Today's Feature
Budget
Anticipated.
The City Council Budget Ways
and Means Committee is scheduled to meet this
evening in City Hall at 7 p.m. The agenda will
focus on the upcoming budget process for the
fiscal year 2000/20001.
The Committee typically meets
on a weekly basis for several weeks in the spring
to bring the proposed budget before the full
Council. The fiscal year begins on July 1.
Scheduled for discussion this
evening is the format those meetings will follow
this year. Last year the Committee allowed little
input from Council members not on the Committee.
Some members have requested that there be more
open discussion during the earlier stages of the
process.
Also scheduled for discussion
will be the overall goals of the City Budget for
the upcoming year. Typically only a small portion
of the $6 million budget can be significantly
adjusted without cutting services offered by the
Street, Police, or Fire Departments. Those three
departments accounted for more than two thirds of
last years expenditures. Most of the spending
decisions are of the capital expenditure category
such as streets or major equipment purchases.
Ben
Johnson Candidate for Eastern District Associate County
Commissioner.
Ben Johnson files for second
term as Eastern District Associate County
Commissioner.
Primary duty: County Road
Commissioner. Job related: 1. Chairman,
Region-M-Solid Waste Commission for McDonald,
Newton, Jasper, Barton and Vernon Counties.
Duties include meeting with all other member
Regions in Missouri each month in Jefferson City
in association with Missouri Dept. of Natural
Resources. 2. Chairman and Chief Elected Official
for the new WIB-7 Federal Workforce Investment
Board representing McDonald, Newton, Jasper,
Barton, Dade, Lawrence and Benton Counties.
County oversight of Board and Federal Title I
Grant funding. 3. Member, Public Housing Board.
4. Secretary, Missouri Extension Council Board.
5. Member, Local Emergency Planning Commission.
Formerly County Civil Defense.
Other current activities: 1.
Carthage Board of Public Works and past Board
President. 2. President, Carthage Heritage
Festival Committee, Civil War Reenactments and
Native American Pow-wows. 3. Member, Carthage
Rotary. 4. Member, Webb City Chamber of Commerce.
5. Member, Sarcoxie Chamber of Commerce. 6.
Member, Sarcoxie Lions. 7. Member, Jasper County
Farm Bureau. 8. Member, M.A.K.O. Fly Fishers.
Previous Elected Office:
Elected three terms (6 years) as Carthage City
Councilman. Served one term as Mayor Pro tempore.
Served as liaison to Airport Board, Powers Museum
Board. Also served on the following Committees:
Police, Ways and Means, Insurance, Budget,
Special Services and chaired the Health
Committee.
Previous occupation: Retired
from Eagle-Picher with over 33 years of services
as an Engineer and Facility Safety Supervisor.
Military: Enlisted Army
reserves 9 years service.
Education: Carthage grade and
High School (Class of ‘53), Associate Degree
from Joplin Junior College and Bachelors Degree
in History and Political Science from Pittsburg
State College.
Family: Married to the former
Karen Couch for 39 years. Three children; Chris
35, Melissa 32, and Matthew 22. Five
grandchildren. Were foster parents for over 15
years. My father was Elza Johnson who practiced
law in Carthage for over 40 years. He served as
State Representative, Carthage City Attorney,
Jasper Co. Assistant Prosecuting Attorney and
Probate Judge. Dad was also an ordained Christian
minister. My mother was Mayetta Johnson, a
homemaker.
Election goals: To continue as
your full time County Commissioner - to listen,
to learn and serve Jasper County and follow the
dictates of the oath of that office. I will hold
the safety and welfare of all Jasper Countians
above all other considerations.
Reason for running: I enjoy
this job and wish to continue to serve. I do not
wish to retire. I feel that with more than two
years as your County Commissioner I have learned
a lot about the operation of our County
Government and my unique experience qualify me to
serve your interests. I do solemnly promise to
listen. I have no secret agendas.
Commentary
Martin
"Bubs" Hohulin
State Representative, District 126
As we were
sitting in Appropriations Committee this week,
working on the budget for the Dept. of Health, a
request for about sixty thousand dollars and one
new employee caught my eye. Our budget book said
it was for expansion of the Summer Food Program.
At the risk of admitting that I don’t know
where, or for what, every dollar is spent, I
found myself wondering what the Summer Food
Program was. I asked and was told that was a
program where kids could get lunch at school
during the summer when school was not in session.
To be honest, I thought I was getting my leg
pulled! Turns out, that is exactly what it was!
I did a little research and
found that a request of over 2.3 million dollars
and one new employee was made just for the
expansion of this program. As I was talking to a
member of the bureaucracy about this I told her
that with this program, we are encouraging people
to take parental and personal responsibility and
just throw it out the window. She replied, and I
am not making this up " Don’t forget,
we are doing this for the children".
Puhlease! If I hear the phrase ‘for the
children’ one more time, I am going to be
sick! It seems as though every left wing, whacko
idea can be justified by saying ‘It is for
the children’.
She went on to say that this
was only for people that really needed it. I
asked her what the income threshold was and was
told it was 185% of poverty level. At that level,
my family and I would qualify. I told her that
and went on to explain that the last place I
would send my kids to get fed would be school in
the summer. The fact is, when money is tight, as
it is this year, we do without certain things so
that necessities can be purchased. It is called
prioritizing and many families do it. Sadly, it
remains a very foreign concept among government
and liberals.
The thing is, not only are
these programs bad for taxpayers, they are bad
for children as well. Kids belong with their
parents, not with the newest big government
worker. When I was first elected, the thought of
kids having breakfast at school was ridiculous.
(it still should be). Now we have breakfast,
lunch (even when there is no school), and
babysitting.
Can supper and a birthing unit
be far behind? Don’t open any Spaghettios
today Mom, I’m eating at school.
As usual, I can be reached at
House Post Office, State Capitol, Jefferson City,
MO 65101, or 1-800-878-7126, or
mhohulin@services.state.mo.us for your questions,
comments, or advice.
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