Oh, How The Mayors and Lake County Government Have Lied!!!

The Post-Tribune came out with an article today (Sunday, 10/14/07) that is misleading and continues the big city mayor's political attacks on their own school system.  The article, School Spending Tops Tax Increases, implies that the property tax "increase" problem lies with the school system's spending being out of control and without any accountability.  The mayors will frequently tell you, the citizens of Lake County, that every time they reduce their spending (which, by the way, never actually happens) the property taxes go up anyway because of the school systems and their lack of concern for the citizens.  The sad part is rather than tell the whole truth the newspapers in NWI give half truths to support these thieves in the night, i.e. the mayors.

The newspapers, apparently, would rather promote flimflam than good government.  They know who butters their bread.  Remember tribal politics does not end at the media's door.  The media in NWI, mainly the newspapers, are part and parcel of the tribe.  If the newspapers were truly independent from the political sludge of NWI politics, tribal politics would be far less possible.

As opposed to the "objective information" that the above article tries to "sell", school districts until 2006 have reduced their overall property tax burden, while the cities have (always) kept increasing.  Only after 2007 will the school districts actually increase, while the cities property tax take has increased continuously, always, year after year after year after year.

The mayors of the three largest cities in Lake County have been shoveling outlandish lies to the citizens of their own cities and to the citizens of Lake County.  Not only that, but the Lake County Government Complex sitting in Crown Point, Indiana has (tacity if not overtly) colluded with the thieves of northern Lake County (like one big happy "family" of thieves in their den-o-thieves treehouse).

Not surprising the worst liar and flimflam man is Tom McDermott, Jr. of Hammond. He is closely followed by the new/old East Chicago Mayor Pabey and then Lake County Government led by the notorious crook former Lake County Council President Willie A. Smith.  One cannot blame Gary Mayor Rudy Clay yet, he is too new at the job.  But the former mayor, Mr. Scott "I can't support my family on a meager $200K a year" King, who I always believed (and said) was a thief (like his good friend McDermott), was also a big fat liar.

What have they been lying about?  They have been lying about what they have been doing with the property tax burden of their cities and they have been putting the blame on everyone else, including their school districts, except their own greed.

This goes for Lake County Government as well.  They have been lying to us by presenting irrelevant details of reductions in spotty areas while the overall property tax burden for their own citizens and for Lake County has continued to spin out of control.

The following file is the official data from The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance.  It presents a five/six year comparison of the approved tax levy not the "make believe" one that "leaves" Lake County to be approved downstate. 

The file (PropertyTax6YearOverviewCountyUnits.xls), is an Excel file from the State Government.  It only includes Lake and Porter Counties for comparison.  Anyone can go on the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance web site and get the complete file for all the State Counties.  In Lake County only five years are presented because when this was put together 2007 amounts were not available (big surprise).  But, for the five years available one can certainly see the trend and the lies that have been told.

The five years covered by this State Government document shows that the amount of money raised through property tax has risen astronomically.

Under McDermott Jr. from 2002 to 2006 the amount of money raised through property tax in the City rose 34.10% (is he trying to break the City or does this just come naturally to him?).  How can anyone say this is not criminal?  This was the highest in the County.  Gary's rate over that period, thanks to Scott King rose 14.48% and East Chicago's rate over the five years was "only" 5.39% (but, the amount raised already equaled Hammond's, which has two and a half times East Chicago's population).  George Pabey cannot blame this on Pastrick.  He is long gone.  Pabey, like McDermott Jr., is the only one in charge now.  They are both running for their second term and they are responsible for the continued demise of both cities.

During that same period of time, Lake County Government increased its take from everyone's property tax by 20.28%.

All of these number are ONLY property tax.  It does not include any funds from the Federal Government, from Casino revenues, and for payment made by businesses and citizens directly for services -- all of which have gone up also during that five year period.

Now these same political flim-flam people have also tried to sell you on the idea that it is not the City government that is the problem it is the other entities, especially the schools.

NO, NO WAY.  The numbers from the State show that the Mayors are big fat liars and Lake County Government is not much better.

During that same period of time (2002-2006), the Hammond School District reduced its property tax burden on the citizens of Hammond by 9.46%.  You have all listened to McJr. for too long.  I was surprised too; but these are the numbers approved by the State of Indiana itself.  No political flim-flam here.  The School District of East Chicago reduced its burden by 14.57%.  It is true that East Chicago's School District already started very high; but at least it moved in the right direction, down.  Gary, no surprise, increased its burden by 40.10%.

With the 2007 approved property tax levy (using data obtained from the above linked Post-Trib article), the Hammond School District tax burden did increase, but for the time period 2002-2007, the net increase is only 6.31%.  For the same period (2002-2007), East Chicago's School District net tax levy increase was 4.57%.  I am not even going to try to justify or explain Gary's 2002-2007 increase of 47.97%.  Gary remains a lost cause under the current tribal politics. 

The basic truth is that the problem of Hammond and East Chicago sit on the lap of Tom McFlimFlam and George PlimPlam.  They have been unfairly blaming the school districts for the problems they themselves cannot solve and are incompetent to address.  Rather than resigning and returning to their respective rocks, they picked on the one group of people -- the schools and the teachers -- who could not answer back because they are not suppose to be political.  This is truly a cheap trick on both their parts.

Comments

[EJA]

Speaking of education and property taxes, how is PUC being taxed? Have tax rates gone up appreciably as the rest of Hammond?

"PUC is property tax exempt. Its existence in Hammond actually raises everyone else's property tax, as does every other tax exempt property in the City.
PUC gets its public (tax) money from the State's portion of the local property tax and mostly from income and sales tax paid by individuals and corporations. The amount is dictated by the State Legislature.
Currently NWI's taxes go to fund higher education around and in Indianapolis. NWI sends more tax money to Indianapolis than they return here for higher education. We pay for their development, thank you to John Aguilera and the rest of the cronies in the State Legislature, to the Board of Trustees of Purdue and IU, and to the local administrators of IUN, PUC, and PNC."

[Wrong again Egg-Head]

Wrong again egg-head. I'm not sure if you intentionally lie about McDermott and Pabey, or are just plain stupid. Probably the latter!

McDermott took office in January of 2004, the budget for that year was already approved by your former employer Dedelow. Dedelow also approved the 2002 and 2003 budgets you refer to. The first budget Mcdermott approved was 2005's budget. You know that, yet lie in your column (that noone but myself reads).

Same goes for Pabey, but his first budget was not approved until 2006's budget. Pastrick (your former crony) is to blame there as well as Dedelow.

I guess your beef lies with Dedelow and Pastrick. But don't let the truth get in the way of a good story.

BTW, Rich James thinks you're a blowhard fool, that's why he fired you. Noone cares what you think, I only read your crap for entertainment purposes. Then again, I also read the tabloids, although the editors of them are more intelligent that you are Moeshe!