LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Published: April 11, 2008

Editor:

The proposed Madison County budget for 2008-2009 now totals $36.7 million and the board of supervisors depleted the $5.07 million “carry over” (or better known as “capital reserve”) fund to pay for their 2007-2008 budget expenses. During their tenure they have not shown one iota of spending constraint and have inflated the budget with pet projects. This is not sound financial management.

I took the opportunity to visit “Hoover Ridge” every day during a recent week. Only on Saturday I observed at most 70 children, some of whom were playing soccer. To spend more than $1 million of taxpayers’ money on a playing field that is used by just a few children seems to me not a prudent fiscal decision.

How, can the county justify such folly?

How can government spend more than $18 million for the school system (of which 65 percent goes to salaries)? How can a teacher to student ratio of 1:8 or two teachers (including substitute teachers) to one student be justified?

On the other hand, there are in Madison County about 2,300 senior citizens (those older than 65). Most of these seniors’ income is limited to Social Security payments. There is no county facility for these seniors to meet, there are not enough funds to help these people with their extremely high heating and electricity bills, but the county demands that they pay the full scale of real estate taxes either directly or through rents.

Have supervisors forgotten that seniors are people who worked hard all their lives and contributed their fair share for the education of now their fourth generation of students? Shouldn’t these seniors receive their fair share of services?

I—in the name of all Madison County seniors and taxpayers—urge county officials to stop this uncontrolled spending of unnecessary expenses and employee compensations and take examples of controlling costs from private industry. If private industry can do it, Madison’s supervisors and school board can do it.

Herb Putz
Madison County