AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL TAX LEVYING ORGANIZATIONS IN WALTON COUNTY

(INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT, 2 MUNICIPALITIES, CONSTITUTIONAL OFFICERS, SCHOOL DISTRICT, WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICTS, NORTH WALTON MOSQUITO DISTRICT, SOUTH WALTON MOSQUITO DISTRICT, SOUTH WALTON FIRE DISTRICT)

Our mission is to strive for efficiency and accountability in local government. We believe that the massive increases in the size of government, budgets and spending in Walton County in recent years cannot and should not be sustained. The excessive spending and huge growth of local government are the result of large tax and income surpluses. The economic future of our county has been compromised by these explosive growth and spending patterns.

Rising insurance and housing costs, a downturn in the real estate market, inequitable cost shifting as a result of our property tax system, make it difficult for people to live and to conduct business here as well as discouraging new investment in our county.

We call upon every governmental agency to hold the line on spending for the FY2008 budget year. To achieve this goal, we respectfully recommend the following “budget policy” be adopted for your proposed FY2008 budget.

1. Establish a base budget at actual expenditures for FY2007 with no increase except for the limited growth allowed by state law in the roll back level. Require each department to scrub every expense category and to suggest cuts or reallocations necessary to spend no more dollars than were actually spent or budgeted in FY2007, whichever is less. We suggest that this is the true “base” budget.                                                                                       
2. Any adjustments to this base budget for inflation, population or other relevant factors will be publicly disclosed. In any case, increases in budgets and spending will be no more than the rate of inflation plus population change (determined in annual audits).
3. Separately list and rank any requested increases or supplemental items in priority order and provide clear justification for each item including any consequences of not funding the item.
4. Separately list and rank any capital project requests, including any previously authorized projects not yet under contract, in priority order.
5. Assume a freeze on future hiring and deem all unfilled positions to be temporarily unfunded until otherwise authorized based on priority ranking. These positions may be filled later by the governing body for the taxing authority based on the priority for current or future needs.
6. Adjustments or increases, if any, to the FY2008 base budget, once budgets have been approved,will require that funds be reallocated from other accounts.
7. Ensure that surplus revenue is invested in emergency and budget stabilization funds or returned to taxpayers.
8. Require voter approval for any tax increases.

We believe that adoption of this recommendation will establish a clear understanding and basis for limited spending and growth of government. We request that government officials demonstrate leadership by affirming their commitment to true principled conservatism, which is fiscal discipline and limited government.

Walton County Taxpayers Association
Bonnie McQuiston, President