40 million Wheel or Property tax proposed by Bradley County Commissioners

http://www.clevelandbanner.com/view/full_story/16468322/article-Wheel-Tax-an-option-to-fund-school-projects?instance=homefirstleft

This email is to inform quickly that once again it appears the will of the people is being circumvented for expediency and a new tax burden is going to be place on you!

The Bradley County Commission, Mayors and the Finance committee has once again, it appears, to be leaning toward a 40,000,000.00 (million) plus dollar Wheel tax to be imposed on the citizens of Bradley County in a very down economy!

This amount is being discussed and a few have suggested this amount be doubled so that future projects can also be included, “this avoiding repeated new taxes” , “just one big tax so we can pay for several things on the agenda!”

Tennessee annotated code suggests that the the County Commission can either vote line item up or down with 10 of the 14 Commissioners approving the proposal or it can go to a referendum and the PEOPLE DECIDE! 

At first glance and with comments posted in the banner it appears that the commission is leaning toward a vote among themselves “because it is quicker!”

I don’t know about you but I don’t want any commissioner or Mayor  representing me that will simply elect to vote for a 40 million dollar plus tax on it’s citizens because it is quicker!!!

If our locally elected officials do indeed choose to move forward on this vote and approve the large tax,  the road is more difficult but it can still go to a referendum with a signature ballot with  10 percent of the populace signing to force it to referendum (for you to vote on it)!

I personally feel that if the commission elects to go forward with a vote and once again bypass their constituency and we have to go with a signature ballot to have our voice heard then I don’t see it as an impossibility at that time to move forward with a recall effort of our elected representatives as this would definitely send a strong message that the people of Bradley County do not need another large tax and it’s citizens must be represented!

The other option they went on to discuss in this meeting was that if the wheel tax didnt go forward a property tax would be inevitable! Are you kidding me? A wheel tax or a property tax? Where is the problem solving here? The easy and only solution is to tax the good citizens of Bradley County for years to come? Come on!

Let me remind you that 60 percent, 60 percent of our current county budget is sent to the Bradley County Schools and now it appears that more is being requested!

This will not be the only tax imposed! I have been squawking about this growth plan, the Regional Growth plan which calls for infrastructure costs, sewer, roads, 10 to 20 new schools, new buildings etc, etc, etc! THE CITY AND THE COUNTY WILL BE ASKING YOU TO PAY FOR THIS IN MANY MORE MULTIPLE TAXES UPON TOP OF TAXES IN THE NEAR FUTURE! THIS WILL NOT BE THE ONLY TAX INCREASE! 

People of Bradley County you are not being represented here! The best interest of this county and city is not being represented by our elected officials! We are more worried about receiving “free” federal grant money than the citizens of Bradley and Cleveland feeding their own families!

Stay tuned for more info as this develops! We must act quickly because a runaway government is galloping on the proverbial tax horse through Bradley County and Cleveland with little to no representation from us the taxpayer!

The true tragedy of this is that warning sirens have been going off for a long time around here! The elected officials have been informed, the citizens have been informed of the potential costs of their reckless growth plans and lack of budgetary planning and yet our representatives have chosen to ignore this fact and take more of your money and bypass you the citizen and their constituency!

We must move forward quickly! 

Get their phones ringing! The rubber meets the road now! I have listened for years now as many have said that if it comes down to a new tax, “they will hear from me” well, that time is here and now is the time to act! Don’t delay! 

The best and most effective thing you can do immediately is to inform others! Pass this email along to all you know! P the people must be heard! It will not stop with this one tax, guaranteed!!

Call your elected local representative today and tell them “NO” on this new tax or any future taxes as they seem are inevitable!

Donny Harwood
“less taxes, less government, more freedom”
http://www.teapartyofbradleycounty.webs.com
http://www.bradleycountynews.wordpress.com
423-284-4250

Chuck Fleischmann introduces the “Stop Green Initiative Abuse Act of 2011”

This is definitely a move in the right direction but with the ever increasing autonomy of the EPA on our country it is evident we must do more

Along with the high cost of complying with the “green movement” comes the imposing regulations and mandates that will further stifle our freedoms and restrict us to federal demands under the guises of a runaway EPA with no limitations on their encroachment!

Let’s encourage Congressman Fleischmann to continue the fight, continue to make the much needed cuts and take his efforts one step further! I am challenging him to move forward on the Ron Paul bill to get the US out of the United Nations (HR 1146) and co sponsor this bill! It must move forward, we are being inundated by the UN at every turn in this country and this bill would turn them away for good!

Chuck Fleischmann introduces the “Stop Green Initiative Abuse Act of 2011”
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Chuck Fleischmann introduced the “Stop Green Initiative Abuse Act of 2011” today. It will eliminate the Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program and save taxpayers $2.1 billion over the next ten years.
 
“I ran for Congress because I knew something had to be done about our crushing debt. I have worked since day one to balance our budget and stop the ‘tax, borrow, spend’ mentality that has dominated Washington for far too long. I am glad to introduce legislation to end the Weatherization Assistance Program in order to save billions of dollars. I am also glad the American people directly had a say in this process through the YouCut program. Together we can get our fiscal house in order and get our country back on the right track,” Fleischmann said.
 
The Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program was originally created in the 1970’s. However, other federal programs, such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), are already in place to assist low-income households in managing energy costs.
 
In December 2010, the Tennessee Comptroller General’s office released a review of the program citing that weatherization contractors had, in nearly half of the cases studied, failed to implement critically recommended measures to properly weatherize homes. The review also noted that funds for the program were used for other assistance measures that had nothing to do with weatherization.
 
The Office of the Inspector General at the Department of Energy also conducted a review of this program concluding that weatherization work on homes was poorly administered and led to potentially harmful effects for home inhabitants. The State of Delaware actually suspended their weatherization program due to “fraud and mismanagement”.
 
The Weatherization Assistance Program received the most votes from the American people during the week Congressman Fleischmann lead the YouCut effort.

Jordan Powell
Press Secretary
Congressman Chuck Fleischmann