With a sputtering economy, soaring gas prices and rising food prices, it’s no secret that practically everyone has less money to spend.

But that doesn’t seem to mean much to governmental entities dependent upon your tax dollars as they start to line up to relieve you of your hard-earned money in the upcoming August and November elections. And given the current economic outlook, we don’t believe voters will be very receptive of any proposal to increase what many believe is an already burdensome personal tax load.

As these propositions are placed on the ballot, the Call intends to offer readers thorough coverage of such measures. In nearly all such cases, we will take a stance on whether we believe voters should support a particular proposition. Now more than ever, we believe governmental bodies are going to have to make a compelling case as to why residents should vote to give them more money.

Consider the example of the Mehlville Fire Protection District Board of Directors. While board members have their detractors, it’s hard to argue with the numbers. When Aaron Hilmer and Bonnie Stegman were elected to the Board of Directors in April 2005, the fire district’s tax rate was 90.5 cents per $100 of assessed valuation.

When they set the district’s tax rate at 86.5 cents in August 2005, Mr. Hilmer and Mrs. Stegman elected to not levy a 33-cent tax-rate increase that had been approved by voters in November 2004. If the Board of Directors had applied the 33-cent tax-rate increase, residents would have had to pay roughly $1.194 per $100.

Mr. Hilmer and Mrs. Stegman were joined by Ed Ryan, who was elected in April 2007, and the three set the fire district’s tax rate at 60.9 cents per $100 last August.

Board members contend that while keeping the district’s tax rate low, they also have improved services and cite hiring only firefighter/paramedics, instituting an advanced life-support pumper program, purchasing four new ambulances before the end of this year and constructing a new firehouse without bonded indebtedness or an additional tax on residents, among other enhancements.

We believe Mehlville Fire Protection District board members have set the standard by which all other taxing entities will be judged when it comes time to seek additional revenue from residents as they have proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that throwing more tax dollars at a problem is not always the solution.