Let us contrast that with Orleans County. Our proposed budget calls for a large increase and amazingly enough, even though Monroe County has to deal with the same state mandates, our proposed county tax rate-$9.38 per thousand- is significantly higher than Monroe County’s. That does not take into account that assessments have gone up an average of 11%.

As if that was not bad enough, Monroe County has kept spending below the rate of inflation for the last three years while Orleans County has seen an increase in spending of almost 35% under Chuck Nesbitt’s watch. Do you think he would have been able to run unopposed in Monroe County? I think it is safe to say that there is a big difference between Orleans County and Monroe County Republicans.

On Monday, citizens will have an opportunity to attend a public meeting on the budget. It is unlikely that anyone will be able to offer any suggestions to the legislature that they will take seriously, besides there is not a detailed breakdown of the 2008 budget available, just big, vague numbers and many excuses.

Excuses, that has been the tactic used for the last few years. It is either the evil state government, public pressure, or a nursing home that has caused the budget to go through the roof. They will not address the fact that the Chief Administrative Officer added around $40,000 to his budget so he could have a personal secretary. They will not talk about salary and benefit increases that are well above the rate of inflation. They will not talk about the increasing amount of overtime being paid or who gets a county car or paid mileage to drive to their primary jobs or to speak in a high school classroom.

They also will not talk about job cuts because nobody wants to eliminate a job that has been created as a political favor or given to a relative. They certainly will not want to talk about the fact that they blew an opportunity to secure high paying jobs; if it does come up, they will blame that on the power company.

If you do attend the meeting you will be ignored, the major decisions have already been made behind closed doors and they will approve the budget that evening because none of the tax and spend Republicans have the guts to send it back to the drawing board in spite of half-hearted promises like Henry Smith Jr. made to "balance the budget."

By Tuesday morning the county will hope that their "last ditch efforts’ to lower the proposed increase winds up in a headline like " Budget Increase Lower Than Expected," or an even better friendly headline like "Preliminary Budget Lowered." It sounds much better than "County Passes Huge Tax Increase," even though that would be the truth.