A county delegate recently asked me to give him the 5 main reasons I am running. It made me think long and hard about what I specifically value the most. But, I could only narrow the main reasons I am running down to six points, and I couldn't eliminate another one. So, here are the six reasons why I am running for Utah County Commissioner Seat A this year:
1. Fiscal Responsibility: Utah County's budget has grown 50% in the last 5 years, while our population has only grown by 25%. This has resulted in a need to raise the property tax rate by 20% in the last 2 years to sustain this increase in spending. And in 2008, my opponent voted to raised his salary by 10% in the middle of the year (to $104,000) and then had to raise property taxes by 11% at the end of the year. I find it amazing he would raise property tax rates instead of repealing his salary increase. If elected, I will vote against any budget that contains an increase in the property tax rate for the next 4 years, and I will vote to repeal the 2008 salary increase.
2. Economic Development: I believe government should remove the obstacles to economic development, instead of assuming the government actually is the economic development. One example. The County Commissioners recently borrowed $40 million to build a Convention Center in downtown Provo, which will be owned by Utah County. However, Utah County is responsible for a sewer plant in Pleasant Grove that makes a lot of stink. The American Fork Chamber of Commerce says this is the #1 problem for business in the Lindon/American Fork/Pleasant Grove area, and the Pleasant Grove City Council believes the stink is blocking over $300 million in economic development, including a convention center funded in part by the private sector. If elected, I would focus on doing what government should be doing (removing the stink) and less on putting us further in debt. When I was on my city council in Cedar Hills I was a strong advocate for removing the obstacles to the development of our commercial sector by Wal-Mart and a permanent solution to our city's money losing golf course.
3. Transportation: I believe we need to take responsibility for our own transportation problems, and be less subservient to the state and federal governments. Specifically, I believe we should push the State of Utah to turn over to Utah County all roads that do not cross county lines, as well as our portion of the gas tax, and let us fund our roads as we see best. We also need to work to expand the Commuter Rail to Santaquin if the initial phase is successful, and build more and better bicycle trails that connect throughout the County. Most importantly, we need to proactively make 20 or even 50 year transportation plans, that take into account Utah County's population will grow from the current 550,000 to over one million in 20 years or less.
4. Crime: Over 60% of Utah County's budget goes toward fighting crime through the Sheriff and County Attorney. I believe we need to give our law enforcement all the resources necessary to enforce the existing laws. If we are unwilling to do that, we should change the law to something we are willing to enforce. While crime is generally low in Utah County, there are three areas in which we need to improve, specifically: (a) Investment Fraud, (b) Prescription Drug Abuse, and (c) the Sexual Abuse of Children. Please see my campaign blog for more details, but note that investment fraud claims filed with the County Attorney have gone from under $30 million in 2007, to $104 million in 2009, making it an economic development issue as well as a criminal issue.
5. Constitutional Principles (form of government and term limits): I believe Utah County's current form of government of three full time Commissioners with "executive, legislative and judicial" powers is not based on the Constitution, does not provide for appropriate checks and balances, and does not provide for regional representation. If just two County Commissioners would trust the voters, then we would hold a first election asking the voters of Utah County if they wanted a new form of government. If the voters said yes, then a study commission would be created to examine the issue for a year and recommend a new form of government. They could recommend a Mayor/County Council (both Cache and Salt Lake Counties have done this) or go with an Executive and part time County Council (Wasatch, Summit and Morgan Counties have done this) or expand to five or seven full time county commissioners (no county has done this). I believe it is time to consider this change. Also, I believe the Founding Fathers understood the nature of man, and were wise to set a precedent of no more than two terms in any elected office. My opponent is asking for a fourth term as a County Commissioner. I would not serve more than two terms as a Utah County Commissioner (or 8 years) under any circumstances.
6. Engagement and Transparency: I would send a monthly email to everyone who would receive it highlighting the main decisions we were making and issues we were tackling. I would include all press articles on Utah County, and warmly ask for input and feedback. I would post on a web page where anyone could make comments, even anonymous comments. I would also post all the information I received on the web for the public to review to the greatest extent possible, so the public could read and review the information going into our decision making process. Finally, I would end the practice of scheduling general public comments at Utah County Commission meetings at the END of their meeting. I believe our County Commissioners should listen to public input at the very beginning of their meeting, before they make any decisions.
Thank you very much for considering the reasons I am running. I am very interested in your thoughts. Please give me your feedback below.
Showing posts with label utah county. Show all posts
Showing posts with label utah county. Show all posts
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Is crime increasing or decreasing in Utah County?
Is crime increasing or decreasing in Utah County?
As a candidate for Utah County Commissioner, I believe the most important duty of government is to protect its citizens from crime. Over 60% of the budget of Utah County goes towards law enforcement, funding either the Sheriff’s department or the County Attorney’s department. In other words, most of what a County Commissioner does is oversee the budget for law enforcement.
At the Utah County Republican Central Committee meeting on February 20, 2010, my opponent, three term incumbent Gary Anderson, asserted that crime has “decreased” in Utah County since he was last elected in 2006. I respectfully disagree, and am concerned that Commissioner Anderson is either unaware, or unconcerned, about the massive increase in investment fraud since he was last elected.
According to the Utah County Attorney’s office, victims of investment fraud in Utah County lost $45 million in 2006 and 2007 together, $64 million in 2008, and $104 million in 2009. In other words, since Gary Anderson was last elected, investment fraud has at least tripled, and nearly $200 million has been reported stolen.
What is ironic is that Utah County is currently engaged in dozens of activities to improve economic development that are really not the proper role of government, while apparently ignoring its proper role in law enforcement. If that $200 million had not been stolen, the positive economic impact of that $200 million would be much greater than any form of “economic development” Utah County is currently trying to do. If that $200 million had not been stolen, hundreds of small businesses could have been started, college educations paid for, and missions served. Furthermore, Utah County unfortunately now has a well earned reputation as the “fraud capital of the State” with apparently over half the fraud cases in Utah coming from Utah County.
If elected as your County Commissioner, I pledge to make fighting investment fraud one of my highest priorities, and expect you to hold me accountable if I seek re-election and we have not made substantial progress fighting investment fraud.
Specifically:
1. Education is the key to the solution. Government cannot, and should not, protect you from your own greed and stupidity. If something sounds too good to be true, it almost certainly is. Any investment that promises potential returns exceeding 10% a year is risky, and anything over 15% is high risk and the investor should be capable of losing their entire investment. Furthermore, if you have to borrow the money to make an investment, you are almost certainly not in a situation where you can afford to lose all or most of your investment. It is also critical that everyone understand that a Ponzi scheme is an investment where the “returns” are paid not through the profitable activities of the company, but instead through the funds raised from new investors. If elected, I would start a public education campaign in Utah County explaining the points I just made above that would exceed the public education campaign on the H1N1 virus. I would create an investment fraud hot line where people could call in and get some basic advice on how to spot investment fraud, and also report investment fraud. I would have our county attorneys and sheriffs speak in public as much as possible to explain how investment fraud is happening in Utah County, and how it can be identified. I would like to see part of the punishment for engaging in investment fraud be a requirement of several hundred hours of community service dedicated to fighting investment fraud, where the individual would teach others how they used religion, family connections or other forms of affinity fraud or manipulation to convince otherwise intelligent individuals that they could guarantee returns exceeding 15% a year.
2. More resources are needed to fight back. County Attorney Jeff Buhman stated in October 2009 that he could “double or triple” his division devoted to fighting investment fraud, and they would all still be very busy. The simple answer would be to raise taxes, but I am unwilling to do that, so we would need to do the following: (a) redeploy existing resources to this problem from lower priority areas to this higher priority area, (b) we need to fine these criminals who are frequently living lavish lifestyles enough to fund the increase in resources we need to fight investment fraud, and (c) require individuals who are involved in investment fraud to give several hundred hours of community service educating the public on how these crimes are happening. It is the proper role of government to prosecute and convict criminals who have stolen money based on lies, and return as much of that money as possible to the victims. We need to wisely devote the resources necessary to fight this problem.
3. We cannot rely on the federal or state government. Like many of you, I am alarmed and concerned at the rapid rate of growth by our federal and state governments, and am anxious to “push back” against this alarming rate of government expansion. However, equally concerning is the mentality that we should rely on our federal or state governments to rescue us from all our problems. Commissioner Anderson believes that the federal and state governments are supposed to fix this problem for us. I respectfully disagree. The County Attorney prosecutes essentially all felonies in Utah County, including investment fraud, and the federal and state governments have been of little help the last three years while this problem has grown. I believe Utah County has the duty to fight this problem first, and not rely on any assistance from the federal or state governments. I have spoken with both federal officials at the Securities and Exchange Commission, and state officials at the Utah Securities Division, and they have both confirmed that Utah County has the duty to first investigate these crimes in most instances, and then come to them for assistance that may or may not be given.
Finally, we need your help. Please don’t hesitate to speak up when you see someone selling an investment that is “too good to be true” and please email me your ideas on how we can better fight investment fraud in Utah County.
Sincerely,
Joel Wright
Below are two excellent recent stories on Investment Fraud in Utah County:
1. “Investment Fraud Rampant in Utah County” from the Daily Herald, February 28, 2010, available at: http://bit.ly/c3jzUu
2. “Investigators say $59 million scheme targeted Utah County” from Deseret News, October 24, 2009, available at: http://bit.ly/aqmpIM
Total claims of investment fraud reported to Utah County Attorney by year since 2000:
Total from 2000 to 2009: $432,339,530.53
2009: $104,607,873
2008: $64,197,107
2007: $7,457,665.19
2006: $14,681,704.18
2005: $30,218,566.76
2004: $19,264,455.79
2003: $18,260,368.76
2002: $80,038,210.38
2001: $66,505,735.54
2000: $27,107,843.03
As a candidate for Utah County Commissioner, I believe the most important duty of government is to protect its citizens from crime. Over 60% of the budget of Utah County goes towards law enforcement, funding either the Sheriff’s department or the County Attorney’s department. In other words, most of what a County Commissioner does is oversee the budget for law enforcement.
At the Utah County Republican Central Committee meeting on February 20, 2010, my opponent, three term incumbent Gary Anderson, asserted that crime has “decreased” in Utah County since he was last elected in 2006. I respectfully disagree, and am concerned that Commissioner Anderson is either unaware, or unconcerned, about the massive increase in investment fraud since he was last elected.
According to the Utah County Attorney’s office, victims of investment fraud in Utah County lost $45 million in 2006 and 2007 together, $64 million in 2008, and $104 million in 2009. In other words, since Gary Anderson was last elected, investment fraud has at least tripled, and nearly $200 million has been reported stolen.
What is ironic is that Utah County is currently engaged in dozens of activities to improve economic development that are really not the proper role of government, while apparently ignoring its proper role in law enforcement. If that $200 million had not been stolen, the positive economic impact of that $200 million would be much greater than any form of “economic development” Utah County is currently trying to do. If that $200 million had not been stolen, hundreds of small businesses could have been started, college educations paid for, and missions served. Furthermore, Utah County unfortunately now has a well earned reputation as the “fraud capital of the State” with apparently over half the fraud cases in Utah coming from Utah County.
If elected as your County Commissioner, I pledge to make fighting investment fraud one of my highest priorities, and expect you to hold me accountable if I seek re-election and we have not made substantial progress fighting investment fraud.
Specifically:
1. Education is the key to the solution. Government cannot, and should not, protect you from your own greed and stupidity. If something sounds too good to be true, it almost certainly is. Any investment that promises potential returns exceeding 10% a year is risky, and anything over 15% is high risk and the investor should be capable of losing their entire investment. Furthermore, if you have to borrow the money to make an investment, you are almost certainly not in a situation where you can afford to lose all or most of your investment. It is also critical that everyone understand that a Ponzi scheme is an investment where the “returns” are paid not through the profitable activities of the company, but instead through the funds raised from new investors. If elected, I would start a public education campaign in Utah County explaining the points I just made above that would exceed the public education campaign on the H1N1 virus. I would create an investment fraud hot line where people could call in and get some basic advice on how to spot investment fraud, and also report investment fraud. I would have our county attorneys and sheriffs speak in public as much as possible to explain how investment fraud is happening in Utah County, and how it can be identified. I would like to see part of the punishment for engaging in investment fraud be a requirement of several hundred hours of community service dedicated to fighting investment fraud, where the individual would teach others how they used religion, family connections or other forms of affinity fraud or manipulation to convince otherwise intelligent individuals that they could guarantee returns exceeding 15% a year.
2. More resources are needed to fight back. County Attorney Jeff Buhman stated in October 2009 that he could “double or triple” his division devoted to fighting investment fraud, and they would all still be very busy. The simple answer would be to raise taxes, but I am unwilling to do that, so we would need to do the following: (a) redeploy existing resources to this problem from lower priority areas to this higher priority area, (b) we need to fine these criminals who are frequently living lavish lifestyles enough to fund the increase in resources we need to fight investment fraud, and (c) require individuals who are involved in investment fraud to give several hundred hours of community service educating the public on how these crimes are happening. It is the proper role of government to prosecute and convict criminals who have stolen money based on lies, and return as much of that money as possible to the victims. We need to wisely devote the resources necessary to fight this problem.
3. We cannot rely on the federal or state government. Like many of you, I am alarmed and concerned at the rapid rate of growth by our federal and state governments, and am anxious to “push back” against this alarming rate of government expansion. However, equally concerning is the mentality that we should rely on our federal or state governments to rescue us from all our problems. Commissioner Anderson believes that the federal and state governments are supposed to fix this problem for us. I respectfully disagree. The County Attorney prosecutes essentially all felonies in Utah County, including investment fraud, and the federal and state governments have been of little help the last three years while this problem has grown. I believe Utah County has the duty to fight this problem first, and not rely on any assistance from the federal or state governments. I have spoken with both federal officials at the Securities and Exchange Commission, and state officials at the Utah Securities Division, and they have both confirmed that Utah County has the duty to first investigate these crimes in most instances, and then come to them for assistance that may or may not be given.
Finally, we need your help. Please don’t hesitate to speak up when you see someone selling an investment that is “too good to be true” and please email me your ideas on how we can better fight investment fraud in Utah County.
Sincerely,
Joel Wright
Below are two excellent recent stories on Investment Fraud in Utah County:
1. “Investment Fraud Rampant in Utah County” from the Daily Herald, February 28, 2010, available at: http://bit.ly/c3jzUu
2. “Investigators say $59 million scheme targeted Utah County” from Deseret News, October 24, 2009, available at: http://bit.ly/aqmpIM
Total claims of investment fraud reported to Utah County Attorney by year since 2000:
Total from 2000 to 2009: $432,339,530.53
2009: $104,607,873
2008: $64,197,107
2007: $7,457,665.19
2006: $14,681,704.18
2005: $30,218,566.76
2004: $19,264,455.79
2003: $18,260,368.76
2002: $80,038,210.38
2001: $66,505,735.54
2000: $27,107,843.03
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Do voters or "gentlemen" decide who gets to be your Utah County Commissioner?
In the last couple weeks, several supporters of my opponent, Gary Anderson, have told me that I am "violating" the "Gentlemen's Agreement" because we are supposed to have one County Commissioner from South of Provo, one from Provo, and one from North of Provo. And, if I won, we'd have two County Commissioners north of Provo (Ellertson lives in Lindon and I live in Cedar Hills), and one in Provo (White). In other words, "gentlemen" are apparently supposed to decide who should run for County Commissioner, and not the voters.
As you can imagine, I completely reject this idea. This Gentlemen's Agreement is wrong for multiple reasons:
1. The voters or delegates should select each County Commissioner, not the entrenched elite who benefit from the status quo. I believe in transparency, and I believe in the wisdom of the voters.
2. Each County Commissioner is elected by ALL of Utah County, and expected to represent ALL of Utah County. If Commissioner Anderson believes he only represents the 20% of the population in Utah County that lives south of Provo, then he should make that clear, instead of claiming to represent all of Utah County.
3. The population assumptions in the Gentlemen's Agreement are completely wrong. When Gary Anderson was first elected as a County Commissioner in 1982, approximately one third of Utah County may have lived south of Provo, one third in Provo, and one third north of Provo. But that is simply not the case now. Approximately 20% of Utah County lives south of Provo, a little over 20% in Provo, a little under 20% in Orem, a little under 20% in Northwest Utah County (Lehi, Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain) and a little over 20% in Northeast Utah County (Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Cedar Hills, American Fork, Highland and Alpine). In other words, if we divided Utah County by thirds, then South County and most of Provo would only get one Utah County Commissioner, not the two they have now!
4. The Gentlemen's Agreement has not been followed in the past. There have been multiple instances in the last 30 years where you did not have one County Commissioner south of Provo, one in Provo and one north of Provo. It appears that supporters of Commissioner Anderson are only bringing it up now because it favors him.
5. Does Commissioner Anderson share this same view? I don't know, but I'll try to ask him, and let you know his response. If so, then the $200,000 "award" that Utah County gave to the Springville Art Museum last year, and the ongoing support of the Utah County Fair in Spanish Fork, seem more like political patronage, and less like the best use of taxpayer funds.
If elected, I would represent all of Utah County equally, because all of Utah County votes for me. I was raised in Provo, but live in Cedar Hills, and have supporters all over Utah County.
However, I do think there is considerable merit to the view that Utah County now has 550,000 residents, and that 3 county commissioners cannot adequately represent all of them, no matter where they live. Our three county commissioners have "executive, legislative and judicial powers" which is a primitive form of government without checks and balances that is not based on the US Constitution. If only two County Commissioners would trust the voters, then the voters of Utah County would get the chance to consider a new form of County Government that would potentially cost less and include geographic representation. See my blog post here for the details on how this process would potentially work: http://wright4countycommissioner.blogspot.com/2009/11/should-utah-county-change-its-form-of_18.html
If anyone knows if Commissioner Anderson supports this Gentlemen's Agreement, please post.
As you can imagine, I completely reject this idea. This Gentlemen's Agreement is wrong for multiple reasons:
1. The voters or delegates should select each County Commissioner, not the entrenched elite who benefit from the status quo. I believe in transparency, and I believe in the wisdom of the voters.
2. Each County Commissioner is elected by ALL of Utah County, and expected to represent ALL of Utah County. If Commissioner Anderson believes he only represents the 20% of the population in Utah County that lives south of Provo, then he should make that clear, instead of claiming to represent all of Utah County.
3. The population assumptions in the Gentlemen's Agreement are completely wrong. When Gary Anderson was first elected as a County Commissioner in 1982, approximately one third of Utah County may have lived south of Provo, one third in Provo, and one third north of Provo. But that is simply not the case now. Approximately 20% of Utah County lives south of Provo, a little over 20% in Provo, a little under 20% in Orem, a little under 20% in Northwest Utah County (Lehi, Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain) and a little over 20% in Northeast Utah County (Lindon, Pleasant Grove, Cedar Hills, American Fork, Highland and Alpine). In other words, if we divided Utah County by thirds, then South County and most of Provo would only get one Utah County Commissioner, not the two they have now!
4. The Gentlemen's Agreement has not been followed in the past. There have been multiple instances in the last 30 years where you did not have one County Commissioner south of Provo, one in Provo and one north of Provo. It appears that supporters of Commissioner Anderson are only bringing it up now because it favors him.
5. Does Commissioner Anderson share this same view? I don't know, but I'll try to ask him, and let you know his response. If so, then the $200,000 "award" that Utah County gave to the Springville Art Museum last year, and the ongoing support of the Utah County Fair in Spanish Fork, seem more like political patronage, and less like the best use of taxpayer funds.
If elected, I would represent all of Utah County equally, because all of Utah County votes for me. I was raised in Provo, but live in Cedar Hills, and have supporters all over Utah County.
However, I do think there is considerable merit to the view that Utah County now has 550,000 residents, and that 3 county commissioners cannot adequately represent all of them, no matter where they live. Our three county commissioners have "executive, legislative and judicial powers" which is a primitive form of government without checks and balances that is not based on the US Constitution. If only two County Commissioners would trust the voters, then the voters of Utah County would get the chance to consider a new form of County Government that would potentially cost less and include geographic representation. See my blog post here for the details on how this process would potentially work: http://wright4countycommissioner.blogspot.com/2009/11/should-utah-county-change-its-form-of_18.html
If anyone knows if Commissioner Anderson supports this Gentlemen's Agreement, please post.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Fraud in Utah County
According to this article in the Deseret News from October 2009: http://bit.ly/aqmpIM , victims of fraud in Utah County lost $45 million in 2006 and 2007 together, $64 million in 2008, and at least $76 million in 2009. We need to take down the criminals engaged in this fraud. Now.
But, with that said, we also need individuals to realize that if something sounds too good to be true, it almost certainly is. Anything promising a likely return over 10% a year is risky. And anything promising a likely return over 15% a year makes it almost certain that there is a substantial chance you will lose your entire investment. GOVERNMENT CANNOT, AND SHOULD NOT, PROTECT YOU FROM YOUR OWN GREED AND STUPIDITY. Unless, or until, folks realize that, there are a lot of folks who will continue to invest money they cannot afford to lose.
However, if elected, I commit to do the following:
1. Give our Sheriff and County Attorney all the resources they need to prosecute individuals engaged in these investment fraud schemes to the fullest extent of the law, and recover as much as possible for the victims. Even if that means cutting my own salary as a Commissioner. These fraud schemes are harming thousands of individuals, and damaging the business reputation of our county. County Attorney Jeff Buhman states in the article that:
"The honest truth is we're barely scratching the surface [of the fraud in Utah County]," Buhman said. "We could double or triple our department easily, and we would still be extremely busy."
Maybe we need to make cuts else where, but if elected, I will get County Attorney Buhman the resources to go after these criminals, and recover as much as possible for the victims.
2. Start an aggressive education campaign on investment fraud. I will pay our employees in our County Attorney and Sheriff's departments to go out into the community and educate our citizens on how investment fraud works, and the kind of fraud they have seen in Utah County. I will ask the local churches to allow one of our employees to come to one of their Sunday meetings and take 30 minutes to give their presentation. I will also set up county web site that explains these things in detail, and a hot line where people can call to report investment schemes that are fraudulent so they can be shut down BEFORE they can steal millions.
But, what do you think? This is an important topic, and I'm very interested in your thoughts.
Thanks,
Joel
But, with that said, we also need individuals to realize that if something sounds too good to be true, it almost certainly is. Anything promising a likely return over 10% a year is risky. And anything promising a likely return over 15% a year makes it almost certain that there is a substantial chance you will lose your entire investment. GOVERNMENT CANNOT, AND SHOULD NOT, PROTECT YOU FROM YOUR OWN GREED AND STUPIDITY. Unless, or until, folks realize that, there are a lot of folks who will continue to invest money they cannot afford to lose.
However, if elected, I commit to do the following:
1. Give our Sheriff and County Attorney all the resources they need to prosecute individuals engaged in these investment fraud schemes to the fullest extent of the law, and recover as much as possible for the victims. Even if that means cutting my own salary as a Commissioner. These fraud schemes are harming thousands of individuals, and damaging the business reputation of our county. County Attorney Jeff Buhman states in the article that:
"The honest truth is we're barely scratching the surface [of the fraud in Utah County]," Buhman said. "We could double or triple our department easily, and we would still be extremely busy."
Maybe we need to make cuts else where, but if elected, I will get County Attorney Buhman the resources to go after these criminals, and recover as much as possible for the victims.
2. Start an aggressive education campaign on investment fraud. I will pay our employees in our County Attorney and Sheriff's departments to go out into the community and educate our citizens on how investment fraud works, and the kind of fraud they have seen in Utah County. I will ask the local churches to allow one of our employees to come to one of their Sunday meetings and take 30 minutes to give their presentation. I will also set up county web site that explains these things in detail, and a hot line where people can call to report investment schemes that are fraudulent so they can be shut down BEFORE they can steal millions.
But, what do you think? This is an important topic, and I'm very interested in your thoughts.
Thanks,
Joel
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Kicking the Hornet's Nest
Blog from Daily Herald report Joe Pyrah here:
http://sausagegrinding.blogspot.com/2009/11/game-on.html
Text of blog below:
I skipped doing a published story on Joel Wright's formal announcement as candidate for county commission because he didn't announce an opponent. (I did mention his intention back in September on the Grinder.)
It's not too easy to write a story when you can't stack someone up against an opponent. It's either Steve White or Gary Anderson, but those guys are so different that it's not like Wright can make a blanket statement that covers them both.
But today, Wright poked the hornets nest to see what would happen. At the weekly commission meeting, he got up during the public comment portion and said that while commissioners did a good job with the 2010 budget, they should have rescinded the 2008 salary increases to ease the burden on taxpayers.
"The market right now, I think, would not lead to many employees leaving," he said, then added he'd put the raises back in place once the economy improved.
Anderson went straight into campaign mode, claiming that the employees didn't get a raise in 2009 or 2010 which amounts to a 5 percent pay cut because of the increase in cost of living. (I reject that methodology as public employee BS, but whatever.)
He leans into the mic and says "I appreciate our employees doing more with less."
Of course, it's hard to convey the mood of a room and the passive-aggressive nature of Utah politicians, but it made for a fun 30 seconds.
MY COMMENT ON BLOG ABOVE:
I appreciate our County Commissioners balancing Utah County's budget for 2010, and I also appreciate they had to make painful cuts in order to do so. But those cuts were simply insufficient given the current state of the economy.
Our County Commissioners raised our property tax rate about 8.5% in 2009 in order to keep their property tax revenue steady. That's like feeding your horse less, but still expecting it to do just as much work.
If the County Commissioners had already cut everything they could, then it would be defensible, but they haven't.
All county employees, including the County Commissioners, got a big raise in 2008, just before the biggest recession of our life time set in. At a minimum, they should roll that salary increase back entirely before raising our property tax rates in this this tough economy.
Very few, if any, Utah County employees are going to quit right now if their salaries go back to 2007 levels. There just aren't that many other jobs out there. Note further that we are experiencing deflation now, so a salary decrease becomes more reasonable. Note also the Utah State Legislators cut their salary earlier this year when they were cutting everyone else's budget.
Bottom Line: Until the County Commissioners have cut everything they can, they should NOT raise our property tax rates. And I believe they can still reasonably cut all salaries, including their salaries, back to 2007 levels.
http://sausagegrinding.blogspot.com/2009/11/game-on.html
Text of blog below:
I skipped doing a published story on Joel Wright's formal announcement as candidate for county commission because he didn't announce an opponent. (I did mention his intention back in September on the Grinder.)
It's not too easy to write a story when you can't stack someone up against an opponent. It's either Steve White or Gary Anderson, but those guys are so different that it's not like Wright can make a blanket statement that covers them both.
But today, Wright poked the hornets nest to see what would happen. At the weekly commission meeting, he got up during the public comment portion and said that while commissioners did a good job with the 2010 budget, they should have rescinded the 2008 salary increases to ease the burden on taxpayers.
"The market right now, I think, would not lead to many employees leaving," he said, then added he'd put the raises back in place once the economy improved.
Anderson went straight into campaign mode, claiming that the employees didn't get a raise in 2009 or 2010 which amounts to a 5 percent pay cut because of the increase in cost of living. (I reject that methodology as public employee BS, but whatever.)
He leans into the mic and says "I appreciate our employees doing more with less."
Of course, it's hard to convey the mood of a room and the passive-aggressive nature of Utah politicians, but it made for a fun 30 seconds.
MY COMMENT ON BLOG ABOVE:
I appreciate our County Commissioners balancing Utah County's budget for 2010, and I also appreciate they had to make painful cuts in order to do so. But those cuts were simply insufficient given the current state of the economy.
Our County Commissioners raised our property tax rate about 8.5% in 2009 in order to keep their property tax revenue steady. That's like feeding your horse less, but still expecting it to do just as much work.
If the County Commissioners had already cut everything they could, then it would be defensible, but they haven't.
All county employees, including the County Commissioners, got a big raise in 2008, just before the biggest recession of our life time set in. At a minimum, they should roll that salary increase back entirely before raising our property tax rates in this this tough economy.
Very few, if any, Utah County employees are going to quit right now if their salaries go back to 2007 levels. There just aren't that many other jobs out there. Note further that we are experiencing deflation now, so a salary decrease becomes more reasonable. Note also the Utah State Legislators cut their salary earlier this year when they were cutting everyone else's budget.
Bottom Line: Until the County Commissioners have cut everything they can, they should NOT raise our property tax rates. And I believe they can still reasonably cut all salaries, including their salaries, back to 2007 levels.
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