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

Do Your Homework

This Tuesday, April 18, you will once again be called upon to perform your civic duty and cast your ballot to accept or reject the proposed 2023-'2024 Guilford Town Budget in the amount of $114,667,323 representing a $4.7M increase over the budget of the previous year.

During the past two years, the nation—including our local community—has been devastated economically. Families are being forced to tighten budgets, necessitating increased financial responsibility governing all non-essential purchases. The recent property tax revaluation in Guilford—combined with this budget proposal — will place additional strain on those tight family budgets.

This year, you are being asked to approve the highest budget increase in the past 10 years. Fiscal responsibility should be not only the domain of the taxpayer but also the government. Taxes increase over time, but it is time to control the rate of spending. Now, our elected officials must make these difficult spending decisions just like we are all forced to do with our family budgets.

When asked about government spending, esteemed economist Milton Freeman described it this way: “If I spend somebody else’s money on somebody else, I’m not concerned about how much it is, and I’m not concerned about what I get. And that’s government.” Simply put, the government is not spending its own money. It is spending your money, so it has no reason to care about how much it spends or what it spends your money on. You simply have to trust that politicians and your elected officials will spend your money wisely. Ask yourself, how many people would you trust with your debit card?

Do your homework to be an informed voter on April 18.

Nicholas Cusano

Guilford

Nicholas Cusano is chairman of the Guilford Republican Town Committee