Tomorrow, Saturday, May 1, 2010, voters in Bossier City will go to the polls to vote on whether or not to approve an increase to the tax millage that will be dedicated to police and fire.
Bossier City officials warn that police officers and fire fighters will be laid off if the tax increase does not pass.
If you Google "police and fire millages around the country", you will see time and time again that whenever governing bodies want more taxes, the first hostages they take are police officers and fire fighters .
Until police officers, fire fighters, and the citizens they protect and serve, rise up and demand accountability from elected officials in how tax dollars are spent, this scenario will continue to occur.
Taxpayers in Bossier City will come through tomorrow and approve the tax increase, but not because they think Bossier City government has been wise with tax dollars. Taxpayers will approve the millage because their heroes are the underpaid, overworked police officers and fire fighters of Bossier City. Every one of those heroes would gladly ransom us. Once again, we have to ransom them.
Email us at savebossier@hotmail.com
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Here's the deal. The citizens are the heroes regarding this tax. No matter how bad a deal this is, we realize we need protection and we're willing to take a tax increase for it. The City Council is the enemy, and to oppose this tax would harm the citizens of Bossier City. It's like living in a high crime area, but selling your home defense guns because you're protesting against a highway tax. It's moronic to oppose paying for police and fire, but perfectly sensible to hate City Council's and Mayor's guts for forcing us into this.
ReplyDeleteVery well put in the blog post and very well put in the comment.
ReplyDeleteVote yes but remember this is the Mayor and City Council's fault. Vote them out. Even if this vote passes, they are still threatening a pay cuts to the police and fire departments. We (yes we) are already one of the lowest paid P.D. in the area (but always praised at being the best).
ReplyDelete"Vote them out" is music to many ears. But, short voter memory + no term limits in Bossier = Re-election. If citizens really want to see accountability and even the remotest semblance of local government transparency, citizens MUST stop trying to fight city hall factiously, and determine to fight unified. The retaliation that so many in Bossier fear (justifiably so) will not stop until citizens force it to stop.
ReplyDelete