Letter to the editor: New penny tax list is more lipstick on the same pig

According to Albert Einstein, insanity is "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Sumter County Council is once again seeking to impose a "special sales and use tax," commonly referred to as the Penny for Progress, P4P.

Voters in Sumter County rightly voted down the last special tax referendum that boasted a patchwork of special interest projects. Major infrastructure needs such as roads, bridges, water systems and building new schools (average age 60+) continually take a back seat to walking trails, state-of-the-art baseball courts and golf courses.

The proposed 2024 P4p project list is no different, more lipstick, same pig. Based on the last wish list, it should come as no surprise, pickleball courts, 15 courts to be exact, and additional parking at Patriot Park, to the tune of almost $3 million, is ranked in the top 10 of projects to be funded under the proposed referendum. Meanwhile, our roads, bridges and water systems pose a clear and present threat to public health and safety. The priorities of the 2024 P4P project list are way out of line, as there are very real and ongoing infrastructure calamities that threaten baseline health and welfare expectations.

Superintendent William Wright recently presented Sumter School District's 2024-25 budget to Sumter County Council and made it clear that while there is no millage request, the district's needs are ''tremendous."

Sumter County has not accepted any roads into the County Road System since 1991 when it modified its road acceptance criteria, placing more stringent requirements for acceptance than the county even provides to roads already in the system. Water systems across the county are in dire need of infrastructure, filtration and security upgrades to meet compliance directives issued by the EPA.

Sumter's County leaders remain out of tune with voters who have repeatedly urged focus on basic services. In an article published by WLTX on July 15, 2014, the county's administrator, Gary Mixon, acknowledged paving and resurfacing roads was the most highly requested project from citizens. "We really think it's important to our citizens, and it is the number one thing that our council hears on a routine basis is our road system."

Another major drawback faced in generating support for the P4P referendum is the lack of trust Sumterites have for this administration. Sumter's government officials have not been transparent in most areas but particularly regarding fiscal management matters. The county is dipping into its fund balance this fiscal cycle and constantly forcing departments to do the same.

As citizens, we are entitled to know exactly how our tax dollars are spent. Sumter County has never provided project statuses and an accounting of how funds collected through the last two special sales and use taxes were expended. According to an investigative report by The Post and Courier, Sumter County failed to comply with quarterly reporting requirements established by the S.C. Department of Revenue.

Sumter County can't seem to manage what's already on its plate. At least 12 or 13 projects from the 2008 and 2016 penny taxes are "inactive," which means not complete or even started. The county's website is outdated and lacks resources, documents and information that should be easily accessible.

The most astounding affront to the citizens of Sumter County and a clear indicator of just how arrogant four council members have become is their outright refusal to sit down with residents from Kangaroo Lane in Pinewood to find an acceptable resolution to a "mistake" made by county officials that occurred over a period of 23 years.

We urge the citizens of Sumter County to take a long, hard look at the project list and determine whether our pennies could be better utilized and address longstanding, major infrastructure needs, which are the real impediment to quality of life and economic development.

ELIZABETH R. KILGORE

President, NAACP Sumter County branch