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DeKalb County is constantly trying to steal money from us the citizens of DeKalb County. I am a lifelong resident of DeKalb County and I have seen every service in DeKalb County at least triple in price if not more. The people of DeKalb County are suffering from the worst Depression of all time. (I know, I know, my grandpaprents and parents keep saying their was worst in 1929-1939, but we lost all that money in our Indidvidual Individual Accounts, FERS government accounts, and 401-k and 403-b accounts under Bush in 2008.)
Now the county government wants to charge us the victims when a drunk driver T-Bones our car. Are they crazy. If you are the victims of a T-Bone, especially if the other driver is drunk the county should get their $250 from the drunk driver. The county is one that gets all the money from all these liquors stores and clubs here in the county.The county lets people set up these stores, and clubs which sell these drunks alcohol and then these drunk T-Bones our car.
I have no propble with the county bringing back Prohibition and legallizing marijuana. Alcohol is causing to many accidents on the county streets. The Declaration of Independence says we have God-given Rights to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Personal and Real Property (Happiness). I do not see alcoholic beverages no where in the sentences.
And Dekalb County can quit stealing our money after one of their indirect customers (drunk drivers) T-Bones our car. When a drunk driver T-Bones our car then the government is supposed to get us out of the car. If the county wants to take citizens money then take it from the drunks who make our road a mess. The drunks are a Menace to Society.
If the county needs say $700,000,000 plus to provide us the citizens services, then just simply be man or women enough and tell us the citizens you need say $700,000,000 plus to run the county.
Repeat do not steal our money!!!!! Tax us like a real honest government operates. We are citizens of DeKalb County, not fools!!!!!

Not Dekalb again,all are Fakes......none working theives.........

Dekalb county needs a Complete Make Over....Remember code 071 for Comp time......

What if more than one person is trapped in the car? Will it then be $250 per person?

Make your feelings known to Burrel before it is too late on the property tax increase.

How many people in our community have been laid off, had salary freezes, elimination of bonuses, elimination of 401k matching, furlough days, etc. Yet the county wants to assess your house at the peak of the market and now they want to raise property taxes. WTF.

We are being squeezed from all sides and it is time to say enough is enough. You can't go into your bosses office and hold a gun to his head and demand more money (well at least not without going to jail). Why should the county be able to get away with this behavior?

How can they count the elimination of 400 unfilled jobs as a cost cutting measure? WIth that accounting - I was going to purchase a new house this year for $15 million but decided not to do so. Wow, look at all the money I have saved I am going to retire now.

Call Burrel and your board members. Tell them you will do not accept their property tax increase or their fee for cutting you out of your car. Don't we already pay taxes for fire & police services?

Enough is enough. We have all had to tighten our belts it is time for the county to do the same thing and figure out how to function with less money.

Words cannot truly convey the contempt I have for both the BOC who voted for this travesty and Burrell Ellis who needs to be impeached if that's allowed!! To add insult to injury by adding an 11% increase in property taxes??

This makes me MAD AS HELL and I hope it does every DeKalb citizen also!! You should FLOOD the BOC with comments and e-mails and let them know this is "unacceptable"!!

While at the grocery the other day I was glancing at the AJC Sunday paper's cover page and lo and behold it appears someone in the DeKalb County school system who was in a very high position in the construction of new schools is under investigation for buying a SUV and using it for her personal use while having the taxpayers fund it!! Where does it end??

Shame on you Pat Pope!! Unless and until DeKalb elects more competent and ethical leadership at EVRY LEVEL, we will continue to be mired in our own waste literally and figurativley!!

And electing more caucasians would probably help!! We haven't had a good CEO since Levetan!!

As a firefighter of 15 years, this makes my stomach turn. We have officially put the almighty dollar ahead of our compassion for each other. I have witnessed several instances where people needed to be cut from a car after a wreck. In one case, two people were extracted from a car where a third, between the other two, passed away. Handing them a bill for $250 (or would it be $500 for two?) would not only be inappropriate, but a true failure in our system. Where are we headed as a society?

I think they might as well privatize police, fire and other such departments. If health care can't be public entity why do we need to support any other public office anyway. I dont understand why public departments think their services are free. We pay for them in taxes not just property, income but also on everything we buy and then they want to charge people on top of that??

ap,

You need to brush up on your grammar and spelling.

Start by looking up the definition of both 'there' and 'their'.

Next, look up the definition of 'DUH'.

Who knew the other counties were doing this? Actually who cares! It's crazy all the way around. Isn't it the fire fighter's job to save our lives when we are in a wreck? Sure the insurance may pay for it, but you better check into it. As it relates to the property tax increase, sometimes I regret buying a house. My property value is so low, I feel as if I'm trapped into keeping it because I will lose so much money should I sell it (if I can). Now they want to once again raise my property taxes on a house that has lost tremendous value. When does it end??

Truly a bad call..Just like you bought your house at 250,000 now it apprasses at 150,000 but they still want you to pay taxes on 250,00. The counties want to screw you in there favor every way possible. The only way is to vote Commissioners out of office and let new blood in the game. Some of these board members make to much money and only work a partial year padding there pocket at every turn. They need to know if there decisions dont meet the publics wish they can move on without there paycheck just like the real world.

I agree this is nuts - my guess is car / medical insurance may cover it - but who knows - what caught my eye was the 11% increase in property tax - a classic move - when there is a budget shortfall jack up our property tax to help close the gap - should economic times improve and things like sales tax pick back up you think they will roll that property tax back? No way - they will celebrate a "surplus" and just up spending on some useless service or program - all on the back of property owners - just like ol R Emanuel in the White House says, "Never waste a crisis" - code for take the opportunity to push programs and taxes....

This is outrageous!! Actually its sad...
It just doesnt seem to stop!!!! We are being charged for everything anymore! The Good Old Days are for sure gone! No one does anything anymore unless they get something for it!

This is stupid, we have to pay someone to save our life, if were to be trapped in our car after a car wreck???? What a joke this is