Disabled veterans have been short-changed for a century to keep wealthy’s taxes low | Opinion
Vets need better compensation plan
Our disabled veterans are grossly under-compensated.
This travesty of justice is causing enlistments to dry up.In Fiscal Year 2023, a totally disabled veteran with no dependents is compensated at the ridiculous rate of $43,463.40 annually.
The National Average Wage Index for 2021 was $60,575.07 annually and the median income for 2021 was $70,784. The per capita GDP in 2021 was $69,288, among the highest in the world.
They have been asking various administrations and Congress for fair compensation since the end of WWI in November 1918. That was 104 years ago. In my opinion, the basic reason for their gross under-compensation situation is that they are only compensated for projected loss of wages due to their disabilities.
They are not compensated for their low quality of life, which is the norm now in personal injury cases in court. This is done to keep taxation low for the wealthy elites.
So this means that the people who had their assets and overseas business interests protected the most by our now-broken former troops pay essentially nothing to support them in their brokenness. Congress must correct this now!
Erik Kammerdiener, Yakima
County must be kept accountable
By May of 2018, a little over three years after implementation, the current voter-approved Public Safety Sales Tax (PSST) had apparently funded all of Benton County’s requirements, in some cases “funding in excess of what was recommended,” and consequently amassed a $15 million surplus, with hundreds of thousands more of taxpayer dollars pouring in every month.
The county provided some biennial reports that showed revenues and expenditures regarding this tax, but those reports stopped after 2020. It seems as though the county commissioners no longer want us to see how they’re spending our money.
That’s very troubling, but what’s even more troubling is the fact that this November, the commissioners want us to agree to make this tax permanent, thereby depriving us of our ability to determine whether or not and how much we’ll be taxed, while relieving themselves of the burden of accountability to the taxpayers.
Taxpayer approval needs to continue; accountability needs to be maintained; and the excessive 0.3% rate needs to be lowered.
The current PSST doesn’t expire until the end of 2024. Vote “No” on the proposed Public Safety Sales Tax this November and give the commissioners another year to get their proposal right.
Tim Taylor, Richland
Mission outlines what its mission is
As we at the Mission are in a fundraising phase for a new Women and Children’s Facility to be located in Kennewick, I’d like to take the opportunity to clarify a few details about what we do and who we are.In 2022, we housed men for 22,416 bed/nights and women and children for 9,224 bed/nights.
This, of course, includes three nutritious meals per day and daily showers. We also provide free daily access to medical and nursing needs, dental procedures by appointment and chiropractic sessions on Saturdays.
This is all provided absolutely free to our clients through the generosity of our faithful partners with no government funding of any kind in our more than 65 years. We have the highest rating on charitynavigator.com, a watchdog organization for nonprofits.
Yes, there’s a homeless population in the Tri-Cities. We see them and provide care for them on a very practical level; this is what we do as a no-profit. We are proud of our many clients that we have helped over the years.
I’ve seen people from all walks of life come through our doors; a doctor of physics, a Jewish Rabbi, and many more average men and women who have just temporarily fallen on hard times.
However, we can only help those who want or ask for our help. Will you join us in our work to reduce the homelessness in our communities? Please visit our website at tcugm.org for more information.
Michael Richardson
Vice president, Board of Directors, Tri-City Union Gospel Mission