The Tribune’s Thursday editorial admitted these are hard economic times requiring tough decisions on the budget and staffing levels. The voters of the 3rd District have a choice: a current commissioner who admits to not understanding the budget and has watched property taxes soar, or a candidate who understands the budget.

 I am a candidate for 3rd District county commissioner. I graduated from Albert Lea. I attended what is now Riverland Community College, after which I graduated from Bemidji State University with a four-year degree in accounting. I passed the CPA examination. I furthered my education by attending Pepperdine University, where I graduated with a master of business administration degree concentrated in finance. For the past six years, I have been the general manager of both the Albert Lea Holiday Inn Express and AmericInn hotels.

My opponent, while in office, has seen the property tax levy increase 40 percent, and yet our county still borrowed from department reserves to fund even more spending. The state auditor has warned our county that our dwindling reserves have fallen too low.

For 2009 our county raised the property tax levy 6 percent, but we still face a $1.5 million deficit. How will the county handle this deficit? At a recent debate, when asked this question, my opponent was unable to direct where budget cuts should occur.

People wonder: Why hasn’t Freeborn County grown? My opponent, plus a former commissioner, and a city councilman, were all asked this question at a debate. They all provided the same answer: taxes.

So if everyone recognizes the problem, why do taxes continue to soar? The answer lies partly in the admission that we continue to elect officials who do not understand the county budget. My opponent has been very open about his difficulty in understanding our county budget. A 6 percent levy increase (total tax levy of $17 million), with a $1.5 million deficit, and no answer on what to cut, does not bode well for our financial future.

If we don’t get our county budget under control, growing Freeborn County will be difficult. Isn’t it time we made the tough decisions necessary to cut our county budget, so we can stop relying on property tax increases and/or borrowing money to fund increases in county spending? Isn’t it time we elect commissioners who understand the budget?

I am committed to working on a budget with fellow commissioners and county employees, to create a budget that will be acceptable to the public. A budget that will help end years of budget deficits, the raiding of reserves and significantly higher property taxes, a zero-based budget that examines county operations, to determine what areas can be reduced, eliminated, or even expanded.

 We have a bright future, a future of economic growth, if we make the correct decisions and rein in our spending and balance our budget. I ask for your vote Tuesday.

David Shoff

candidate

Freeborn County 3rd Commissioner District

Albert Lea