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Editorial: Sign Thefts - Fear of the Opposition?
October 14th, 2004

Editorial: Police Arrested a Person
October 7th, 2004

Editorial: Korean Cloud on the Horizon
September 14th, 2004

Editorial: Moratorium Battle Heats Up
August 30th, 2004

Editorial: Orders From the Top
August 12th, 2004

Editorial: On the Value of Art
July 14th, 2004

Editorial: Of Voles and Men
June 24th, 2004

Editorial: Clam Poaching, are We Number One?
June 4th, 2004

Editorial: Leadership Overcomes Flawed Process in Missile Range Decision
May 10th, 2004

Editorial: Bomb Range Inn
April 25th, 2004

Editorial: Is the President Above the Law?
April 8th, 2004

Editorial: The "Good Old Days"
March 15th, 2004

Editorial: Access to Public Records
March 1st, 2004

Editorial: Sunset Park: A Reality?
February 23rd, 2004

Editorial: The "Tree Ordinance"
February 9th, 2004

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Fiscal Incompetence?

Fiscal Incompetence?

Editorial

Let's review some recent history of the Levy County Commission at work. At great expense the Levy County Jail was expanded to house 173 more prisoners. The logic was to house out-of-county prisoners and make money on the extra prisoners. The budget passed September 25 by the Commissioners prevents the Sheriff from hiring enough officers to allow providing board and room to 100 prisoners that Sumter County would send us for safe keeping. That results in an annual net loss of revenue of $1,541,449 to Levy County according to the Sheriff Department.

The failure in financial logic represented by the jail situation is mirrored by Commissioner Danny Stevens when he told tax payers at the September 25 Budget Hearing that the public believes there has been a tax increase, when the Commission has actually lowered taxes. Look at your tax bill and try to find a lower figure than last year!

A tax payer attending the Budget Hearing could not have looked at the budget that the Commission adopted September 25 because neither the public nor the press was given a copy of the budget. After the Commission acted we now find that certain departments have extraordinary increases. Examples of the most extreme budget increases are as follows:

Legal Department ......... 95% increase from two years ago to $430,994
Building & Zoning Dept... 96% increase from two years ago to $430,994
County Administration ...110% increase from two years ago to $365,000

Has the work of these departments doubled in just two years?

Meanwhile, income from use of the enlarged jail to the tune of $1,541,449 will be lost because the Sheriff Department was not given enough money to hire four officers to supervise the extra income producing out-of-county prisoners.
Please read the letters to the editor in this edition. It is obvious Cedar Key News is not the only entity concerned about the state of property taxes in Levy County.

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