An important property tax fairness point...

that I forgot to mention.

The residents of the unincorporated areas currently pay $350,000 in property taxes. The sales tax revenue the county was using to offset the burden for the incorporated residents was $700,000. It reportedly costs $1,500,000 to service the area.

350+700=1,050. Where is the other $450,000 currently coming from?

I think it's coming from the portion that city residents pay to the county.

And, even if the unincorporated resident's taxes are doubled, the revenue gathered will be $700,000. Where will the other $800,000 come from?

Can someone clarify all this?

Unincorporated residents still getting a bargain, at our expense

I have been really bothered by something I read in the Clipper a few weeks ago.

In an article published on August 21st, entitled "Taxes may double for non-city residents," reporter Tom Busselberg states that, "The relative tax bargain that has been in place for the 2,500 people living in unincorporated Davis County likely will go away within the next year." The reason? The county has been using sales tax money to reduce the tax burden of unincorporated residents. The problem? Some of that sales tax money was supposed to go to cities instead of the county. The state has found the mistake, and is correcting it.

Apparently, it costs $1.5 million to service the unincorporated areas of the county. Currently, those areas pay $350,000 in taxes. The tax burden of unincorporated residents has always been much less than the burdens from the adjoining cities. That's why, even though state law says that these areas should incorporate, they don't want to. Who wants to pay more taxes?

The problem? The obscenely low and unfair amount that unincorporated residents are paying. The article states, "Even if the current property tax rate were doubled, it would be less than that charged to homeowners in Layton and Fruit Heights, among other communities."

How much of the tax that city residents pay to the county is currently being used to benefit the unincorporated areas?

My solution? Incorporate the unincorporated areas. Including the Chevron refinery, which is paying the low county rate instead of the fair North Salt Lake rate.

How I am voting tomorrow

By Natalie

Not a lot of surprises here...

State Treasurer: Richard Ellis. He's got the experience, he knows how to do the job, I know him and trust him. Walker seems intent on expanding the role of State Treasurer. We don't need that - we just need someone that knows how to invest money. Ellis does, Walker doesn't.

State Senate: I will be voting for Dan Liljenquist. This letter explains my concerns with Ron Mortensen. The tone is harsh, but it is all true.

State House: Becky Edwards. South Davis County needs a representative that is a leader; someone that will fight for our schools, our children and our families. Our current representative has not led out on these issues. I trust Becky. We get to choose between business as usual or something new. Business as usual isn't working for anyone except Greg Curtis. And, people keep talking about how responsive our current representative is. I was a state delegate. I never heard from him. Not a letter, not a phone call. Yeah, I get his email updates, but he doesn't answer my letters, or the letters from my friends. I'm ready for a change.

Davis School Board District 1: This is an easy one now, but a hard one in November. We get to vote for two candidates to advance. I am supporting Barbara Smith and Polly Tribe. Both are honest, hard working, intelligent women who want the best for our schools.

North Salt Lake Easter Egg Dash

The North Salt Lake Youth City Council is holding their annual
Easter Egg Dash
on Saturday, April 7th
10 am at Hatch Park in North Salt Lake (corner of Main and Center)
Free for children ages 2-12
Come with easter baskets ready!

Don't be late, because it only takes a few minutes for the kids to pick the fields clean. It's like the Swarm. I hope to see everyone there! The NSL Youth Council has put a lot of time into getting ready for the event. We have around 4000 easter eggs filled with candy and prizes.

Utah PTA President Carmen Snow on Vouchers

I saw this over the weekend and thought it was very well done. I know Carmen Snow, and I admire her passion and intensity. Take a read. It was originally published in the Sunday edition of the Salt Lake Tribune.


Voters deserve a voice in the voucher debate

Carmen Snow

People may have different opinions about the value of vouchers, but Utahns are clear about wanting to be heard. People have said they want a chance to vote on this private school voucher experiment, but a few politicians - with their megaphones and media buys - are working overtime to try to dissuade people from participating in the democratic system. From the moment a group of concerned parents began to try to put the brakes on this misguided idea, some lawyers have been scuttling to find the loophole that says that voters don't really get a chance to question the judgment of "the political class."

I hope no one is discouraged from signing the referendum petition to repeal vouchers because they think it won't matter. It always matters when the voters make their voices heard.

Voucher advocates say the law can't be repealed. They say only parts of the bill can be repealed (elements such as funding and accountability). They say the only ones who will be hurt by the repeal would be the public schools.

The opinions of lawyers, even attorneys general, can be wrong. I know lawyers with arguments and evidence just as compelling who say an act of the people can overturn a law. They also tell me that amendments to a law can't stand alone when the law itself has been repealed, and that seems to make common sense.

The attorney general is right when he says this matter will end up in court. Hopefully this legal wrangle will help us determine whether or not the people of Utah have the right to be heard when the Legislature has made a mistake. Already the referendum petition process calls for an extraordinarily short amount of time to gather an extraordinarily large number of signatures. It would be a shame if the politicians win because the petition effort falls short.

I agree with the vast majority of Utahns: We ought to have a full and open debate about whether or not subsidies for private school tuition are right for Utah. We ought to have a chance to examine whether vouchers have fulfilled their promise in the places they exist. We ought to look more closely at the long-term consequences for public schools and families and communities across the state, and always keep the children's best interest in mind.

It's important to people living outside the state that Utah has a voucher system. Many believe it would help restore momentum to a "movement" that has seen voucher systems in Colorado and Florida rejected by state courts. They hope it helps people forget that despite vast amounts of money spent to promote them, vouchers or tuition tax credits have been defeated every time they've been on the ballot nationwide in the past 30 years. The national voucher movement has expended enormous capital over the past three decades, and has to show something for its money.

They need this voucher experiment to go forward in Utah. Some are afraid that a vote of the people will stop vouchers from happening. After all, in 1988, when Utah citizens had a chance to vote on income-tax credits for tuition paid by students already in private schools, they rejected the subsidies by 70 percent to 30 percent. Utahns for Public Schools believe there ought to be a counterforce to out-of-state money and interests. We believe that parents and others who care about the future of Utah's public schools and our children are that counterforce, and we believe we ought to be heard.

CARMEN SNOW is president of the Utah PTA.

If you want to sign the petition...

Calling all South Davis County Residents!

If you want to sign the petition allowing a public vote on the voucher issue and haven't had a chance yet, email me at go.natalie@gmail.com and I'll arrange a chance for you to sign it!

Sorry for the subversion, Tyler! You may now go back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Why I yelled at Tyler yesterday

by Natalie

Let's say there is an honest, hardworking family, living below the poverty limit, because the head-of-household works somewhere that refuses to pay a living wage. Unbeknownst to this family, someone has accessed their bank accounts and is taking $25 a week from them.

When it is discovered, some people get angry that this poor family has not been receiving enough, and has then had money stolen from them. They believe that we should continue to fight for a living wage, so hardworking families can achieve their full potential. Others believe that this money being stolen from this family just goes to show how they really were receiving enough, and now, with that extra $25 a week,they should be able to do a lot more - maybe they're actually receiving too much? If they survived without that $25 a week, maybe they don't need it.

The situation regarding the embezzlement from the Davis School District is much like the analogy above. It depends on your perspective. I think Tyler's perspective is wrong.

Many of us believe that our system of public education in Utah is being slowly starved to death. The powers-that-be believe that our teachers are worth less than teachers in neighboring states, and should teach here without leaving or complaining, because they love to teach. And that we should have only the highest qualified people teaching, when the wages in Utah are so low, comparably. They believe that sharing textbooks and not being able to bring them home to do homework is acceptable, and that children can learn to read in a class with 28 other children, or can learn trigonometry in a class with 44 other students.

This is why I took offense at Tyler's comments - the question isn't that we can do more with less - we already know we can. Our luck is running out. We shouldn't have to do more with less. Those are OUR CHILDREN in those classrooms. And the accused embezzling is bad, and it makes me angry. But the attempt to starve my children's school in the name of unfunded federal and state mandates, getting even with the teacher's union, competition, so-called parent choice, or even asking the school district to do more with less is wrong. Should the district be responsible and accountable for the money it is given? Yes. Is the district given enough? No.

The days where Utah could have a great education system, regardless of the amount spent per-pupil, because of dedicated teachers and involved parents are coming to an end. There is a crisis on the horizon. It cannot be solved only with money, but money is definitely part of the solution. To imply that it is not is naive. And offensive.

North Salt Lake is going High Tech...

I've read some controversy about the new electronic sign that is going in in the roundabout as you head up the hill. The controversy was over having something so distracting in the center of an already confusing non-intersection.

My concern is also with placement. Why in the world would the city put a sign that is supposed to announce important city-related things in an area where huge portions of the city will never see it, or even possibly be aware that it exists?

It's not something that you could see easily (or read at all) from highway 89, if you happened to be coming into the city that way. It's obvious that no location would ideal for all city residents, but placing it at the CITY BUILDING sure would have made a lot more sense.

I hate to get into "the hill people" versus "us low landers" types of arguments, but this seems a case where the city council was not thinking about all of the people they represent. I know there are good, honest people on our city council, but it is interesting that there are no city council members living below orchard drive. Seems like "us low landers" need to get a little more involved...

Can't decide who to support for State School Board?

Well, you're not alone. Chris Barden's campaign director wasn't sure, even after he'd taken the job with the Barden campaign.

Ben Horsely (who, incidentally, is a staffer for Rob Bishop) received a payment of $1,400 from Barden on September 22nd for his campaign director duties. On September 28th, he came to a meet the candidate event I had organized for Kim. I asked him if he supported Kim. He said he wasn't sure - that he'd just come to get some information to help him decide which candidate to support. I hope he's figured it out. Kim Burningham is the best choice for Utah's schools.