If you're anything like me you hate paying a penny more in taxes than you absolutely have to. What's worse is when you find out how the government has wasted your hard-earned money. Then there are times when I'm glad to have access to much needed resources.
The volunteer fire department is definitely one of the resources that I wouldn't want to be without. They are often willing to put themselves in harm's way for little more than a heartfelt thanks and the satisfaction of a job well done.
Currently the government is in the process of changing technologies for first responders' communications. What this means for our local volunteers is that very soon their radios will no longer function. The cost of purchasing new ones is roughly $8,000.00 each.
They have been saving and writing grant requests for a couple of years now. There just aren't enough pancake sales to make up the amount of capital it will take to get compliant radios for all the volunteers across Minnehaha County.
In my opinion there is no reason to raise property taxes but certainly we could prioritize our firefighters, since they prioritize all of us.
-Dr. Nichole Cauwels, Candidate for County Commission
Brandon, SD
