Letters to the editor: Property taxes, fire chief, faith healing

Property taxes

Boise Elevated is a group of business leaders concerned with the impact of rapidly increasing property taxes on our community.

A prominent piece of legislation currently moving through the legislature — House Bill 409 — purports to tackle this problem. Unfortunately, House Bill 409 will not reduce property taxes and creates more problems than it solves.

Local governments are currently under immense pressure to meet the demands placed upon them, many of which are statutorily mandated. Budgets are strained by growth.

Demand for housing will only increase. Our community depends on local governments to process housing permit applications. If passed, House Bill 409 will ensure local governments have fewer resources to process permits, constraining the housing supply. As supplies dwindle, housing prices will increase, which will have the adverse effect of actually increasing property taxes.

If passed, House Bill 409 will not reduce property taxes. Instead, it will only reduce the budgets of local governments responding to growth. Those legislators who vote in favor of House Bill 409 are setting up their constituents for disappointment and themselves for criticism.

We should re-evaluate the homeowner’s exemption and peg it to inflation. We should look at the circuit breaker to ensure more people can get relief. An interim committee or governor’s task force is warranted. These efforts should address our state’s reliance on property taxes to deliver necessary government services. It should also review whether additional funding sources, such as local option taxes, should be opened up to allow our communities to address growth.

House Bill 409 is not the answer to this difficult problem.

Hethe Clark (on behalf of Boise Elevated), Boise

Fire chief

As a retired state government HR manager, I have watched the Dennis Doan situation with a lot of interest. While Mr. Doan protests that the situation is very unfair, it appears the process Mayor McLean followed was by the book for terminating the services of an appointed public servant. As an appointee, you serve at the mayor’s pleasure. Appointed positions have higher salaries and other benefits because they are not merit. When merit employees accept these positions, they fully understand the risks. It was Mr. Doan’s behavior and his contact of the media that brought unfavorable attention to this process. If he would have accepted the proffered severance package, he could have retired with dignity and there would have been no reason “to clear his name.” His behavior shows that Mayor McLean was correct in wanting a new fire department chief. If he has decreased future employment prospects, it is because he handled this process with the grief of a child not the grace of a mature adult.

Kerri Adams, Boise

Faith healing

I was not aware until recently that Idaho protected the practice of faith-healing and I believe this is a huge issue for the youth of Idaho. I do not have a problem with people practicing their faith, however, I do have a problem with parents/guardians not allowing their children to get proper healthcare because they practice faith-healing. If a grown adult wants to make that decision for themselves that is completely fine for them to do, but when a child has no say of what kind of health care they get, it becomes an issue. Children do not get the choice of what kind of medicine or care they receive and faith-healing parents can totally change the path of their child’s life when they force these beliefs onto them. I think that faith-healing for children should no longer be protected because it can dramatically change and even end a child’s life.

Paige Calley, Nampa