Property assessments higher due to county budget

Dear Editor:

I hope that before the June 25 cutoff date, the courthouse was flooded with appeals on the assessed value of real property owners disgusted with the ever increasing assessments. It seems that our conservative republican politicians, once in office, forget about lowering the budget and taxes.

Instead, they think everyone is rich and don't mind them digging into our pockets. They spend, spend, spend. But we deserve what we get, since we elected them.

The assessor must think we are all stupid, telling us how real estate has gone up and up. Yet when you read the newspaper it is reported that the real estate boom started downward four-years ago, the market has slowed to a crawl and values are dropping. The same thing is happening here in the county.

What is really happening in the county is that the Commissioners keep raising the county budget without regard to the taxpayers, and the assessor keeps raising the assessments and property taxes to meet the budget. Remember this the next time this bunch of budget raising politicians comes up for reelection. Exercise your right to vote and get rid of them and vote for someone who is not afraid to say no to expenditures.

Our county is not able to afford all the perks of Bonner and Kootenai counties. If you look at our county budget, one of the biggest expenses is employee pay and benefits. The increasing county labor pool does not produce anything, they just dip into the public trough. I say it is time to do anything we can to curb county spending.

Thank you for your kind attention.

Camilo Lopez

Moyie Springs