I see letters pro and con concerning our upcoming school levy. According to supporters, the levy replaces an expiring levy and won’t raise our taxes.

My property taxes went up more than 16 percent last year alone. Voting against the levy means next year’s 16-percent increase could be slightly lower. With such a large increase, there is no shortage of funds. Our legislators need to take money from one pocket and put it in the other pocket. They make the laws, they can change funding sources.

Old folks who bought their homes 40 years ago and live on fixed incomes cannot afford this. Who cares if grandma and grandpa have to choose between food or medicine, as long as Billy can play sports and Suzy can play the violin at school?

I’m not telling renters that voting no on the levy means your rent won’t increase. It will still increase, just not as much. Landlords pass on tax increases to renters, in addition to the rising rents.

I plan to vote no on the levy. We have to control our taxes. How many people got a raise this year? Can you afford to constantly keep paying more? I live on a budget. I can’t go ask for a raise every time I want more stuff. We need to live within our means.

I can picture myself retired in a few years, living in Florida with cheap housing and low taxes, sitting on my porch at sunset sipping a cold beer. On a quiet night you can hear the Auburn homeowners, 3,000 miles away, squealing like a pig when they get their property tax bills in the mail.

– Dennis Doucette