To the editor: Don't allow TARTA tax increase
5/25/2018
TARTA buses make their rounds Thursday, May 17, 2018, in Toledo.
The latest money grab — courtesy of TARTA — is to add a ½ cent to the current sales tax, which will generate approximately $30 million. This beauty has a little bit for everybody, except, of course, the taxpayer. How can our incompetent politicians — God love ‘em — not approve this little beauty?
TARTA can run more empty buses, can afford to buy empty hybrid buses, can afford to buy empty electric buses, and can afford to create more underutilized routes — maybe even a light rail system.
The problem here is it allows TARTA to grow into its every increasing revenue stream unchecked. Where is the budgeting? Where is the justifying of business investment, including those million dollar electric buses, those new unneeded routes, and those glitzy new stops?
The present system has TARTA going to the taxpayers on a regular basis, requesting and hopefully justifying its need for funds.
Voters are about to set up the equivalent of an automatic monthly deduction from their checking account.
How has that worked out in the past?
STEPHEN G. SPITLER
West Toledo
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Take NRA money, lose our votes
Recently, 10 kids, some not old enough to shave or drive a car, were murdered in cold blood by a 17-year-old, who carried two guns hidden under his trench coat into a Texas high school and slaughtered his classmates. He murdered them with guns that were readily available to him in his home.
These killings have become a routine experience across America over the last 20 or so years. It used to be that our places of learning were safe and secure, but no longer.
But it is hard for any change to occur when our politicians accept millions of dollars from gun lobbyists, which often keeps them from passing or even considering reasonable and prudent gun legislation to get these killing machines off our streets and out of the hands of teenaged murderers.
It can be done. Age restrictions, background checks, and mental health checks. Viable, up-to-date, and accurate police databases that are shared nationally. Severe penalties to adults who fail to secure their weapons. Elimination of unnecessarily large magazines. And most importantly, the elimination of all rapidfire weapons like the AR-15.
Perhaps it’s time for the voters to send a message to those that take the dollars from gun lobbyists: Take their money and lose our vote. More parents, sisters, brothers, husbands, wives, and grandparents need to all sleep well knowing their kids are safe in the classroom.
ROLLIND ROMANOFF
South Toledo