March 29, 2024

A “NO” vote on May 7 is a vote for our future

By Brian and Shirley Diercks

Osceola

On May 7, we will be asked to repeal the Local Option Sales and Service Tax. This tax was dedicated by the voters of Osceola, Murray and Woodburn in 2007 to fund our new drinking water supply reservoir.

In our opinion, the overwhelming benefit of this tax is the everyone who shops in these three cities contributes to the funding of our new reservoir — otherwise the burden falls on property-tax payers at a time when many feel property taxes are high enough.

This election is not about where to build a lake, or what size it should be, or whether or not we need a reservoir. Thousands of dollars and numerous studies over the years have brought us the plan now presented.

Rather, this election is about how to pay for the reservoir. Why would we want to incur higher property taxes and potentially dramatic increases in water-usage rates when we can continue to spread these expenses among a larger population? It seems that voting “NO” on May 7 is the sensible choice.