Letter: Too many questions, too little thought
To the Editor:
As a person who believes adamantly that government (at all levels) must live within its means and not expect that their bosses, the voting public, will open their pocketbooks every time their wish list exceeds their income, I believe that the businesses that are so vehemently opposed to discussion of a new law enforcement center are being very shortsighted and self-serving in the short term at the expense of the common good and fiscal responsibility in the long term.
The idea of the law enforcement center as an economic development project is simple misinformation meant to confuse the issue. No matter how many times the "opponents" say it, trying to get the idea planted in the minds of county residents, it just isn't true. It's an issue of government economics and fiscal responsibility. It's also not a prison. It's a jail. There is a difference and the use of negative wording for subliminal negative reinforcement only hurts your cause.
As a small business owner myself, I also struggle with questions of economics. Can I afford that new piece of equipment? Does it make more sense for me to purchase the items this equipment would produce, or buy the equipment and produce them myself? If I need to get a loan for the equipment, is the cost of repayment of that loan offset by the productivity it would provide me?
As much as I believe that it is gross irresponsibility to try to run a government entity like a business, sometimes it comes down to simple dollars and sense (and cents).
I wonder how Irv Schroeder, Hillsboro Ford, or Wright would handle it if their equipment became outdated and had to be completely replaced. Would they think that it's more fiscally responsible to take out a loan to replace the equipment, and possibly enough extra so they could expand and take in even more business from other areas? Or would they decide that they can't afford the loan and stop doing auto repairs on-site and instead pay money out to have them sent to Newton, Wichita, Emporia or El Dorado? Would THEY decide that it makes more sense to not only not be able to provide a service that their customers expect, but to pay OUT money, sending it completely out of the county, to have someone ELSE do it? I didn't think so.
With regard to a law enforcement center, looking at it from a purely fiscally responsible point of view, what makes more sense? Closing the jail and shipping all our inmates out of the county, possibly to several different locations, where we (as in we the citizens — it's OUR money they would be spending) would have to send money out of the county for someone else to house and feed them, sending a deputy (or possibly more than one) out of the county for however long it would take to pickup, keep control over, and take back an inmate every time they were required for a court appearance? By doing that, we would still be supporting a law enforcement center. The only difference would be, it would be someone else's! Or does it make more sense to build a new jail here, where the inmates are held in the county (locally), having a jail that provides jobs in the county (locally), where items that are needed to support the administrative and day-to-day operations of the jail are purchased in the county (locally), and where we can house additional inmates from out of the county so OTHER counties help us pay for OUR law enforcement center, instead of us helping other counties to support theirs?
I agree that higher taxes do not help our county businesses. But sometimes you do have to bite the bullet and spend the money in the short term so you can be economically viable and fiscally responsible in the long term. And I believe that if you as a business provide a quality service or product, your customers will keep coming. Slightly higher taxes won't hurt a high quality business, just as lower taxes won't help a poor quality business.
I believe that the county commissioners need to
1.) Do a better job of explaining why the current jail is inadequate and needs to be replaced.
2.) Present a firm plan of action for what they want to build and why each part of it is necessary. If all we really need is a jail, then just build a jail. If they can show that there is a genuine need for offices for court officers, a new dispatch center, etc., then build them if we NEED them. Or, if they can justify needing them in the VERY near future, not what you would like to have just because we're building it anyway, so we might as well go for the whole shooting match.
3.) Present in detail how much it will cost, how much it will increase our taxes, and how long it will take to pay off. Then at the end of that time, do a first for government and actually DROP the taxes back down instead of conveniently finding another project that just HAS to be done to keep the income the taxes are generating coming in.
You're right. It's not a Hillsboro versus Marion issue. It's a Marion County issue and what is best and fiscally responsible in the long term for the entire county. Not what's self-serving and shortsighted in the short term.
Rick Burcky
Marion
