This year is going to be a big-dollar year, especially for low-income earners and senior citizens. The largest percentage of your after-tax dollars will be going to education and entertainment.

Your local and unelected and elected officials at all levels of government will be taking more and more of your money. The school district wants millions for three new schools and various other expenses! These are required because of growing student population while at the same time Washington voters have approved charter schools that will take students from the conventional public schools, thereby reducing the need for new buildings, saving us millions of dollars.

City governments want millions for an aquatic park that the city of Pasco has agreed to buy the land for (aquatic parks are subsidized by the hundreds of thousands of dollars each year across the country).

As for the citizens of Pasco, they will continue their annual subsidy for TRAC. Planning for the aquatic park proposal is conflicted in that the two major planning groups have members with conflicting interests representing different constituencies.

It would be well for all citizens to take special care this year in how they vote their tax dollars. At least locally we have a choice.

Think! Ask questions! Talk to your elected representatives! Discuss it with your neighbors! And then by all means vote.

JOHN TALBOTT, Pasco