Letters

City’s salary increases wrong in tough economy

I see in The Spokesman-Review (Valley Voice, June 18) that the Spokane Valley City Council is planning a budget that includes a 2.5 percent salary increase for all employees, along with other increases in expenditures.

This is unreasonable in today’s very bad economy with no improvement in the foreseeable future. Citizens, taxpayers and voters, are struggling to keep their jobs and put food on the table, as well as keep their homes, which are losing value every day. The values drop but the taxes continue to increase to fund the excessive and uncontrolled spending of this and other taxing agencies, as represented by these proposed salary increases.

It is quite common for the government agencies to compare themselves to the private sector when times are good and they want to increase salaries. I suggest you take a lesson from the private sector now and tighten your belts and consider salary and benefit cuts and do away with nonessential expenses as most of us private-sector taxpayers have had to do.

I’m sure there are many qualified people willing to do these jobs in question for a lot less salary that the government employees are making now if they are unwilling to accept cuts in pay.

John Koch

Spokane Valley