The Worth County Commissioners have provided the Sheridan Express with written answers to frequently asked questions about the road rock fund as well as the brush removal ordinance which are both on the ballot on August 4th. Poll information is on Page 5.
How much is needed to pass?
Both measures require a simple majority to pass.
Why should the voters of Worth County vote for and pass the Gravel Tax and Brush Enforcement Law?
There are several reasons why the residents will benefit if these two issues are approved. One is to improve Worth County roads. This will allow for absentee landowners to contribute and help maintain our roads. They typically use these roads for recreation on a regular basis, but have had no responsibility in the maintenance of these roads. Worth County is one of the few places in the country that does not have the benefit of the two proposals. The positive impact of these two issues would have numerous benefits to families living here in the county.
Better and safer roads should be a concern to everyone, not just parents whose children are bussed to school. We feel that people who live, work, and raise their families here should have the same benefits of living elsewhere. We feel that it is past time to level the playing field and find a more equal and fair way to maintain and improve our roads in the county for which we live.
At one time, almost all of the land in Worth County was once owned by hard-working people who resided here. They farmed, raised their families, sold their livestock, and purchased supplies and machinery all locally. The problem now is that purchasing and selling locally is not always an option and that means our tax dollars are leaving our area and are benefiting and supporting some other county’s roads. Every dollar spent locally works several times over to benefit all. There is a high percentage of farmland in Worth County that is owned by people or corporations that do NOT live in or work in the area. This situation puts more burdens and responsibilities on the people that do live here and do their business locally. As the trend continues of land purchases for recreation and hunting, it hurts our local economy.
Mowing, brush control, and road rock has always been on the “honor system” for lack of a better term. The “honor system” worked fairly well at one time, but things are much different now. If a landowner decides not to control the brush by mowing or spraying or buying gravel for the road, then someone else has to either take up the slack and do more than his fair share, or the road becomes neglected and soon will become a large problem. School busses, emergency vehicles, and other vehicles all need to have the ability to travel all of our county roads. We see no way that this will cure itself and only foresee it getting worse if we do not act and vote YES on August 4th and pass both of these issues.
We believe that all of the elected officials and employees of the county should be and are committed to doing the best and most efficient job for all of the county. We are looking for ways to make the most of what we have to work with. These are trying times economically. The Road and Bridge Department must become more efficient to meet existing goals and to use and maintain equipment and machinery safely. Breakdowns because of brush and trees are a constant threat.
Another problem is that the state will not allow a county credit for roads that fall below a certain standard. Our county has already lost credit on some roads which equals a loss of money and we cannot afford to lose anymore. Our county needs to recapture some of these credits and increase our inventory of safe and reliable roads. Not only would we have safer roads, but we will not have to pay the majority of the price tags. The new system would spread it out to all landowners equally, whether they live here or not. We cannot depend on the absentee landowners to donate to help keep our roads to a decent standard. While a few have helped to donate, most have not. Every time we purchase something out of the county, we help to maintain that county’s roads and schools. It is time for us to stand up and take a stand for ourselves and take care of our county. Today, Worth County has an “honor system.”
How are roads funded now?
Currently, we operate under the CART (patron gravel) program, which is generated from the State Vehicle Tax, other state fees, and the state's gas tax. This is the county’s primary source of gravel. This is money that the state collects and reimburses the county based on the number of miles of county roads. With the current economic conditions, the state reimbursements have drastically dropped and could drop in the next few years as well. What this means is that the county's cost-share for gravel would continue to drop every year. For instance, last year, the county's cost-share for CART gravel was 100%; this year, the county could only match 75%. As state funds decline, the county will have to make further reductions.
What can the voters expect if these two issues are not passed?
We can only project that the county’s share of the patron gravel will decrease and the road conditions will deteriorate. Cost share budget on brush removal will need to be reduced as well.
Will the Patron/CART Gravel system still be used if the new system is passed by voters?
Yes, it will still be utilized to the best advantage of the residents of Worth County. This system can be used on a cost-share basis to bring a road up to specs to qualify a road to the newly-passed system or if a road for some reason does need more rock.
Will all roads in Worth County be graveled?
Only roads that have had patron gravel applied recently or is brought up to spec will qualify. This means that if the road has not been graveled for years, it must be brought up to spec, improved, and inspected after base rock is applied before normal road stone could be applied and qualify for the newly-passed gravel system.
By passing the Brush Enforcement Law and Gravel Tax, do you think that this is the best way to maintain our road system?
No, but it is much more fair and equal than the system we currently have, and will be the best system that is, or will be available for Worth County at this time. We would like to see some changes made at the state level that would make it possible for Worth County landowners who live here in the area to not have the full burden of purchasing all the gravel on our roads. But until changes can be made, this is the first step that has to be made before better ways of improving the system can be made for the residents of Worth County.
If the voters pass the Brush Enforcement Law and the New Gravel System Tax, what can they expect to change?
Better and safer roads. Approximately 70 tons for every mile of rocked road would have been applied at the 2009 delivered price if the new system had been in place for this season. This would have been applied to every mile of all of the current graveled roads.
As for the Brush Enforcement Tax, roads will be maintained and clear of trees to a standard that at a minimum will allow road maintenance equipment to properly blade, keep gravel on, and allow water to drain off the roadways and autos and farm machinery to pass down a road. The cost share program will still be in place and will be expanded as funds are available for brush removal.
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