HAYDEN: No on deputy request

Your sales pitch for higher taxes in Hayden is unfounded. We should be looking at smaller government, lower taxes, and making all county and city departments work with reduced and smaller budgets. Especially the school districts!

The county commissioners have already muscled through a 3% “sustainable” tax increase to include raises for the Sheriff’s Office, which already patrols the Hayden area and now you are encouraging “voters in Hayden” to vote for another increase. You need to follow the money!

You made unfair tax comparisons to Post Falls, who by the way have some of the highest property taxes in the county, and do NOT contract with the Sheriff for police services. They along with Coeur d’Alene have too many upper level management personnel, just like Coeur d’Alene city.

So, when a city contracts with the SO (maybe Coeur d’Alene and the city of Post Falls should also), money is saved by not having to purchase vehicles/equipment and allowing deputies to do their job on the alleged high-rising crime in Hayden. Maybe a metro type policing is in order? Saving taxpayer money. You really do not hear those words any longer from the tax and spend Kootenai government agencies!

The elderly are being property taxed out of their homes. Your claim of a small amount per property tax could mean whether someone could afford medication or not!

CRAIG KERWIN

Hayden