New Board Is Right For The Job

Letters To The Editor, Register Guard
I find Steve Lee’s letter of Oct. 31 highly amusing, particularly where he introduces the concept that certain county programs are “nice.” His self-created priority ranking reeks of a simplistic one-dimensional approach to government’s role in maintaining a safe county. Lee continues to unjustifiably bemoan a budgetary process that produced the restoration of 84 jail beds, more public prosecutors and resident deputies and, most importantly, resulted in no new taxes to struggling taxpayers.

Now, if Lee’s wish of an additional 500 jail beds were included in last year’s budget, Lane County taxpayers would have seen their property taxes double. Would Lee’s letter be complimentary of the board’s decision? I would suspect not. Unfortunately, Lee, and several other myopic law enforcement zealots have cast this fiscally disciplined and tough-on-crime board of commissioners in the light of their own self-made political fantasy, utilizing the principle of not letting the facts get in the way of a good story.

The new board majority - Rob Handy, Pete Sorenson and Bill Fleenor - are the right commissioners at the right time to do the right job. Let’s stop playing the tired record of crying the blues for the good old days of fiscal irresponsibility and catering to special interests. Many of the challenges currently faced by this new majority were inherited from sloppy, lazy and dysfunctional board majorities from previous years. I’m happy we finally have some clear thinking and responsive commissioners at the helm.

Jay Goodwin