We get what we pay for in government services
On Nov. 7, voters rejected a citywide sales tax measure intended
to support basic services within Hollister. San Benito County
enjoys a wealth of assets
– physical beauty, a benign climate, proximity to the Bay Area –
but with one of the lowest property tax rates in California, local
government is cash poor.
We get what we pay for in government services
On Nov. 7, voters rejected a citywide sales tax measure intended to support basic services within Hollister. San Benito County enjoys a wealth of assets – physical beauty, a benign climate, proximity to the Bay Area – but with one of the lowest property tax rates in California, local government is cash poor.
The city proposal would have raised sales tax a whopping 1 percent in order to preserve bedrock city services.
On Jan. 2, a modest home at the northern edge of Hollister burned to the ground. Every firefighter and available piece of equipment was called into play to fight the fire.
Had another call come in for firefighters, response assuredly would have been slowed. There is no clearer illustration that what voters rejected two months ago is not a menu of government niceties, but rather basic public safety services.
We get the government we pay for and the government we deserve.
Hollister cut services and staff some years ago. This week, City Manager Clint Quilter proposed steps to keep the city solvent in the wake of the failed tax measure.
Firefighting services will be cut. Public restrooms – the only place some working poor have to groom themselves – are closing. The city’s crumbling streets will continue to crumble, with repairs slated only for the worst problem areas. Anti-gang efforts are being curtailed.
The bitterest irony is that, by some estimates, nearly two-thirds of the retail dollars spent by San Benito County consumers are spent outside the community, where consumers typically pay higher sales tax rates than are charged within Hollister. Those taxes finance governmental operations in other cities.
As the cutbacks needed to preserve the city’s solvency begin to be felt, we are confident that a majority of voters will realize that Hollister has no governmental fat left to cut.
Hollister is a beautiful place, and we can only hope that soon, a majority of voters will take sufficient pride in it to pay the tab for a full service city. We would urge the City Council not to abandon a sales tax hike, but rather to bring it back to voters who now have the opportunity to experience the fruits of a narrow defeat on Nov. 7.
