Budget crisis could have been avoided

The budget crisis in DuPage County created by DuPage County Board Chairman Schillerstrom and the county board is embarrassing and could have been avoided had they done proper long-range planning when expanding the county's health and human services. The best Schillerstrom can muster now is the unconscionable threat of cutting 179 law enforcement jobs unless unfair, burdensome taxes are imposed. How dare he. Government's primary responsibility is public safety, not teeth cleaning.

His lame excuses aside, Schillerstrom knows that voters won't bail him out of the mess he created with a referendum for higher sales taxes. The man who wants home rule (God help us) has also proposed imposing a $1 per pack cigarette tax on a beleaguered minority who are called on time and again to carry another tax burden and save another politician. No consideration has been given to lost sales tax revenue and closed businesses when Cook County smokers, who now flock to DuPage to buy their cigarettes and probably also shop, dine and fill gas tanks, go elsewhere for savings. Many, however, who will continue to flock to DuPage are those looking to partake in its free health and human services and his planned expansion of same. Is a Schillerstrom Hospital for this Stroger wannabe in our future? We who voted for this man must take responsibility to save our county.

We must support either a small, temporary sales tax increase or a minuscule temporary property tax increase until the recall legislation being introduced in Springfield passes.

Virginia Traiko

Bloomingdale