The Franklin News-Post
P. O. Box 250
310 Main Street, SW
Rocky Mount, Virginia 24151
540-483-5113
Fax: 540-483-8013
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Friday, March 5, 2010
In an editorial in the News Post, dated February 26, 2010, "Sacrificing Citizens for the Sacred Cow,"ﾠMr. John L. Schenk, president of NCB Inc., (a company on Hollins Road in Roanoke that sells roasted coffee), states that "the citizens of Franklin County cannot afford to balance the budget with their bank accounts any longer." He supports the argument that we got to where we are because of "poor oversight and the government mentality of we need more, never less."
He considers our Franklin County government, a "bloated bureaucracy" and that they "rob the citizens' bank account" to cover shortfalls. He notes that "school systems need to be run just like a business."
In response, I suggest Mr. Schenk take a look at the following real estate tax rate for Franklin and surrounding counties/municipalities, then again suggest that our county government is bloated. I might just be a country boy, but it looks to me that Franklin is on the bottom of the list. That means some are willing to pay a little more, and others a lot more, than Franklin County.
And since residents of this fine county, with one of the best school divisions in the entire state, pays the least of all the counties for real estate taxes, why would it be so traumatic to raise the rate a few cents? Let me repeat that -- a few cents -- to the level of Bedford, second from the bottom of the list. It would make a tremendous dent in our budget deficit in the county, and not for education alone. It would benefit, police, emergency medical services, fire and other needed services for those, not as privileged as you.ﾠ
Any cut impacting Franklin County students will directly affect the outcomes we so desire, and that in turn, will have an impact on businesses that want to locate and operate their businesses here in Franklin County. It's short-sited and narrow-minded to think that schools, that nurture and educate our children, should be run like a business. Mr. Schenk, it's not like we can buy a cheaper bean if our business gets into financial trouble. But if you had to do that, do you think your customers would be able to taste the difference?
Real Estate Tax Rates for Southwest Virginia
Per $100 dollars of assessed value:
Roanoke City 1.19
Roanoke Co. 1.09
Salem 1.18
Montgomery .71
Botetourt .65
Floyd .60
Craig .54
Pittsylvania .53
Bedford .50
Franklin .46
George Stancil
Roanoke
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