The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1944-09-21
County Road; And faxes
Gy FRANKLIN {. GLAZE

To the Editor OF The Republican.
| wonder why so many people who
live or own property along county
roads seem to think hat all the money
that they pay out in taxes is used to
build an maintain roads?
Recently d crew Of men repaired a
GlidGe, and filled in some ruts with
loose earth to smooth up a certain
piece of road. Had the weather re-
manned dry the loose earth in these
.ut- would have packed tightly under
traffic, and the road remained smooth
but shower Of rain fell AMI caused
muddy condition. into which drove one
Of our taxpayers in his car and got
stuck. This taxpayer didn't blame this
condition on the weather. No. He
blamed it onto the Workmen who had
teen there the day before. He blamed
the Roads Department for wasting his
TAX money that he had paid in the
eighteen years he had owned property
en- this road He hated to see County
money wasted by incompetent employ
eCS.
Mr.. Taxpayer, your real estate tax
money is not used for building and
maintaining roads. Your taX money
goes for building, furnishing and
maintaining the Public schools, for
health protection thru the Public
Health Department, for Public Wei
fare thru old age assistance, general
public assistance and aid to dependent
children, for administration Of county
affairs, for maintenance, utilities and
supplies for the County Court Housa
and jail and for a thousand other
things necessary in carrying out our
county's business. The tax money has
a lot more to do than financing and
maintaining the building and repair
Of roads.
The County Roads department re-
ceiVes from the state tax on gasoline,
and as you all should know, this
revenue has been greatly reduced thru
strict rationing Of this fuel, thereby
/ cutting the available amount of funds
to such low figure it is really a
problem to meet the expense Of work
ing even the most necessary roads
enough to keep them passable
The Roads department is working
under many serious handicaps-inade-
Quate equipment, inadequate funds
with which to buy new equipment. un-
able to purchase certain equipment
even though funds were available, due
| TO government restrictions on account
OF the war; shortage Of manp0Wer due
to the demands made upon it by the
armed forces and defense plants. We
are short Of everything but roads. We
still have seven hundred miles of roads
to maintain.
But we are not short of confidence
in the future. Every man Of us will do
the best with what little we have now
to give the public value received for
his tax money on the roads. Then.
when peace comes again, and available
funds reach their normal level, we
shall be able to purchase equipment,
and hire the necessary manpOWer to
really construct and maintain these
roads as the general public rightly ex-
poets.
SO, Mr.. Taxpayer, try to understand
the handicaps under which we are
operating. Try to understand that
your tax money pays for lot Of other
things besides roads. Don't pay hun
dred dollars in taxes and then demand
thousand dollars worth of county
service for it. If bad condition exists
on your road don't go off half cooked
and shout about how much taxes you
pay, and how it is being wasted. Re
port this condition to the proper au-
thorities in the proper manner and
am sure something will be done about
1t, and any reasonable demand will be
granted.
| am employed in a minor capacity
by the County Roads department. and
have confidence in the personnel of
this OF organization. am sure that they
all wish to give the public the kind of
service it deserves, when and if cir
cumStances permit.
In closing, | wish to make clear to
everybody that the statements | have
made in this article are strictly my
own and were unsolicited. also that
they are non-political. My only aim is
to try to help the public to understand
the conditions under which the Roads
department must operate.
L, S. spending in August amounted
to $2S8, 10000 per daV,