> Heller here: > > Do you really want Minneapolis to be a ward of the State? I always thought > that Police and Fire protection were funded through local property taxes.
Only somewhat. Local Government Aid has been a significant component of police and fire protection for over a generation - in Minneapolis and many other Minnesota cities. You can see what Minnesota cities get here: http://tinyurl.com/55opd You can also learn the rationale (and why Minneapolis gets what it does) here: http://tinyurl.com/6cso2 Police and Fire ARE part of the city's General Fund, which at about $260 million, is far below the $1.2 billion commonly cited. The "$1.2 billion" includes enterprise funds, such as our water treatment system, which pays for itself through fees - even bigger than the General Fund at $295 million. It's not supported by property taxes and you can't put cops and fire there because you can't charge a fee for them. The $1.2 billion also excludes Internal Services Funds - not current services, but debt for past services. This is the best indicator of irresponsible spending, and one reason the 2004 Council and Mayor are different from the 2000 Council and Mayor. Important point: thanks to council and mayoral leadership, we're now paying OFF this debt - half of your city property tax increases are dedicated to paying down this tab. The $1.2 billion also excludes funds for the Convention Center and other specific projects that police and fire can't compete for. We all know about the statewide benefit of the Convention Center, which Minneapolis is mostly paying for itself. Finally, it excludes our wonderful Independent boards. In the Didja Know? category, city property taxes account for $181 million in 2004 revenue - about 15 percent of the $1.24 billion. State aid is $125 million and dropping (property taxes and state aid were roughly equivalent as recently as 2003, but those days are over). (Source: the city's budget explainer: http://tinyurl.com/6gw4e) These are the facts. I hope they help all of us become sages. David Brauer Kingfield REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
