Dakota Beacon

Measure 2 isn’t about money, it’s about our right to own property. Let’s review some facts.

Property taxes are based on the value of your home, not your income. If your income decreases in a bad economy, your family suffers a hardship or you retire your property taxes remain the same. If you cannot pay the government can take your home and kick you and your family to the curb.

 We keep hearing nonsense about local control. Now really, how much say do you have in what goes on in your child’s classroom? How about when the city wants to expand a football field or a civic center? If you want to keep your money local, it doesn’t get any more local than in your wallet.

We hear horror stories about the services we may lose. Opponents conveniently mention only the services that we actually want. They will not mention city transit busses that drive around town empty or parks that go unused. There is plenty of pork.

This is not a tax cut, the government will get it’s money. With a sales tax for example, everyone pays whether it be with their pay check or their welfare check. When more people pay, everyone pays less. With other taxes your home is not held as collateral. The government cannot take your home.

We know how government works. If you remove one revenue source, they will find another. This is what governments do best. There are better ways to do it and this forces politicians to find a better way.

A right cannot be taken away, a privilege can. We should support measure 2 because owning a home should be a right, not a privilege. With our national economy on the brink, it’s the safe choice to make for our families.