I’m taking a few days off to tend to some family stuff.  Everyone’s okay.  Just lending a hand.  I might post a few short things here and there.

I checked out the agenda for today’s budget meeting.  It includes a survey, which is definitely going to get the Real Poop treatment.  The purpose of the survey is to explore the possibility of increasing funding for human services by imposing an additional tax.

I understand the need for human services.  My concerns, of course, involve the fair distribution of services.  Will there be wasteful spending in some areas coupled with gross neglect in others – as there was with the sewer projects?  Will areas with higher needs be funded to a lesser extent than areas with lower needs – as has happened with animal control?

Will the county provide an honest analysis of what and where the needs are, and fund them accordingly?  They haven’t in the past.  (See here and here.)  I don’t expect they will in the future.  Where does this leave taxpayers, who may be willing to fund needed services but don’t want to see their tax dollars pointlessly squandered?

Also here’s a link to the budget calendar.  The county is avoiding the elephant in the room (capital projects) until well after the qualifying period.  It’s a smart move if you’re a politician who wants to avoid an examination your of reckless spending habits in an election year.  As we know, Kolhage and Carruthers were the two main drivers of excessive spending on the Cudjoe Regional project.  Neither has a challenger yet, and I’m sure they hope to avoid drawing one.