The Lamar County commission conducted another public hearing on taxes Tuesday night and a crowd of over 150 filled the courtroom to hold the commisisoners' feet to the fire.
Again, almost all the sentiment expressed over two and a half hours was to cut services and not raise taxes.
Julia Thomas addresses the county commission Tuesday night.
Close it down, lamar county emergency management agency, health department, code enforcement, sonic drive-in, mitch buice, trice funeral home, farmers, childcare, sunny grove assisted living and lamar county jail.
Hell no.
Shut it down- who needs government anyway?
Slackers thats who
Let's face it, the commission has a hard job to do. But let's ask why? Perhaps it is because they chose to centrally locate themselves in a number of areas where they were neither asked nor truly required. As with our federal gov't, the county (and to some extent the city, while we are at it) have inserted themselves when and where they feel there may be something to gain.
The millage rate increase is an easy answer. It is the 'open book test' of high school, if you will. It doesn't require much thinking. It doesn't require any homework and the results are oftentimes inaccurate because they measure little more than how well you can sign your name.
Cutting programs is also rather easy. But perhaps at this point it is the only way to go. It is safe to say no one wants to see jobs cut. It is also safe to say no one wants to lose their home. But it is most safe to say that somewhere along the line someone has to call poppycock and bite the bullet. In the case of our county at this point I am afraid it needs to be the programs.
The fire department and EMS services, while helpful to some, are a bloated lot and tend to receive far more money and concession than they deserve. I don't feel our county is large enough to warrant a full-time, paid staff.
The afterschool programs....well, let me make something clear. No child should have to suffer for the shortcomings of his/her parents. But if we continue to teach and show our kids that the gov't will continue to take care of them as long as they claim poverty and inequality, we can expect the sort of entitlement attitudes that have stricken our nation today. I am sorry to sound impatient but I am not willing to see my property taxes raised so that a mother and/or father can send their kids to an afterschool program that is little more than a free meal and babysitting service. At worst, the child will see that he wants more for himself and his future.
The rec center and programs have now become ridiculous. Children playing do not always need the newest uniforms to have fun. What ever happened to rec ball being fun and being about just playing with your buddies? If they pay $20 (and this is a generic figure) to play ball then the budget should be based no. of kids x $20 registration fee. No more, no less. If they want to compete and win trophies and recognition than parents can put them on these private, traveling teams.
I could ramble on, but I digress. Lamar Co. I don't think you are going to see the results the people are asking for. I think you are going to see hard headed commissioners and loose-lipped campaigners taking the easy way out and asking us to watch the left hand while the right hand signs the bill.
The school system is on its way up. It offers more programs, opportunites, and advancements than many other schools in this area. In time, Pike families will want to send their kids here.
woman you get out from in front of that damn tv and stop watching opra and the view and come into the real world.these people are saving peoples lives and deserve a hell of a lot more than they get!!i hope when your laying in the middle of the living room floor gasping for air and crying in pain you remember this post.you make me want to puke!!
It's shameful that Lamar county seek to balance its budget on the backs of the most vulnerable some already struggling to eat, buy medicine and maintain their basic needs on a pension. The seniors should be given some common sense consideration because of their limited resources. The truth is no one should be paying higher property taxes when the value of property is decreasing. Property taxes should be based upon the value of the property, not the need of the county budget.
We have all these people who rent apartments, houses and rooms for their college kids and they don't pay property taxes. If we have over 5000 new students attenting Gordon College and more then that working and coming thru our county and cities. Lets put all that to work for us. We are already paying for a splosh fund and seeing good results from that.
Lets up grade our county with the help of all, and not raise property taxes or school tax, but raise sales tax.
Our county needs a lot of help, did you see the Police increase their patrol for all the extra people in our city or county. No, the police Department has about the same number of officers it had back in the 70's.
The sheriff needs more deputies to help out in the county.
So Commissioners please remember who you work for, and who put you in office, because each one of you has came by our houses and promised that you could do a better job then the last, So lets see what kind of job you can really do.
I know you job is tough but if you can not or just don't want to listen to the people that put you in your position, Please go ahead and step down and let get someone who can.
Thank you
HC
Too many fire stations, and too many trucks.
The trucks themselves are too big. I noted SIX trucks parked in front and inside the Barnesville FD building recently. Six is more than the entire county needs!
Other than auto accidents, the county fire department does very little. Remember when Andrews made the statement that LCFD didn't fight brush and woods fires?
BTW, who voted to combine the city/county fire departments? I don't seem to remember being asked if it was a good idea. The combination just seemed to happen. Another example of our "betters" deciding for us.
Kinda like the county water project, aka "money pit".
So yeah, there is quite a bit of bloat to be removed from the Fire Department.
500.00 divided by 12 hours equals about 41.50 per hour. Add the family health care insurance at probably 600.00 per month per would now bring it up to 91.50 per hour. Good pay for having a county administrator do all the work. Once or twice per year they get an all expense trip to places like Jekyll Island for themselves and family on the taxpayer dime; or roughly 1000.00 per commissioner; probably more.
Calculate the savings. They have an administrator they decided was necessary thus reducing their responsibilities. Therefore, kill the healthcare benefit and allow them to pay for it on their own dime if they want it: 600 X 5 = 3000 x 12 = $36,000.00 per year.
Kill the tax payer funded vacation saves another 5K; probably more. Annual savings 41,000.00
Of course these estimates are guesses but I bet they are actually low. I’d bet those benefits cost us more than 41K per year. The monthly pay for commissioners to attend a meeting is sufficient until they are capable of handling county business.
It’s our money they are reckless with and they surely don’t want to cut anything that will have an impact on them.
You have GOT to be kidding !?!?!?!
Does anyone know if these type of meetings ever do any good? Citizens can voice their concerns, but has there ever been ONE time when the gov't actually DID what the PEOPLE wanted??
I am going to assume, anonymous, that you are suggesting I not watch opera (opra ?????) and instead enter into the wold you consider real where the Fire and EMS services of Lamar County are constantly rushing into burning buildings and saving desperate older people who have one foot in the grave as they struggle to dial 911. Quite dramatic. I will remember this post. You see, if you had read my comment I was not suggesting the services be discontinued. I was suggesting that in order to save our counties financial disposition we should return to a volunteer staff.
I have been around here long enough to remember when the squad got in trouble for not meeting certification and not even meeting the deadline. I have no problem with rewarding people but only when their work excels.
Shut up!
You made them so you shouild support them.
My daughter is in the Navy and is currently on deployment to a less safe part of the world than you're currently occupying.
She is making a sacrifice and as her parents, her Dad and I are also. It was never more clear to me than as I stood on the dock in Norfolk Tuesday morning and watched the ship depart, the railing surrounded with the young people in their dress whites.
The gov't supplies her with a certain amount of money for her uniforms, and the Navy requires her to have in her possession twice the uniforms that they give her money for. The rest comes out of her own pocket.
So, if you have to make your ignorant comments about our service men and women, make them inside your empty head, where they can rattle around and not hurt any feelings.
Post #26 just sumed up the entire welfare program. Having babies for more entitlements. Babies that dont have dadies or dadies in prision. If you are stupid enough to have that many children that you cant take care of, its your problem. Im tired of my tax dollars paying for your mistakes.
Just think about Texas. On top of the welfare leaches, they had 500,000 babies born to illegal imigrants to pay for too. Man this county is great!
Please don't miss my respectful answer to your touching blog as part of my response to Cats response.
The landlord pays the property taxes, and he/she may or may not use the money that the renter paid to him/her to pay for the property taxes.
A person that OWNS a home has to PAY for that home PLUS pay for property taxes!!
NO ONE gets homestead exemption anymore around here, they cut that out last year.
My property taxes went up $400 additional dollars because of it.