The Martin Chronicles fully understands that the streets in Villa Hills need to be properly maintained. Until this past year of Martin-esque mismanagement, there has been a solid street repair and replacement program devised by the city engineer and members of the public works committee that is only lacking one ingredient. It is the all important ingredient-a sufficient amount of money.
In 2004, a road tax ballot proposal was defeated 55 to 45 percent. In 2011, a similar proposal was crushed by more than 70 to 30 percent. Sandwiched in between those two votes, Councilman Greg Kilburn convinced a majority of his colleagues to raise the city’s license fee from $8.50 to $40 per car as a way to generate more revenue for street repair.
We think Mr. Kilburn’s tax proposal had merit at the time. The council took action, knowing they would also take criticism, to deal with a challenge the city still needs to address. Until this past year of mindless mismanagement, a lot of important road work was done. But now it is time to move on.
The sticker tax has become Villa Hills’ incarnation of the proverbial “third rail” of politics. Speaking of rails, all Councilman Mike Pope has done for years now is rail against the sticker tax. Even so, Pope has steadfastly refused to risk his reputation as a self-appointed “man of the people” by proposing a reasonable alternative to the dreaded $40 fee.
Combine Pope’s politically-motivated bloviating with the deceptive way the 2011 road tax ballot initiative was “marketed”. Layer onto that the grim fact that Martin has gutted the police department making stepped-up compliance efforts virtually impossible. What is the result? Council is left with an irretrievably poisoned well of public sentiment towards the sticker tax.
Worse yet, we are less than twenty days away from when the 2012 sticker tax is due. By city ordinance, the tax will be past due in less than 80 days. Sources tell us the city is doing nothing to prepare. All we have is Martin fumbling around trying to push the collection of the fee back to the county court house. The Martin Chronicles has already written about the pointlessness of such a move.
Here is what should happen. Pope needs to do something he has never done before. He needs to make a motion to repeal the $40 license fee at the December council meeting. Councilman Jim Noll needs to break away from e-mailing on his Blackberry just long enough to second Pope’s motion. Then the vote of just one more council member needs to be secured-and it would be fitting if Kilburn cast that vote- so that Martin can cast the tie-breaking vote to eliminate the dreaded sticker tax.
Following that, the city engineer, public works committee and council need to develop a road tax ballot initiative that the public can rally behind. They need to educate the voters on the need for more funding for street repair and replacement. Then, if the voters still decide that they are unwilling to pay higher taxes to address this need-everyone should just accept the consequences.
The $40 sticker fee is dead. It is finally time to bury it and move on.
