To the editor:
The only thing growing in Caribou these days is the size of municipal government. The business base, the job base, and housing starts are not. I believe that we, the taxpayers, need to reverse this by demanding our elected officials lay out a fiscal plan to methodically reduce the size of city government over a period of time into a streamlined, well-organized business. We can do this by looking at subcontracting some of our services out, down-sizing our union and non-union employee base and reducing some of our department sizes and let the private sectors grow all it can. This is what will benefit all of the Caribou taxpayers.
Nothing good has or will come from the city of Caribou being the largest employer. Just look at our current mil rate as proof of this. Also, take into consideration the fact that the preliminary budget shortfall is adding up to a 5.5 mil rate increase, which translates into a whopping 20 percent-plus increase in your tax bill! Realistically, I feel that we will have approximately a 1-3/4 mill ($486,500.00) to 2-1/4 mill ($625,500.00) budget gap to close when the dust finally settles.
We need to shift these jobs into the private sector. This is not an unreachable goal. Some on the city council seem to support bloating the local government at the taxpayer’’ expense, but I believe that the majority of the taxpayers do not want this.
As we all know, in the private sector, the issue of job retention and growth is a self-leveling situation: when the economy is in a downturn, there is job reduction nationally and when the economy starts an upswing, the jobs come back and more are added. Now let’s compare the Caribou municipal government, keeping in mind that the economy is still not good. Jobs and municipal size never self-level, they do one thing, increase along with the wages and benefit packages. There seems to be no adjusting to meet the temperature of the local economy; it’s just more, more, more. Nowhere in the private sector does this happen.
I previously read a comment in the Bangor Daily News from Dana Connors, president of Maine Chamber of Commerce, that I believe we should apply to the Caribou municipality, and I quote, “Perhaps we have outgrown the ability to finance the services provided.”
So as Caribou taxpayers, let’s stand back and look at the overall direction of the city’s growth, let’s consider those on the city council, “our elected officials”, and what they are doing to try and slow the rate of unnecessary, bloated growth in our municipal government that burdens all taxpayers. I personally see a huge divide, with only one member fighting tooth and nail to prevent it.
Caribou
