In an attempt to ignite some fire in the souls of the electorate, the HoCo GOP has announced a petition drive for a referendum to amend the county charter making it harder to push through a local tax increase. Dubbed the Taxpayer Protection Initiative, the change would require four votes instead of three to approve any new tax measure by the county council.Just what HoCo needs, another petition drive.
Despite the extreme budget pressures related to decreased tax revenues resulting from the economic downturn, the council has not raised taxes for the past four years, even with a Democratic super majority on the council. This banner in Ellicott City advertising one of the upcoming performances of the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company perfectly captured my thoughts about this initiative.
On Sunday, Mama Wordbones and I went for a walk around Wilde Lake. This is one of my favorite walks in HoCo. When I lived in the Vantage Point neighborhood in Town Center it was also my regular morning run route.
By the boat house we spoke with a young man who had just finished kayaking around the lake. Mama Wordbones wondered about the health of the lake’s ecosystem and he indicated that if an abundance of waterfowl is any indication, the lake is doing quite well.
The view from the shore seems to further validate his observation.
