From Your Flummoxed Publisher & Executive Editor:

Tomorrow, Craig County voters are being asked to determine the fate of a 17-year extension of the 3/4-cent county sales tax to fund a “community center” at the county fairgrounds. I hope turnout is massive, and I hope this ill-advised effort goes down hard. In flames. And explodes.

I first learned of this little project back in March, when Jeane and I attended our first Craig County Republican Party meeting. After a speech from Lt. Gov. candidate, John Wright, meeting attendees were subjected to a presentation by those proposing the “community center” project. The presentation lacked some very basic information, such as a precise total cost of the building and precise length of tax extension. After the spiel, a motion was made that the party go on record as supporting the project. The motion nearly died for lack of a second before county Republican party chairman, Jay Franklin, called on his wife to second the motion, which she did. Without debate or any explanation of who was eligible to vote, the motion was put to a vote and received a handful of “ayes” and no “noes.” Allowing the presentation is one thing, but I was appalled and amazed that the county Republican party would go on record as supporting a massive tax increase. It was my last Craig County Republican Party meeting.

To start, my default position on tax increases is “no.” Not just no, but heck no. We already pay too much in taxes. The government irresponsibly wastes the money it taxes from its citizens. Higher taxes stymie the economy. Bureaucrats and politicians ignore necessities (roads, bridges, etc.), while pursuing nonsensical and petty projects (case in point, Tulsa has a dandy new ballpark but you’ll need a new chassis for your car after driving there on their roads). In the case of sales taxes, they hit poorer, working-class families harder than others (This should not be confused with the Fair Tax, which I wholeheartedly support, so long as the income tax is repealed with it). In general, taxes need to be as low as humanly possible. That said, I do recognize that taxation is a necessary evil. However, there has to be some determination of what taxes are wise and which are not.

I wasn’t a resident of Craig County when the vote for the courthouse occurred, but in general, I tend to believe that it was probably time for a new county government facility. In the case of the county courthouse, I’ll grant that it was needed. I can get behind a project that really is a necessity for the orderly transaction of county business and law enforcement. But then, we have this atrocious “community center” project. It’s a very different animal.

I’m from Welch. We have a civic auditorium. Many years ago, the LIONS Club saw a need and worked hard to build a community gathering place. They have since maintained that facility, lately adding a natural gas generator so that it can be used for housing during emergency situations. In short, Welchkins don’t need a community center because we have one. Now, if Vinita needs a community center, I recommend the LIONs Club or some other group of community-minded citizens get to work and build one, but don’t come to your rural neighbors with your hands out asking us to help build and pay for it. Until 2040.

Further, the plan to build the “community center” is just downright bad planning. To fund this disaster, we’re being asked to extend a tax that’s not even set to expire until 2023. And the extension goes until 2040. And these people are bringing this to us with straight faces? The only thing crazier than this is all those credit cards Discover gives kids in college so they can be paying for tacos for 20 years. If the tax extension passes, they sell the bonds now, get the funding now, and build the facility now. Without paying a dime for it. And they won’t pay a dime until 2024. Seriously? Is it really good economics to borrow $2.8 million that we won’t even begin paying on for 14 years? Can you fathom what kind of interest $2.8 million accrues over 14 years? And it won’t be fully paid off until 2040.

And why are we extending the courthouse sales tax instead of a voting on a new tax? Because, as a county, we’re maxed out. We can’t vote  a new tax; we can only extend an existing tax. Sometimes, you just have to stop spending money and get caught up before you buy a luxury item, which this “community center” certainly is.

In this world, there are some people who have grand ideas for things they’d like, especially if they can be built with other people’s money. This is one such example. The Craig County Community Improvement Association (CCCIA) has dreamed this dream and has apparently tried to raise the funds to make it a reality for six years. Unable to raise the funds, they try the typical last resort of bad ideas, put it to a vote and let everyone pay for it. They argue that that the facility is sorely needed. Yet, in six year’s time, they have been able to secure a altogether embarrassing sum of $200,000. Here’s a tip: if it were all that great an idea and so very needed, people would be lining up to help fund it.

One other consideration: What if we, as a county, have some genuine need that arises. As noted above, we’re maxed out on bonds, so we can’t pass a new bond issue. I guess we’ll just have to extend the “community center” tax. Then we can be paying for actual needs starting in 2040. Sounds like government at its finest. The people who dreamed this up should go hide out of embarrassment. And the county commissioners who are supporting it, why don’t you all either focus on your jobs or move to Tulsa or Washington, where they could certainly use your prowess for spending other people’s money for pipe-dream projects while ignoring basic infrastructure.

The reality is that this “community center” is an abysmal idea that has been badly promoted and poorly executed, the result of which is now to toss it onto the voters’ plate, where they hope we’ll gobble it down because our eyes are too big for our stomachs. It’s a whole lot easier just not to put it in our mouths than it will be to stomach it later. Go vote, and vote no. If you think the “community center” is needed and a good idea, then—by all means, make your contribution to CCCIA—and built the thing privately. But, please, don’t expect us to pay for this disaster—starting 14 years from now. Gag!

Ed.

PS I also meant to mention that this is a special election, called only for the purposes of ramming this thing through. Are we supposed to believe that this “community center” is so urgent that it couldn’t possibly wait to be added to the November ballot (or earlier primary ballots)? Here’s an idea: The CCCIA ought to pay for the cost of this special election (anywhere from $5,000-$7,000 according to my recent call to the election board) out of that $200,000 they have raised over the past six years. Further, I’m also told that the $200,000 amount isn’t exactly precise, so I’ll be investigating.

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