The mammoth property tax increase was destined to fail, as it did. Adding that level of revenue into the general fund where it could be annually syphoned off to any expenditure was a foolhardy request. Fountain Hills has effectively demonstrated that with proper management the current revenue stream can sustain normal everyday operating expenses.

Fountain Hills does need a new revenue stream to address road repair and other infrastructure needs. In the future, possibly a revolving revenue generator that would have cap controls and be legally tied to only road repair projects would be palatable; a revenue source that has control limits and a payment plan with a specific duration, just like a 15-year mortgage.

An example would have been to propose a program that would have funded the necessary road repairs and gave each property a fixed amount to pay over a 10- to 15-year period. We all are familiar with a property mortgage, how they work and that it has an specific ending date. No property owner would sign up for a high payment mortgage that would go on forever and keep rising.

Rethinking and reprograming can be done under the guidance of staff members, elected officials and ad hoc committee members. After the long-term plan is formulated it can be further tweaked by knowledgeable minds. Special assessments and special service areas are funding options and maybe there is a hybrid mechanism that will function for everyone’s protection and benefit.

Bottom line, do it right the next time. Prudent tax payers will no longer vest the ultimate and final control of their tax dollars. We all have equity in Fountain Hills that we want to sustain, but we are not willing to blindly deposit money into an open checkbook forever.