut is trivial, not draconian. Having been a manager who had to deal with budget cuts, any manager who can’t manage a 5% cut probably isn’t in the right job. Not only that, the Delegation has indicated that it will monitor spending and ensure that essential services are funded.
Note that the budgets recommended by the Commissioners have usually been inflated and resulted in burdening taxpayers for more money than was actually needed.
One has to wonder about the vehement critics of the County budget cuts. Don’t these people care about their fellow citizens who are financially struggling? Perhaps they haven’t been financially harmed by the China virus. Perhaps they retired here after making lots of money out of state and can easily afford tax increases, especially if the increases fund their special interest(s). Perhaps their criticism is simply virtue signally or displays of power. Or, perhaps their attacks are simply politically motivated.
Of course, people who feel they are not paying enough county taxes should do what they think is right and send checks to the Belknap County Treasurer for the additional tax they feel they should be paying. Even better, find someone in your community who has lost his/her job and pay their tax.
The Belknap County Delegation should be applauded for considering the interests of the taxpayers and challenging the County to be more efficient as it delivers necessary services. Thank you! Wouldn’t it be nice if every level of government did the same thing and eliminated wasteful and inappropriate spending and challenged every government entity to be more efficient?
