As we look to November, we have to know what’s on the ballot.1
And we have to know what’s at stake.
But it’s hard. When you are used to thinking in wages and mortgage payments, it feels impossible to think in millions and millages.
So I want to frame it another way. Because at the end of the day, the facts remain:
- Property Taxes fund our services and the things we rely on every day.
- In Sarasota, we will lose $88,242,400 for that funding in the first year. We will lose $162,089,700 in its second.
- That will impact our fire stations. That will defund our police. That will increase the burden on our EMT workers, hospitals, schools, and county services like mosquito control. Over two years, Sarasota will lose more than $500,000 for our roads, street lights, bridges, and transportation infrastructure.
Voting is hard. We are asked to balance our personal interests with public needs. We don’t talk about that enough.
But that’s what this conversation is really about. Some homeowners will have significant savings. Many homeowners NEED significant savings. But is it enough to change your individual situation? Is your personal savings more than what you will lose as a community member?
Because another fact? No.
When I started this blog series2, I thought it was important to bring facts to life so our decisions weren’t made by political rhetoric – no matter the side.
And the fact is: We will lose more than you will gain. And this is how I made up my mind:
In August, my newly 4 year old was standing inside of an empty laundry basket right next to me. I was prepping dinner, and she was right next to me.
Until I saw a blur, heard a thud, and waited for the scream. But it never came. I realized her chest caught every ounce of her weight and she couldn’t breathe. Within seconds, we called 911.
Within seconds, they answered.
Within minutes, there were 5 EMT and Firefighters in my house, with a stretcher and a kind professionalism that told me I made the right choice to call them. By then, and thanks to the trained 911 operator, we knew she had knocked the wind out of her, but she still hadn’t cried and hadn’t talked. I felt both scared for my whole world, and embarrassed that I used a public resource without emergent need.
They reassured me that I did the right thing – and seeing a child unable to breathe is a very good reason for a mom to call for help. Then they asked me to hold on; they wanted to evaluate her, but needed to alert the helicopter. As I held her on the floor, I heard him say there is no trauma, turn the helicopter off.
They were ready to save my baby. There was a helicopter waiting to take my baby to a children’s hospital if there was true trauma to her body.
They took her oxygen and vitals, affirmed nothing was broken, told us what to look out for, and that any parent should have called them. Because a purple faced little body is an emergency, and should be treated like one.
Luckily, she was just treated like a princess instead of a patient. They talked about her birthday party, and their own daughters. They were ready to treat my child like their own.
They are my heroes. And all I could think about was “will they still have their job if we lose funding for their services? Would there have been someone to answer the phone, arrive, and act in a critical timing if some of them did? Will there be a helicopter if my child needs it next time”
Because let me tell you, if my child (or yours, no matter their age) needs a helicopter to get them to the closest place to save their life…and they already have it? I’m not voting to take it away; I’m fighting to keep it.
So while this is my last post in my question around this amendment. Not sure it will be my last period.
Because while our elected officials admittedly pushed through a change to local law without measuring its consequences should be talked about until it’s gone. And since people are still talking – I will keep sharing.
Even though I’ve made up my mind in how I will vote, I continue to listen and continue to learn. I continue to be shocked by the facts I hear – and the facebook comments that haven’t.
We were asked to look at this vote as a way to save money, but we weren’t given the information to understand what we would have to spend our money on instead.
This vote will save some people in our state money, it is true. But this vote isn’t just about saving money.
It’s a vote for jobs in our community. It’s a vote to keep our police officers employed. It’s a vote for life-saving services. It’s a vote for School Resource Officers in our schools, and a vote for the nonprofit providers in our community who save our own government money by addressing critical community issues.
It’s a vote for our quality of life, and truly, a vote for our children in every way.
**** THANK YOU you to the local heroes for treating the most important thing in my life like it was just as important to you. It is a kindness I will never forget, and a service I will never vote against. Thank you for the sacrifices you make in your own family, so we can be safe in ours. I wish I got your names, we would be bringing you cookies and special treats until the end of time. I am forever inspired.
