Budget time is here
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In My Humble Opinion
Jodi McDade
September is a month full of beginnings and endings. K-12 schools have already started while colleges and universities are just beginning to start back up. The end of summer and the beginning of fall will come this month. And this year we find ourselves in full presidential campaign mode. I think I’ve already beat that drum enough for a little while.
One other thing that happens at the end of September every year is that governmental budgets for the following year have to be agreed to, voted on and passed or the government will face a shutdown. I really don’t understand the difficulty because they have all year to research, debate and come to common ground before the last minute.
But, in Washington, D.C., it is always down to the wire – even going into the wee hours of the night between September 30 and October 1. We are there again. As always the Republicans and Democrats are talking about not being able to agree on things and want to pass a CR (Continuing Resolution) that will just extend the current budget for all departments and agencies into next year.
Just like a business each department and agency has its own budgets to put together and then provide them for approval to the committees that oversee the overall budget of the company – or government.
Many of us make an annual budget for our own income and expenses. It’s not that difficult. Make a
list of our anticipated income sources, make a list of our anticipated expenses (utilities, insurance, loans/bills, food, gas, etc.), and then find out if we will have enough income to cover those expenses.
If we break even it’s going to be a challenge to have any extra money to spend on other things. If we have more income than expenses we will be able to cover emergencies and maybe some extras. But if we have more expenses than income we need to look at how to increase our income (extra job?) or cut our expenses. Granted, that’s not a good place to be.
Basically our governmental budgets should operate the same way except on a much larger scale. Unfortunately at the federal level these reviews and decisions are made by members of conflicting political parties. Each side has their own priorities and agendas. One side wants to make sure the most important programs are funded (military/veterans, social security/Medicare, homeland security, border control, security agencies, and foreign aid to our allies). The other side wants to make sure funding is available for school loans, housing subsidies, food stamps, unemployment benefits, and foreign aid to our enemies. There are some areas of common ground, but, in MY OPINION, only the areas spelled out in our Constitution should be considered at the federal level.
Add into this mix of trying to choose the things to fund versus the things not to fund, all 535 members of the House and Senate want funding for roads, bridges and pet projects in their states and districts. The ones with the most seniority generally get what they want while the newly elected have to wait their turns. This is one of the reasons for them not to vote on term limits for themselves!
Bring this concept down to the local levels of states, counties, cities, and towns and it is basically the same thing. Our elected officials at each level must compare income (taxes) against expenses and determine what can be spent on the things they think are the most important. Our state budget is determined when our legislature is in session early in the year, but they are also under a time limit to get it done before they adjourn for the year.
At our county level here in Coosa County it’s the same thing – income versus expenses (needs). Several things play into our difficulties in having the income that is needed to meet our needs, and our County Commission is the deciding entity to review each department and agency budget just like in Washington. Here they are hindered by the lack of taxes due to no major businesses in the county, low property taxes and so many of our elderly people being exempt from paying property taxes. And so much of the taxes collected are earmarked for education and cannot be used for the needs of the county itself.
Outsiders – logging companies, large construction companies, etc. – come into our county and cause damage to our roads that were not built to handle their weight. But there is nothing that requires these companies to do any type of repair for the damage they cause.
Since the bad condition of our roads is probably the LOUDEST complaint from the citizens, it would seem that some form of additional taxes may need to be considered. I don’t like that idea any more than you do, but there should be some way to collect more fees or taxes from the large companies that currently do not provide any revenue to our county.
Now I’m going to step on some toes. The biggest industry currently in Coosa County is timber. And the majority of the land is owned by large companies and not individuals. The lobbyists from Alabama Forestry Association, Alabama Farmers Association and major timber companies are the loudest voices in the State House preventing any legislation limiting their low or no tax standings. They are too big for lowly counties to stand up to.
Just some food for thought as our County Commission is working through our slim budget. I hope they find funding for the necessities over the extras.