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Written by PB Letters
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Thursday, 18 September 2008 |
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A letter to the editor from Tom Walsh of Bonny Doon
EDITOR, I am urging a no vote on Santa Cruz County Unincorporated area Measure B. This new tax could increase your phone tax by 200 percent or more. It will add cell phones and wireless devices to the tax and could generate more than $3 million dollars for the county’s general fund. The revenue generated by this new tax would be not be accountable to the taxpayers, but spent on whatever special program the county decided was important. It is not a dedicated tax for emergency response. Would you trust a government that cannot fix our roads and that already has a special tax? Where has that money gone? What Measure B does not tell you: - The emergency system is funded by the state of California.
- Local governments can access the California 9-1-1 fund to get their expenses reimbursed for the costs associated with 9-1-1 communication systems and wireless infrastructure.
- The existing California surcharge is used to pay for local services that are strictly defined by the California Department of General Services’ 9-1-1 program office.
- It is a dramatic expansion of taxes — an end run on the California Constitution that protects taxpayers.
- There is no sunset clause for this tax. Once equipment is bought and paid for, this money will continue to be collected and spent with no oversight by the people.
Please vote no on Measure B.
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