BCC budget 7.5 million dollar shortfall next year. How are we going to make it up?

[Bob Wells]

You guys get garbage service 2 times a week? Imagine that. Now you know where your 80% of the ad valoreum taxes are going. We only get it once a week. And we are suppose to be the trashy rednecks.

I don't understand why the whole county does not get garbage service 2 times a week. It seems that is crazy seeing how the whole county pays the 1 cent sales tax. Also after a little research, although I have never been accused of being a math whiz, a 1 penny sales tax brings approx $12 million a year to the county. I wonder how much it cost to pick up the garbage and what happens to the rest of the penny. I thought at one time they paid for the new jail, but still how much if any has been banked?

 

[wrobert]

I don't understand why the whole county does not get garbage service 2 times a week. It seems that is crazy seeing how the whole county pays the 1 cent sales tax. Also after a little research, although I have never been accused of being a math whiz, a 1 penny sales tax brings approx $12 million a year to the county. I wonder how much it cost to pick up the garbage and what happens to the rest of the penny. I thought at one time they paid for the new jail, but still how much if any has been banked?

The largess, when the economy is good enough for there to be some is proportionally divided back between the cities and the county. I believe that DFS dumps it back into the general fund as unbudgeted income since there is really no way of knowing how much it is going to be. There is an interlocal agreement that covers this.

 

[wrobert]

Cutting salaries might not be good in the long run. Government salaries generaly do not go up rapidly nor do they decline quickly. A salary cut could put Walton County employees below comparable pay with other governmental agencies. This would recreate the 80's and 90's where the county would hire a beginner train them and get them certified and that person would leave fore greener pastures. The turnover with the county in that time period was terible. Also the perdiem accounts pay for travel reimbersment for people going for continuing education or other required classes. Some perdiem accounts can be cut others are required to pay for people to go to required coursework to maintain requirements such as EMS, FIRE, Corrections, Dispatch and others.

Government salaries are all over the map in this county. Same with benefits. Even within the same government entity some get all their health care paid for, some have to kick in a little bit. The more you dig and look the more amazed you will be at the cuts that could be made, and the person at the low end, doing the physical work, would not even know it.

 

[Matt J]

Government salaries are all over the map in this county. Same with benefits. Even within the same government entity some get all their health care paid for, some have to kick in a little bit. The more you dig and look the more amazed you will be at the cuts that could be made, and the person at the low end, doing the physical work, would not even know it.

That's not uncommon. My parents both worked for the state and paid nothing for their health care. If one of them had left they would have had to kick in the going rate. Looking back it was discrimination against single people and really kind of nepotism.

 

[wrobert]

That's not uncommon. My parents both worked for the state and paid nothing for their health care. If one of them had left they would have had to kick in the going rate. Looking back it was discrimination against single people and really kind of nepotism.

I believe we currently do that at the school district. But it is done because it is cheaper to pay for family coverage if both work for the district than to pay for single coverage for each employee.

What I am speaking of is things such as at the State level career service get their coverage paid for, but others have to pay a portion of their health care. At the local level some get their family coverage paid, while others get some of it paid but not all.

 

[Andy A]

Oh Andy. That song has already changed.

But just think. We could raise the millage rate 5 mills, that would bring in an additional 80 million or so, with that we could start all of the capital projects that we have dreamed about putting everyone in the county that wants to work back to work. Now that would mean that if you had a house valued at 100K you would pay an additional $500 in property tax. But for less than $2 a day, everyone is working.

Since you are more of a political gadabout than I am, I guess I'll have to accept your statement that Ronnie Bell has already backtracked on his presentation. Other than that, your suggestion about the 5 mill increase is duly noted and rejected.

 

[wrobert]

Since you are more of a political gadabout than I am, I guess I'll have to accept your statement that Ronnie Bell has already backtracked on his presentation. Other than that, your suggestion about the 5 mill increase is duly noted and rejected.

Hopefully there is no support from the BCC. But the discussion of raising the millage was at a public hearing with the other Constitutional officials. I have had two ask me what I thought about the idea so far. They also think raising it 5 mills is a little on the looney side, but if we can raise taxes to ask more people to come here so that they can sit quietly in their rooms at night, we can raise the millage 5 mills to give those of us who own property here our own park.

 

[Andy A]

Hopefully there is no support from the BCC. But the discussion of raising the millage was at a public hearing with the other Constitutional officials. I have had two ask me what I thought about the idea so far. They also think raising it 5 mills is a little on the looney side, but if we can raise taxes to ask more people to come here so that they can sit quietly in their rooms at night, we can raise the millage 5 mills to give those of us who own property here our own park.

It is understood we must pay for our usage of services but 5 mills is ridiculous at this point in time. I could go along with a more reasonable increase. I thought you were being facetious.

 

[wrobert]

It is understood we must pay for our usage of services but 5 mills is ridiculous at this point in time. I could go along with a more reasonable increase. I thought you were being facetious.

Facetious? Man I want to see some change. Right now the BCC is growing government by little bits. I think they need to just go ahead and do it right. Full employment for everyone, they can guard the parks from the perverts.

 

[Bob Wells]

Robert
How is government growing and what could or should get cut that would equate to a lower tax. The BCC has gotten rid of many of the cell phone/ direct connect. They have not replaced some employees, they are in the process of saving money by giving WCSO all of dispatch for the North end. If that is not efficiency or at least giving it the old college try then I don't know what is. Crist really hasn't done that much. At least with a one cent sales tax increase, not just residence would be paying for these services and it would cut the deficit. For that matter increase by 1/2 cent and see what happens. By the way how is that done?