The governor wants to use students as hostages by proposing an $830 million temporary three-year sales tax increase of 0.5 percent that will "buy back" some of the most painful education cuts. Has a "temporary" tax ever gone away? In Franklin County, voters recently approved a 0.3 percent sales tax increase. Our sales tax is now 8.3 percent. This additional 0.5 percent sales tax will increase our sales tax to 9.1 percent.

I am convinced that there are many areas of "fat" in our state government that can be cut. Raising our taxes without making spending cuts does not make sense to me. Many people are out of work, and this is not the time to talk about raising taxes. The Legislature must prioritize and cut spending. Some suggestions: Stop any benefits given to illegal aliens in this state; make state employees contribute more for their health insurance; or cut areas of state spending that overlap with what local governments are supposed to be doing.

I am getting tired of hearing the usual scare tactics that we will see cuts in teachers, firefighters, policemen, and on and on. Do the work that you were elected to do and stop the eternal feeding at the public trough!

Linda Mays, Pasco