Wows and Scowls
Scowl: President Bush has proposed a $2.57 trillion dollar budget that eliminates 150 federal programs. Good luck in figuring out just what all those might be. To do so, one would need to scour through the three-volume, 2,108-page missive to figure out what isn’t there. We aren’t saying the federal budget doesn’t need a good trimming.
After four years of a Congressional feeding frenzy, and Bush’s refusal to veto any increase in spending, the president could probably justify cutting even deeper than he has. But he ought to have the courage to list them.
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Wow: Connellsville City Council decided to pass on collecting a $52 tax on people who work in the city. Council had in December jumped on the tax hike as a way to balance the budget.
As it turns out, the city is in better financial shape than council had thought. This is due mostly to a substantial increase, $114,000, in earned income tax collection. Not only does this bode well for the city budget, it indicates that city residents’ income is on the rise.
On another bright note, last year’s merchantile tax generated $56,500 more than the previous year, indicating that consumers have more money to spend in local stores. City council still could have gone with the $52 workers’ head tax, but it wisely opted to pass.
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Scowl: Here’s something that we can’t remember seeing before. Centerville Borough Council voted to hike property taxes, but not until 2006.
Council is giving everyone a heads up that it is in deep financial trouble and it isn’t likely to improve. The borough has been using cheaper cinders, rather than salt, on snowy roads. And the road crew has been coming in to clear the roads whether there is money or not to pay them. That’s dedication.
They deserve kudos, as does council for owning up to its financial straits. But keep that applause to a minimum for council. It should have confronted its finances two months ago before adopting 2005’s budget and avoided laying off its street workers and police officers so early in the year.
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Scowl: The German Township supervisors have caught the latest case of NIMBO (not in my backyard) and are rallying residents to fight a proposal for a halfway house. Maxine Shipley, who runs a personal care home, last week approached the county with a proposal to convert her home for the elderly into a halfway house for nonviolent county prisoners.
It could be a way to alleviated severe overcrowding at the county prison. More details are needed as to how this would work, how much security would be needed and what type of restrictions are necessary. And perhaps Shipley’s property won’t prove to be the best alternative. But the county does need to explore the concept of a halfway house.
The problem, as German Township supervisors have so eagerly demonstrated, is that people are all for it as long as it’s located somewhere far, far away. Wouldn’t it be better at this stage for the supervisors to learn all the details, and if it seems inevitable, to work with the county in establishing safeguards?
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Wow: Luzerne Township’s sewage authority took an unfounded rumor that raw sewage was leaking into the Monongahela River and turned it into an action plan. The authority double checked its pipes near the state prison to disprove the rumor. But then members got to thinking, what if a leak were to occur. The prison sends 100,000 gallons a day of the raw stuff toward the plant. What if there was a break? The authority plans to meet soon with the prison and come up with a plan that includes holding tanks.