Letters to the Editor 10-9-14

No more tax
Editor:   
“O” Noooo. Not more tax. After spending  $30,000 of our dollars on a worthless telephone survey and $60,000 more of our dollars to come up with “Genuinely Cloverdale” (Whatever the heck that means). Now the City Council, and our new City Manager want to tax all of our “utility.” This means our “…use of telecommunications, electricity, gas, and video services by residents and businesses. It would apply to landline, wireless, and other forms of telephone service, including long distance. It would also apply to cable television service, however, it would not apply to internet access service.”
As I read through the voter’s pamphlet I found that this UUT is even worse than I thought. There is no accountability how the tax money will be spent. It just goes into the general fund.
The City Council would establish a “three-member citizens’ oversight committee to review and report on the receipt of revenue and expenditure of UUT funds.” That frightens me as much as the thought of more and more taxes. More petty politics.
Please, everyone in Cloverdale, study before you vote. Does the City Council need a change? Please get out and Vote no on Measure  “O.” Thank you.
Ron Cooper,
Cloverdale
Measure M – The Library Improvement Act
Editor:   
This election season voters in Sonoma County are being asked to consider Measure M: Library Improvement Act requesting a county-wide sales tax increase amounting to ⅛th of a cent.
Many of us immediately respond, “Oh, no, not more taxes!” But, please take a moment to look at some facts.
The budget for the Sonoma County Library system supports The Central Library in Santa Rosa, eight regional libraries, of which Cloverdale is one, and seven other libraries. This budget is based on the 1978 codes allocating 22.5¢ per $1000 collected in property taxes.
With the recent decline in property taxes, all the libraries in the system have been closed on Mondays and most evenings, and have limited hours on Saturday.
The loss of library hours has reduced children’s programs, resource access for adults, and limited availability of new technology. Students have inadequate access to library services for research or homework.
The Sonoma County Library system spends $33 per person, while Napa County, Marin County, and San Francisco County library systems spend $53, $95, and $113 respectively. Sonoma, Napa and San Francisco counties are fairly equal in wealth ranking, between 11th and 15th. Yet, there is this marked disparity in relation to library support. The Library Improvement Act would bring Sonoma County to $45 per person.
Measure M will produce $10 million dollars each year for the next 10 years, supplementing the current budget of $14 million. Over one-third of Measure M money will go to reopening all of the libraries on Mondays. The remainder will go to extending operating hours to include evenings and longer Saturday hours, creating children’s programs, acquiring new technology, and expanding resources for students and adults. This money will also stabilize the Library budget giving it time to establish additional sources of income.
Libraries are a part of our community. With Measure M, if you spend $400 on taxable items you have contributed 50¢ towards our community resource. Or, if you spend $20,000 on these items you have contributed $25.
Think seriously about The Library Improvement Act (Measure M) as you cast your vote. What does our Library give the children, students and adults in Cloverdale? What does it give the community?
Reece Foxen,
Cloverdale
Re-elect Joe Palla
Editor:   
Cloverdale Voters: On November 4th, we have the unique opportunity to re-elect Joe Palla to our City Council. We have lived in Cloverdale for the past 13 years and one of the best things about living in small town is getting to know a lot of people including our elected officials. We had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know Joe early on. We are very impressed with his dedication to our city. He is hard working and goes to more meetings than anyone we know, all for the good of our city. We know that he feels he can do so much more if re-elected. We urge the voters to support Joe Palla with their vote of confidence. Thank you.
Sue and Donald Rathjen,
Cloverdale