Wendell Sawyer, a Republican candidate for Guilford County Commission at-large was not present at the May 1 candidates forum, in which I asked questions. His opponents in the Republican primary on May 6 are Guilford County Planning Board Chairman Larry Proctor, former Ku Klux Klan exalted cyclops EH Hennis, Rudy Binder and Joseph Rahenkamp.
Sawyer sent these responses. All other candidates are welcome to send in responses, too. E-mail me at jordan@yesweekly.com, and I’ll provide you with the three questions.
Sawyer did not respond directly to a question about whether he favored property taxes or sales taxes as sources of revenue; instead he called for tightening the county budget.
“The factors that you mentioned are the result of the slumping national economy and the resulting credit crunch, not to mention soaring gasoline prices. At this point in time, many folks feel compelled to tighten their belts and make sacrifices. As the home mortgage crisis unfolds, some people are going to have difficulty in making their mortgage payments. When the county property tax increases, it merely aggravates the severity of the problem since the county bills the escrow accounts of the mortgage companies with the increased taxes and the mortgage companies simply increase the monthly mortgage payments of their customers to make up the shortfall.
“It is my belief that the county government should engage in this belt-tightening as well. Therefore, I think that the county board should decrease the property tax rate, not increase it or merely “hold the line.” This could be accomplished by re-examining the budget from top to bottom and eliminating certain unnecessary expenditures including some administration costs.”
Sawyer said he opposes the jail bond, but did not respond to the second part of the question, which asked whether the county is doing enough to develop alternatives to incarceration.
“I am opposed to the $114 million jail bond for several reasons. First of all, we simply cannot afford such a massive expenditure. Even though I do believe that we need to increase the bed space at the jail in Greensboro, there are less expensive ways of accomplishing this goal. By simply renovating the existing jail and making additions to the structure, we can save the taxpayers millions of dollars and prevent the eventual massive increases in property taxes.
“Second, I have a problem with the excessive construction fees that are forecast. For example, in Des Moines, Iowa, they are completing the construction of a new jail this year with a 1,500-bed capacity (that can be expanded to 2,500) for $68 million. Why does the proposed new jail in Guilford County with just a 1,000 bed capacity cost $114 million?”
Sawyer said he needs to study the 287(g) program more. Sponsored by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the program authorizes local sheriff’s offices and police departments to enforce immigration law.
“For the most part, I don’t have a problem with such a partnership. However, I would want more information as to the costs involved and how much such involvement may affect the local law enforcement responsibilities of the sheriff’s office.”
No comments:
Post a Comment