This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.

Cannot Be Justified

What a novel concept our forefathers had: Taxes should only be levied with the consent of taxpayers. Somehow that idea seems to be lost on the Clinton Board of Finance. After two budget referendum defeats, it had the nerve to make another 0.5 percent cut.

How many times must the voters say “No” for it to become clear that after a 10 percent tax increase this year, the cupboard is bare? What makes this even more flagrant is that the board is sitting on a potential $1 million surplus in the town’s budget this year. That is a million dollars that should be in taxpayers’ pockets, but will end up in the town’s undesignated fund.

Clinton’s undesignated “rainy day” fund is 12 percent of the operating income, which is already $1 million over a 10 percent policy guideline. Adding another tax increase now cannot be justified and is simply unnecessary.

Property tax increases in Clinton have become a bad habit that is difficult to break. We need serious, realistic financial planning to bring our mill rate and taxes under control.

What is needed is an intervention, which taxpayers have provided with the defeat of both budgets in two referenda and the town budget in a third this month. How can we make the Board of Finance listen?

I encourage your readers to join the fight against token budget cuts, to talk to their neighbors and friends, and to vote “No” again on June 20.

Pamela Fritz

Clinton

Pamela Fritz is president of the Clinton Taxpayers Association.