Last month I attended a budget hearing at the Post Falls City Hall where 10 citizens of Post Falls gave well reasoned and impassioned pleas for the City Council and mayor not to increase our taxes and create more distress for the citizens of Post Falls.

The council and mayor ignored their wishes and proceeded to vote for a 2 percent increase. Now everyone knows that the Post Falls taxes are the highest in the area, much higher than in Hayden and even above the Coeur d'Alene taxes on a apples and apples basis. We also know that Post Falls property values continue to plummet because of the high taxes. There seems no end to the pain that the City Council and mayor are willing to inflict on the citizens of Post Falls.

Now is the time for the citizens of Post Falls to vote out those spendthrift City Council members (unfortunately Mayor Larkin is not up for reelection so we will have to wait to remove him).

Specifically, Scott Grant and Skip Hissong should be voted out because of their proven spendthrift ways. Rather, a more responsible Barry Rubin and Joe Malloy seem to take a more reasoned and conservative approach.

Kerri Thoreson was the only City Council member to vote AGAINST the budget increase. She should be reelected. She deserves our support since she did not follow the City Council herd and raise our taxes.

Incredibly, Joe Bodman is still supporting a bridge (to nowhere) across the expressway at Greensferry. This idea has also been supported by Mayor Larkin and has little or no real gain at a huge expense for the citizens of Post Falls.

One last word, PLEASE VOTE.

DAVID SHAW

Post Falls