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Mayor Bechtel's latest ramblings
Well I have not rambled for several weeks now, so here goes. We made a trip to southern California (Valencia) for Christmas and were able to have our three kids and grand-daughter all in the same space for the first time in a very long time. It was good! The roads to and from were dry and there was no snow even in the Mount Whitney area at Bishop California. Weather wise this has been a very dry year. Us being in a farming area know the need for snow and filling our reservoirs. We sure hope we get some in the next couple of months.
There is still a need for food at the food bank. The help has been better but those in need are getting more numerous.
The new city well house is almost complete and we hope to have a ribbon cutting ceremony sometime this month. That of course will depend on the weather co-operating.
Our State Legislators will be gathering to make new laws and work on a new budget for the coming year. It most likely will be another tight budget. There will be a bill going to them with regards to Local Option Taxes. This is legislation that most states have already and can benefit local communities. It allows the local people to tax themselves for needed projects. Whether it be for street improvements, mass transit or many other projects important to the local area. I believe the State needs to allow this bill to pass. It gives us a voice in what happens locally. The nice thing about local option taxes is that the people in the local area have to vote on each project. The State Legislators cannot just vote a new tax for us. It would take a majority (50 to 60 %) of the people to pass this tax. The Bill would set a limit on how much we could tax ourselves so it wouldn't`t get out of hand. The maximum would be 1% and this could be broken up into percentages so you could do several projects at the same time. The one thing I see that we need in this part of the county is funding for mass transit for the people who do not drive. We have in our area and the county, especially the western half of the county a good many people who rely on others to transport them to work, doctors, stores, malls and etc. Mass transit is an economical way of doing this and taking the burden off of relatives and friends. I would hope that you would consider looking into this bill and letting your Legislators know your feelings, for or against. Well that's enough rambling for now.
John Bechtel, Mayor, Wilder, Idaho
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