By: Diane Benjamin
The obvious alien writer at the Pantagraph, Steve Vogel, demanded .04 a gallon gas tax increase today. Maybe he sneaked into the country when the old Soviet Union dissolved. Maybe he was dropped on his head. He thinks the City needs more money for roads.
Citizens expect their government to handle:
- Police
- Fire
- Water
- Sewers
- Streets
The City of Bloomington wants to raise Liquor Licenses because they don’t want to pay for policing the mess they created with downtown bars.
The Water Fund was robbed at $2.4 million so the Coliseum could have it.
NO money was spent on roads a few years ago, far less than is needed is ever budgeted. I bet Tari would create toll roads if he could. Allocating taxes already paid to roads just takes all the fun out of being king.
Stevie, how much does Hales and the Council throw away on consultants? Millions?
The City punted more the $1 million paying Sick Leave Buy Back. Another $1.2 million on new signs for the Coliseum.
How about buying the Sugar Creek Property and then spending more to clean it up – another half a million?
Don’t forget the $50,000 – $60,000 a month sent to Springfield for legal!
Food. Of course taxpayers are required to feed their royalty.
Bloomington’s roads suck because Bloomington’s leaders don’t want to spend money on things citizens expect, want, and need – like roads!
Stevie – the citizens have been taxed enough. Utility taxes (that State Farm is somehow exempt from, but County Financial isn’t), Amusement taxes, gas taxes, garbage increases, SALES Tax. It’s getting hard to keep up!
Add in Hales’ exploding Administrative budget, and only you thinks this clown Council and Mayor deserve more money.
Let’s all open the windows and throw out dollar bills. Let Hales, Renner, Buragas, Hauman, Painter, and Black chase them. Who needs government mandated entertainment venues when citizens can create a better show?
Stevie closed with saying a new retail store will be building across the street from Meijer. Everybody celebrate. The monkeys sucking Economic Development money landed minimum wage jobs. The millions tossed to Economic Development are REALLY working great.
Jim Karch reported roads will take $9.5 million a year just to get to FAIR. http://blnnews.com/2015/05/12/13-7m-9-5m-what-tari-didnt-want-to-hear/
Bloomington is now producing minimum wage jobs while losing the good jobs.
Here’s a plan: Put a tax on government employees. With their lavish salaries and benefits, taxing the rich is popular right now. Feel the Bern?
Start with an 80% tax on Hales.
Yeah Vogel thinks everyone is rich and can afford a tax increase like he can
I’m enjoying this post on many levels. Thank you for painting the imagery of clowns and monkeys and dollar chase.
Instead of spending the money on roads and infrastructure (things we all benefit from) they’d rather spend it on their entertainment needs. Former Republican administration is enjoying the subsidized entertainment as well. Hypocritical Jesse Smart enjoys being a “volunteer” at the BCPA for the free shows. The volunteer staff on duty at a recent show I attended could quite easily have been 1/4 of the audience. I’d volunteer myself, but I’m almost certain I’d be turned away because I don’t “know” anybody to get that lucrative volunteer post.
They’re going to bleed us ’til we’re dead. Personally, I don’t work hard to pay a tax so someone else might be entertained.
😍
My brother said he got gas at Hudson I believe it was on Sat. for $1.29. He said when he got to Normal there at Main and Rabb Rd. all 4 gas stations were $1.49. Not much competition at Main and Rabb. Great for the town of Normal.
Really what people should do is just buy fuel someplace else and not frequent B/N gas stations. Both cities don’t seem to be doing much in the way of road repair with the taxes they already collect so why give them anymore.
B/N, two cities with their priorities messed up.
You’re right about low wage jobs around here. Someone posted on that so called newspaper website about the booming economy in the article about that conference hotel joke of a development. I presume they were joking about the economy but maybe they are so stupid and think job growth by a Chic restaurant and others means job growth.
Any bets on when Sears and Macy’s will be next to close?
I noticed that gas “gouge” also only I saw $1.59, anyway, I was just in Peoria the past week and “looked” at items I’ll need for the next year, wound up spending $500! As they have a lower tax rate and lower PRICES, that’s money I USUALLY spent here! Also ordered more, so sorry B/N business, but you can thank the Mayor and council, as I’m SURE I’m NOT the only one doing this. And on the BCPA. Have they EVER thought about LOWERING the ticket prices on “lesser” events to TRY and get the place full??
Vogel is wrong when he says nobody flinches when gas prices move up and down by a few cents. One of the main reasons sales tax revenue is slightly up (pre sales tax increase) is because gas prices are down. So, is Vogel recommending a reduction in
sales tax revenue in order to increase the cost of a gallon of gas? Stick to writing, Mr. Vogel, because your understanding of economics and math is very poor.
I have to laugh about Vogel’s suggestion that the Council will remove the gas tax increase if the cost of gasoline increases. On Monday, April 21, 2014, the current Council voted against a previous Council’s decision to sunset the last sales tax increase. That was the same meeting other tax increases and new, additional taxes were added.
http://www.cityblm.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=6644
The local school districts, an important part of the “quality of life,” are planning to issue bonds which will raise property taxes because the State is in such a financial mess.
The Pantagraph (Sunday 2/14/16 page A3) reported recommendations are being made to the Illinois legislature to raise personal and corporate income tax rates back to their pre-rollback levels of 5% and 7%, respectively; tax non-Social Security retirement income; expand the sales tax on services; and temporarily removing the sales tax exemption for food and over-the-counter medicine among other ideas. Of course, like in Bloomington, there are recommendations to make budget cuts.
It’s NOT just schools! It’s EVERY business that does business with or works with the STATE! I have a friend who is President of a $2 million a year company that does 90% of their business with the STATE, and they haven’t been paid since July, and have NOW used up THEIR resources and need money for payroll, for which they are seeking “unsecured” loans @ 5% interest a MONTH in return, with payment back when the state pays them! How LONG can ANY business work under THOSE circumstances??