January 03, 2007
Wednesday PM

I believe to suggest that Residents in the [NT] North Tongass Fire and EMS Service Area, might agree to a FEE increase, is underhanded. This is another TAX INCREASE and is isolated in double-speak terminology to disguise and conceal the true sum of our TAX burden.

• A FEE is a fixed charge [a limitation] as recompense for Services or Privileges under the control of Government. This means a FEE is a voluntary charge for an act or service and that the compensation or wage to be given for performance of services or something done or to be done is made VOLUNTARILY.
• A TAX is a charge by the Government and is payment laid upon us by legislative authority. The essential characteristics of a TAX, is that it is NOT a voluntary payment or donation, but an enforced contribution, exacted [by LAW] pursuant to legislative authority.

A sludge FEE, a Fire and EMS FEE, a structure FEE, any FEE we are FORCED to pay is a TAX. Persons have been taken to court and Forced to pay the sludge FEE, an example this is not a FEE but a TAX and to identify a TAX as a FEE is concealing the truth and politically dishonest.

WHAT SHOULD THE CITY AND BOROUGH GOVERNMENT DO?

• Call any forced/non-voluntary charges "TAXES"; time to be honest with Residents about their TAX burden.
• Publish performance, costs and potential return-on-investment for TAX Increases.
• How many [NT] Fires has this station responded to in its existence/elapsed time?
• How many [NT] Lives has the existing EMS saved/lost in its existence/elapsed time?

Convince NT Residents this is more than just another cushy Government job at our expense. You mention the ISO lowering insurance costs and those "day to day projects" being done around the station, the promotional arguments seem pretty weak for the sort of costs involved.

Ken Bylund
Ketchikan, Alaska

Received January 03, 2007 - Published January 03, 2006

 

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