Leggett Follows Up On 911 Failure In MoCo
Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett fielded questions from residents this afternoon in his regular on-line chat. The inquiries ranged from the parochial to more countywide concerns about traffic, police uniforms, immigration and Montgomery's 911 emergency system that failed over the weekend.
Leggett was asked what the county is doing to prevent future failures of the system. He called the outage "totally unacceptable" and said the county is looking at "potential system changes and our legal options to better protect the investment the county has made in our current 911 system."
Leggett also offered an alternative number - 301 279 8000 - for residents to call in an emergency.
Perhaps the most unusual question of the one-hour session came from a writer identified as Steve from the upcounty. He asked whether the county would be "housing a large number of people displaced by the building of the stadium in DC" and if so, would the county be providing free or discounted housing?
Leggett has a succinct answer: No.
By Ann Marimow |
December 20, 2007; 1:00 PM ET
| Category:
Ann Marimow
Previous: Two Unions Endorse Edwards in District 4 |
Next: Debate on Domestic Partnership Expected in January
Posted by: Robin Ficker Broker Robin Realty | December 20, 2007 3:57 PM
Robin, Hi.
I'm interested in corresponding with you privately. Where can I get your email address?
Posted by: Interested Party | December 20, 2007 7:35 PM
These on line chats with my friend Ike Leggett are a joke. You submit the questions. But he gets to decide what questions to answer. He has looked at this recent push poll which cost Montgomery County taxpayers $35,000. The so-called poll, which Mike Knapp, Council President has been citing to citizens, included a nice letter from Mr. Leggett and the Council and the responses were arranged so that the peoople who did respond---nobody from 17 zipcodes including mine did, would tell them what they wanted to hear. Even that poll said that elected officials were not keeping in touch with the voters. So a light bulb went off in Mr. Leggett's head. "Im going to have a on-line chat" he said, "but I'll decide what questions to answer."
Let me give Ike now some of questions now he can answer which he would never answer in his so-called on-line chat. He reads Maryland Moment. Let him blog in his answers.
l. Why is the county government considering for one second giving county employees a 17/3% COLA + 3.5% step increases for 9% raises when doing that will give them a raise 4 times higher than the 2.3% social security recipients are getting in 2008 and when that 9% raise will result in Mr. Knapp, who has already voted in three years to exceed the charter property tax limit, and Knapp's co-big spenders exceeding the charter property tax limit again?
2. The percentage of all students passing advanced placement tests has decreased over last year. The percentage of Latino students passing advanced placement tests has gone way down over last year. Why should any teacher who has a lower percentage of students passing advanced placement tests this year than last year be given a step increase?
3. Why is Mr. Weast trying to load up elementary schools with non-teaching vice principals when he has a headquarters full of non-teaching, big pension, highly paid administrators, who could go to elementary schools and do what any vice-principal there could do in less time?
4. Mr. Leggett you were just successful in getting a 20% increase in the state sales tax, a 20% increase in the car tax, a 1% increase in the corporate tax and a huge increase in the income tax of which the l6% of Marylanders who live in Montgomery County will pay over 50%. HOW CAN YOU THINK OF GIVING US A PROPERTY TAX INCREASE TOO? Aren't the schools getting a lot more money just because of those state tax increases?
5. Mr. Leggett how many additional foreclosures will result from exceeding the charter property tax limit? How many people will be priced out of the Montgomery County housing market if you violate the charter property tax limit?
6. Mr. Leggett, why are you and Mr. Knapp and Mr. Andrews opposed to our 2008 ballot question to require nine votes instead of seven to exceed the charter property tax limit? Is it because that question will hold each council member accountable? Because it will empower each council member while still allowing the limit to be exceeded in true emergencies--like a dam breaking?
Ike I look forward to your answers. If your on-line chats are a public relations charade you won't answer. If you are sincere about on-line chats, you will. In the meantime look for our SAVE OUR HOMES! signs on lawns after New Years! Merry Christmas! Your Admirer Robin Ficker
P.S. To the guy above, who wants to contact me. Just look in the phone book or stop by my office at 8002 Wisconsin Ave.
Posted by: Robin Ficker Broker Robin Realty | December 21, 2007 3:45 AM
Two more question. Why should the county government pay any "retirement" benefits to somebody who has earned benefits, but who has not yet turned 55? Why should the county pay people health benefits for life when they have worked for the county only 5 or 10 years?
Posted by: Robin Ficker Broker Robin Realty | December 21, 2007 3:49 AM
The comments to this entry are closed.
In the past, when the county elected officials wanted to exceed the charter property tax limit, or when they wanted to oppose our ballot questions to make it more difficult to exceed that limit,they would try to scare voters by saying that 911 service would be affected if they had to stick to the charter property tax limit. Since county officials are insisting on giving county employees a 17/3% COLA and 3 1/2% step increases for a 9% pay increase while social security recipients are getting a 2.3% increase in 2008, they cannot possible stick to the charter property tax limit So once again look for them to try a build on the above-stated 911 scare to justify exceeding the property tax limit in 2008.