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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (April 29, 2015)
Polk County Voices Polk County Itemizer-Observer • April 29, 2015 4A LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Supporting levy is a citizen duty very small price to pay for the safety of your loved ones. Paying taxes to support public safety services is a civic responsibility. It is my way of contributing to a civil society. The self-proclaimed “no property tax increase” cadre ignores the revenue neutral side of the public safety levy. County taxes are re- placing decades of federal tax-based subsidies. These anti-levy voices ask me to reject the public safety op- erating levy but provide no replacement solution for the lost $2,400,000 federal subsidy. I will vote “yes” because “no” means more years of diminished public safety services needed in urban Polk County — no nar- cotics team, decreasing crime prosecution and an understaffed jail. Jennifer Wheeler Independence E.M. Easterly West Salem Some can’t afford more property tax It makes no difference whether the public safety tax levy is needed or not, many Polk County residents have no excess money to pay this new tax. It is sim- ple. Vote “no.” Reginald Wiensz Dallas Don’t compare county salaries Do not let the pay of offi- cials in larger counties dic- tate what our officials should be paid. Polk County is the poor- est and one of the smallest counties in the state. The money would be better spent for the Polk County Sheriff’s Department. Sandra James Dallas Elected officials can’t be trusted We need more deputies on patrol and more staff in the DA’s office. Why isn’t the jail staffed with lower paid corrections officers? Why not use contract labor for the DA’s office? Do you, as taxpayers, trust our elected officials to not spend money from the special levy for other proj- ects since it will be placed in the general fund? I don’t! In five years, the county will want another special levy. Our elected officials should think outside the box to find less expensive ways to provide the services needed. Now they want pay raises? to “pay it forward,” support the public safety levy. Retired Fire Chief, Dallas Fire & SW Polk Co. Bill Hahn Dallas Public safety levy a 24-hour patrol good investment coverage needed Vote yes on ballot meas- Vote no on measure 27- 117. Lloyd Collins Dallas Levy needed to keep county safe When a police officer ar- rests someone in Dallas, In- dependence, Monmouth or West Salem, that person is booked into the county jail, investigated and charged by the county district attorney and prosecuted in the coun- ty circuit court. If convicted, the individ- ual is jailed in the county jail, when paroled, super- vised by the county correc- tions personnel. All Polk County residents receive these safety services whether city residents or rural residents. Supporting the county Public Safety Levy ensures viability of all our safety and security services for our city and county residents alike. Vote yes for public safety. James Williams Dallas Property should not be taxed at all Our home is our security. No taxes should be levied on property. I liked the idea of a rapid response, on-call deputy for rural areas and limiting sheriff patrols to rural areas, letting city police handle is- sues of any kind in the city limits. Higher taxes on rental property could cause a rent increase. time? We do not want another tax. We are tired of constant requests for new bonds, fees and taxes. We already pay too much. The Polk County public safety tax is just another layer on top of other layers of taxes. At some point the weight of all these taxes is going to cause a public out- cry. We have an opportunity to defeat a tax increase with our votes. Please vote against this tax levy and send a strong message. Faye Frei Dallas Voting yes is the right thing to do In Dallas we enjoy a re- markable community, wide- ly known for its peace, tran- quility, sense of comfort and safety. In this regard, we greatly benefit from the many as- pects of the public safety system operated by Polk County. In mid-February, the Dallas City Council, after thorough briefings, voted in vigorous support of the Polk County Public Safety Levy, Measure 27-117. We believe this measure is the only practical means to maintain these vital services that are so important to us all. Join us in voting “yes” for the levy. It is good public policy and the right thing to do. Brian Dalton Mayor, city of Dallas County taxes out of control, vote no Annette Blair Rickreall Vote no, send a strong message Seriously? The Polk Coun- ty Commissioners did not get the message the first It is time for voters to put their foot down. Taxes have grown out of control in Polk County. We do not want an- other increase this year after the increase last year. We need to slam our feet down together and soundly defeat the public safety tax being proposed by the county commissioners and the county administrator. Only then will they finally get the message. It is absurd to continue the heavy tax bur- den imposed on property owners, especially in an economically depressed county. Vote to defeat the tax levy. Charlie Landes Independence Consider your safety and vote yes I am writing this in sup- port of the safety levy for Polk County. I realize, in ad- dition to needing more pa- trolmen, we are affected by higher insurance rates and no response to 911 calls during the hours when pa- trols are not on duty. This last reason brings to my mind a quote of the world champion knockout artist Mike Tyson, “Everyone has a plan until they are hit.” I am also thinking that no one wants a cop until they need one. Please think about your own safety and vote for measure 27-117. ure 27-117 and vote by mail before May 19. We really need to invest in peace of mind and secu- rity with response to 911 calls, and it makes sense to invest in personal protec- tion and protection of our property. An investment in public safety maintains property values and lowers insurance rates. It also attracts new businesses and residents, which adds to the tax base and improves the local economy. Yes, there will be a small increase in property taxes, but the return on that investment is huge. Should the levy fail — there could be tremendous costs. Gene Henshaw Dallas Make more cuts before taxing Local taxes and fees keep moving up. Federal taxes and state taxes increase each year. The economy is strug- gling in Polk County, fore- closures and businesses closing. Now we are being asked to vote to increase our own property taxes with the safety tax levy. Everyone wants to be safe! But we need our government, on all levels, to be willing to make tough decisions, prioritize safety spending, cut “wish list” programs first. It isn’t just “a cup of coffee a day,” it’s an 800-pound gorilla. In- sist on financially responsi- ble government, vote no on the safety tax increase. Rachel Daberkow Independence Don Grove Dallas Time to pay it forward with levy Levy needed to fix safety system I spent 40-plus years serving the residents of Dal- las and Polk County as an EMT/paramedic firefighter. Many times during that service, Polk County deputies made the differ- ence on whether my part- ner and I returned safely to our family. Sending our emergency service person- nel out to help members of our community without deputy assistance is selfish and a crime. Vehicle acci- dents, domestic issues, and health emergencies require additional assistance from public safety officers. Money is tight but it’s time The Polk County public safety system is broken and you have the opportunity to change that. The current “funding fix” by the federal government will be used to offset the cost of the public safety levy to our taxpayers — you have my word on that. However, this funding will last only two years and, if more tax revenue is not generated, we will not be able to provide basic servic- es at an acceptable rate. I urge you to vote “yes” on the upcoming levy. It is a Polk County resources have been severely impact- ed due to federal timber revenue reductions. The pri- mary issue is restoring 24- hour county police patrol. Imagine yourself or family at 3 a.m. when someone is breaking into your home. You call 911 and are told that no Polk County officers are available to respond. This could be deadly! Hav- ing police patrol only from noon to 10 p.m. is not ac- ceptable. By supporting this levy, 22 positions will be re- stored to increase police pa- trol, support the jail, sup- port the district attorney’s office, and increase deten- tion beds for juvenile of- fenders. Eileen Brown West Salem Funding for public safety has fallen The 2007 budget author- ized 19 deputies to patrol and 22 in the jail. The 2014 budget authorized six deputies to patrol and 20 in the jail. Jail population in 1990 was about 40, today about 120. County popula- tion has increased, so has the criminal activity. Crimi- nals in the county conduct those same activities in the cities. 1990 timber revenue was about 2.4 million per year and today is 20 percent of that. The sheriff augments au- thorized personnel with more than 120 unpaid vol- unteers. Need for the law enforcement levy is because of low revenue, not mis- spending. Randy Sitton Dallas Want to write? Letters to the editor are limited to 300 words. Longer letters will be edit- ed. Election-related letters of all types are limited to 100 words. Writers are lim- ited to one election-relat- ed letter per election sea- son. Election letters from writers outside of Polk County are not accepted. Each writer is restricted to one letter per 30-day period. The deadline for letters to the editor is 10 a.m. Monday. Reach us at: Email: ionews@polkio.com. Office: 147 SE Court St., Dallas. ON THE BALLOT Itemizer-Observer staff report POLK COUNTY — Ballots for the May 19 Special District Election will be mailed out on Thursday. Ballots are due by 8 p.m. on May 19. Here’s what you can expect to see when you receive your ballot: Ash Creek Water Control District: Position 4, Dan Farn- worth. No candidate filed for Position 1, Position 2, Position 6 or Position 8, all four-year terms. Buell Red Prairie Water District: Position 4, four years, Mark A. Millikan; Position 5, four years, Wendell Lux; Posi- tion 2, two years, no candi- date filed. Central School District 13J: Position 1, four years, Steven F. Moser; Position 2, two years, no candidate filed; Position 3, four years, Seven A. Love; Position 5, four years, Kathy Zehner; Posi- tion 7, four years, no candidate filed. Dallas Cemetery District: Position 3, four years, John Bar- bour; Position 5, four years, Rod Watson. Dallas School District No. 2: Position 2, four years, Matt Posey; Position 5, four years, Michael Bollman. Falls City School District No. 57: Position 2, four years, Bob Young; Position 4, four years, Jami L. Kidd. Fir Crest Cemetery District: One position, four years, Christy L. Riddell. Hilltop Cemetery District: One position, four years, Mary A. McDaniel. Pedee Cemetery District: Position 3, four years, Tom K. Griffith. Perrydale School District No. 21: Position 1, four years, John W. Cruickshank Jr.; Posi- tion 4, four years, Anna M. Scharf. Polk County Fire District No. 1: Position 1, four years, Tom N. Snair; Position 4, four years, Joe Franko; Position 5, four years, Mike Lippsmeyer. Rock Creek Water District: Three positions, each four- year terms, Roy Steele, Stan M. Mills, Leonard Fischer. Salt Creek Cemetery Dis- trict: One position, four years, Marvin A. Morey. Southwest Rural Fire Pro- tection District: Position 2, four years, Frank W. Pender Jr.; Position 4, four years, Robert T. Davis. Spring Valley Rural Fire Protection District: Position 2, four years, no candidate filed; Position 3, four years, Virginia L. Nelke Roberg; Posi- tion 4, four years, Anne M. Cu- pich. M e a s u re 2 7 - 1 1 7 : Po l k County Public Safety Local Op- tion Tax Authorization. Yes No HOW TO REACH US Vol. 140, No. 17 (USPS) - 437-380) The official newspaper of Polk County • Serving Polk County families since 1875 Winner of 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 General Excellence Awards from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association Periodicals postage paid at Dallas, OR, Independence, OR and Monmouth, OR. 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