[Vision2020] Taxpayer Rights

[g. crabtree]

Tom, your argument with regard to the president works wonderfully to illustrate the patent unfairness of the MSD's supplemental levy scheme for obtaining additional funds. Every four years you get an opportunity to elect yourself a new national leader. Even if you fail, the scoundrel is out in eight years no matter what. With the levy, once its in its in forever. Perfectly reasonable people who, for reasons of their own, are not in favor of the tax increase must be constantly voting to keep the increases at bay. Those in favor must only get lucky once and the rest of the community is put upon into perpetuity. Plus, if the levy fails the district simply wears down the voters by marginally reducing the amount they ask for and coming back again and again until they finally succeed. Once they establish the new, albeit slightly lower bonus they simply come back with their hand out a little sooner then they might have had the original levy passed and start the whole nightmare over again. To establish  a modicum of fairness in this process the levy's should:

A. Sunset after a given number of years. (If Moscow's economy were to seriously tank, property values plummet and school district enrolment numbers shrink drastically, do you really think we should be bound by levy's from the distant past?)

B. Require at least a 60% or greater voter approval. (I'd prefer 75%)

C. Be put to a single vote at regularly scheduled elections (to avoid voter fatigue and cherry picking election dates)

g
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Tom Ivie 
  To: vision2020 at moscow.com 
  Sent: Friday, May 11, 2007 9:31 AM
  Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Taxpayer Rights


  I thought about this for a little while and decided that it is much like voting for a President.  Someone elected without a "mandate" can still become President (Clinton).  A "simple" majority (even if decided by a court) can still make you President (Bush II).  When we vote, those of us 18 and older, are voting for those who can't yet vote (those not 18 and not yet legal to vote yet -as in immigrants). But they have to live with the outcome of that vote until the next opportunity arises that they MAY be able to vote if they have become of age or legal to vote -become a U.S. citizen.  

  Donovan Arnold <donovanjarnold2005 at yahoo.com> wrote:
    The Wietz lawsuit raises some important questions in my mind, particularly regarding taxpayers and their rights. 

    Is it fair, first off, to have a vote to pay taxes for an indefinite amount of time? Seems rather unfair, voting to tax people in the future that have not been given the right to decide what tax level they feel is fair. Being told, "People in the past already voted and so you don't get to decide, ever, unless of course you want to raise the tax rate."--hardly seems reasonable to me. 

    Second, at what point is the minority tax payer able to rebel against the taxes levied upon him/her by the majority? What rights do they have to protect them from out right exploitation and thievery by the tax levying democratic majority?

    Third, are property taxes even fair or just? Taxing people on where they live, even knocking those on fixed incomes right outta their homes?

    Finally, placing the entire burden of running schools, the largest expense, squarely on the back of property owners seems rather harsh, is not greatly unjust. 

    What do you think? Am I wrong to think that there should be some limits placed on what the democratic majority can do to the minority taxpayer that just feels completely robbed and stripped of the fruits of their hard labor? Is it possible Gerry Wietz and other feel the same way?

    Best,

    Donovan 

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