Letter to the Editor
Published: March 6, 2008

Editor:

I wonder how many people in Madison County feel like they don’t pay enough taxes. Well, if that’s the case, then I suggest they just stay silent and they’ll get their wish.

I, for one, feel very strongly about the steady creep of my real estate taxes over the past 15 years. It’s getting to the point of being oppressive and difficult to manage. Every person who is on a fixed income or struggling to pay your bills needs to show up, speak up and stand up for your rights and let the board of supervisors know how you feel — otherwise the influence from the public school system will sway them into yet another tax hike.

This is not the time for tax hikes. We are not a large affluent county with overflowing coffers of money. Gasoline is up more than 80 cents a gallon compared to last year at this time. The real estate market is in a crash, with property values in a real decline as much as 15 to 20 percent. Yet, our assessments were just redone to the point of 2004-2005 values (a peak high of the market).

Revenue is down in this county and yet it doesn’t seem to matter to our school system. They now say a five percent pay raise is what they want. I can hardly believe that more than $18 million is not enough to run our school system, especially for an enrollment of 1,844 students.

However, the schools have expanded their pre-kindergarten programs that have kids in the program as young as 2 years old! Yes, that’s correct, 2 years old by Dr. Tanner’s own admission.
Is there some room to cut costs here? If you do the math of what their proposed budget wants, it’s more than $10,000 per student.
Our supervisors need your input. Any supervisor who opts to raise taxes in this economic climate should be voted out of office — pure and simple.

I think our supervisors are to represent all of us and not cave to the pressure of a local school lobby. Madison County citizens cannot afford more real estate tax increases. I urge the board to stand strong and live within our means and ability to pay. Our senior citizens, lifelong Madisonians, young couples starting out and all honest hardworking residents deserve some consideration.

Ralph D. Nicholson
Reva