County should return surplus

Please correct me if I’m wrong. Bonner County Solid Waste had a surplus of taxpayer money of at least $3.1 million from 2011 and 2012.

Instead of returning that surplus money to the taxpayers, $3.1 million was illegally lent to another county fund without taxpayer approval. Now that money will not be repaid, and the commissioners are all broken up about it. Please …

If there is any dollar surplus at any county office, that is indication of an excess of money being taken from county taxpayers. Any surplus should be returned immediately to the tax base that supplied it — county government is not in business and is certainly not in existence to make money from us.

The most sensible way to return surplus money is by an annual budget disclosure of each department, and return of any surplus via check to taxpayers that created the surplus.  This can also be done by a reduction in monthly collection fees, and a reduction in the annual property tax garbage rates. This would create a substantial reduction in current charges over a period of years to bring their budget to the only legitimate place - neutral.

These lower fees would also increase the number of people that pay for monthly collection, adding to the surplus, keeping costs lower than the obviously inflated current rates. If the county won’t do the obvious right thing, a class action suit by taxpayers to retrieve the surplus money from every county department is required.

Commissioners, return any surplus to the taxpayers now.

MARK WATSON

Sandpoint