IS IT TRUE April 18, 2013
IS IT TRUE that tomorrow there will be a vote of the dealers at Casino Aztar on whether or not to eliminate a provision in their contract commonly referred to as a “union security clauseâ€?…what this means is that the recently passed Right to Work law in Indiana does not fully apply to the dealers at Aztar?…it seems as though the state legislature put a provision in the Right to Work legislation that grandfathers in existing contracts and that until the end of the current contract for the dealers of Aztar in January of 2015?…there is also a provision that will allow the dealers (or other workers with grandfathered contracts) to hold a vote to allow themselves to opt out of paying union dues?…such an action would essentially move the clock forward to 2015 as that is how the rule will be then anyway?…the City County Observer is aware of dealers on both sides of this issue so it will be interesting to see how this vote goes on Friday?…if the vote passes dealers who wish to opt out of paying the $34 per month that is currently mandatory can stop paying now as opposed to waiting until 2015?…the dealers are represented by the United Auto Workers (UAW) which begs the question of why there are not any cars or car parts coming off of the boat?
IS IT TRUE that the CCO continue to be mystified as to why any municipality and especially the City of Evansville would seriously consider entering the world of private real estate development with borrowed taxpayer dollars?…kicking in a tax abatement and some sidewalks to promote private investment is pretty commonplace and can actually have the desire effect but direct investment of confiscated taxpayer dollars crosses the line?…for an elected body like the Evansville City Council to knowingly and willingly use money that was gotten from businesses in downtown Evansville through taxation and to give it to their direct competitors sounds more like something that the late Hugo Chavez of Venezuela would have done in that communist dictatorship that what a mid -sized city in the United States would engage in?…a new retail area in downtown Evansville with energy efficient design will provide a great competitive advantage over the much loved old buildings along Main Street?…the problem with the old retail buildings is that they are not designed to save energy?…in one particular instance several years ago a small shop on Main Street was dealing with $2,000 per month energy bills and moved out to a newer building on the East Side where the bill was reduced to $300 all due to efficiency?…if there is such a stark difference in the new retail that the City of Evansville is planning to subsidize in the downtown Convention Hotel this difference will kill any existing businesses on Main Street’s ability to compete and earn a profit?…we should not be surprised to see businesses leaving Main Street in droves to relocate in any new development up on MLK Blvd. as a survival mechanism?
IS IT TRUE the checks went out this week that were part of the $3.6 Billion settlement agreed to by the nation’s large banks for inappropriate and likely illegal foreclosures, wrongful evictions, and even abusive policies back during the housing crisis?…it was quickly learned that many of these checks were returned due to “INSUFFICIENT FUNDSâ€?…if these wronged homeowners would have done such a thing these very banks then and now would have socked them with usury fees that would make a sane person blush?…we are certain that the last insulting act in the foreclosure fiasco will be blamed on some subcontractor to a subcontractor not making timely transfers?…if we have reached a point in time when a “TOO BIG TO FAIL†bank cannot even figure out how to write a check to a wronged person that will not bounce then the American economy is in some serious condition?…we hope the insufficient funds fees that the banks have to pay to these homeowners will be 7 times whatever each given bank charges for NSF checks as its own policy?…these banks are doing their best to make the US Government look smart and efficient?
Right to work…. for less money.
That will be an interesting vote. It will take the pulse of at least a small group of workers on whether they feel the union of which they are part is good value for money.
Surely, even opponents to RTW law can see that it’s a dangerous moral hazard when government at any level creates the protectionist conditions for a “business” like Aztar to exist then enters into long term collective bargaining contracts with groups to run it. The politicians who are supposed to be representing the interests of the people end up doing what all politicians do – representing the interests of whomever contributed most to their campaign coffers, which, by and large, in these situations ends up being unions like UAW.
One good outcome of RTW is that it should go a long way toward killing that status quo.
“…kicking in a tax abatement and some sidewalks to promote private investment is pretty commonplace and can actually have the desire effect but direct investment of confiscated taxpayer dollars crosses the line?”
I’d go one step further and say that even tax abatements crosses the line. Why should government be picking and choosing which rates certain businesses get to pay while others suffer higher rates? Just because one business is bigger and curries more favor it should pay a different percentage than everyone else? This kind of preferential treatment has no place in a free society. Taxes should be low and welcoming as possible to ALL businesses across the board, and government spending on all but the most basic necessities of modern life – i.e. sewer, water, sidewalks, roads, maintenance, police and fire – should be slashed to the bone and prohibited by ordinance. Parks and their associated maintenance should be funded some other way – through neighborhood associations, private fundraisers and volunteers. This would kill any temptation for politicians to build multi-million dollar ballfields and dog parks to reward past campaign donors and their contracting firms.
I saw on the internet recently that the owners of the Chicago Cubs are planning to refurbish Wrigley Field with a huge amount of THEIR OWN MONEY. They are not going to ask government for one cent.
This reminds me of the situation in Florida when the Miami Dolphins built their own stadium to get away from the government owned Orange Bowl.
Something to think about.
Anybody want to talk about paying 25% higher property taxes this year?
My bill went through the roof! What gives?
I don’t recall any instance in history where talking did much against high taxes. Maybe it’s just my poor memory.
Some did go down. I’ve heard from some others so I’m not the only one. I suggest you go downtown and file an appeal. It’s free and actually rather easy to do. The forms are available online and you can use the sales search feature on the assessor’s web site to find your comparables.
Mine went up 33%
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