March 19, 2010
BUDGET: Finding Places to Cut [Budget], Not Increase Fees or Taxes, and Increasing Tax Base Should be Council’s Challenge
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Reporter
Huntington, WV (HNN) – “We do not expect to be through with the budget on Monday, [March 21] stated council chairman James Insco. He predicts the need for a special call budget session one evening during the March 22-24 period.
After three weeks of budget meetings, council members have voted to restore police and fire department cuts in the administration’s proposed 2010-2011 budget. However, no one has come up with additional cuts or revenue.
At the Saturday, March 12 meeting, one suggestion was made to pass the administration’s worst case scenario budget then revisit the matter in the time frame before July 1, 2010.
Insco does not favor such a proposal and predicts a “long” Saturday morning and afternoon session, March 20. “I would hope council in its wisdom would not pass the budget as presented. If we do not want to see cuts in the Police and Fire Departments, which we do not, then we have to find the money from other departments.”
Underscoring that at this time he does not support fee increases, Insco told HNN, “the easiest speech is to say we want to restore, we want to restore, we want to restore. Council members need to prepare [speeches] for where they will get the money [without] raising a fee or creating a new tax, those are easy outs. Raising a fee is easy, finding places to cut is the difficult part. I think that’s where we need to be.”
When referred to mentions at the March 12 budget hearings of raising the user fee and/or a municipal fee to restore police and fire department cuts, Insco is “adamantly opposed” to those proposals. “Council should learn that throwing more money at the problem is not the answer. We have to find a way to increase our tax base, residentially and business wise. I hope I can find five other council members that feel the same way.”
While acknowledging “study” of an occupation tax in progress, Insco stated, “there’s no way to balance next year’s [2010-2011] on that.”
The chairman has observed both positives and negatives about an occupation tax, but he is not ready to render a person decision on his own vote. “It needs further study, and, I’ll do that [along with] fellow council members and go from there.”
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BUDGET: Finding Places to Cut [Budget], Not Increase Fees or Taxes, and Increasing Tax Base Should be Council’s Challenge
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Reporter
Huntington, WV (HNN) – “We do not expect to be through with the budget on Monday, [March 21] stated council chairman James Insco. He predicts the need for a special call budget session one evening during the March 22-24 period.
After three weeks of budget meetings, council members have voted to restore police and fire department cuts in the administration’s proposed 2010-2011 budget. However, no one has come up with additional cuts or revenue.
At the Saturday, March 12 meeting, one suggestion was made to pass the administration’s worst case scenario budget then revisit the matter in the time frame before July 1, 2010.
Insco does not favor such a proposal and predicts a “long” Saturday morning and afternoon session, March 20. “I would hope council in its wisdom would not pass the budget as presented. If we do not want to see cuts in the Police and Fire Departments, which we do not, then we have to find the money from other departments.”
Underscoring that at this time he does not support fee increases, Insco told HNN, “the easiest speech is to say we want to restore, we want to restore, we want to restore. Council members need to prepare [speeches] for where they will get the money [without] raising a fee or creating a new tax, those are easy outs. Raising a fee is easy, finding places to cut is the difficult part. I think that’s where we need to be.”
When referred to mentions at the March 12 budget hearings of raising the user fee and/or a municipal fee to restore police and fire department cuts, Insco is “adamantly opposed” to those proposals. “Council should learn that throwing more money at the problem is not the answer. We have to find a way to increase our tax base, residentially and business wise. I hope I can find five other council members that feel the same way.”
While acknowledging “study” of an occupation tax in progress, Insco stated, “there’s no way to balance next year’s [2010-2011] on that.”
The chairman has observed both positives and negatives about an occupation tax, but he is not ready to render a person decision on his own vote. “It needs further study, and, I’ll do that [along with] fellow council members and go from there.”
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