SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
January 18, 2018
Sullivan’s
Salvos 1/23/18
In this edition:
*Missed Opportunity
*Free Tax Help!
*Real Economic Development!
*Stock Market Perspective
*Radon Action
*Did You Know?
*Missed Opportunity
The Board of
Supervisors missed a golden opportunity last week. On the same evening that we
passed a proclamation honoring the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior,
we passed on the opportunity to appoint an African American woman to one of our
Boards and Commissions.
We like to talk
about diversity, and recruiting people of color, but when faced with an opportunity
to appoint an African American female to the Board of Adjustment, we went
another direction. This saddens me.
*Free Tax Help!
Don’t
pay a fee to get your refund! The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA)
Program provides trained volunteers that will help you file your taxes. This
service is available FOR FREE to people who earned less than $55,000 in 2017.
E-filing is available, and interpretation services are available at many sites
or by appointment.
“You Earned It. Now Claim
It!”
Sites
are the Iowa City Public Library, SEJH in Iowa City, NWJH in Coralville, and
Garner Elementary in North Liberty. Services are available Monday, Tuesday,
Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday – see http://www.johnson-county.com/dept_soc_ser.aspx?id=275
for
the complete schedule.
Spanish
interpreters are available; interpreters for other languages can be scheduled
by calling 356-6090.
*Real Economic Development!
This
appeared in Salvos several times over the years, but it bears repeating as we
approach tax season.
*What if I told you we could bring in 50 full-time jobs that would
pay $15 per hour?
*What
if I told you these jobs could neither be outsourced overseas nor
subcontracted?
*What if I told you those jobs would be filled by hard-working
low-income people, all of whom are local?
*What if I told you NO bribery (aka “tax incentives”) would be
required to land these jobs?
*What if I told you there were no special workforce training
programs required?
*What if I told you virtually ALL of the money earned would be
spent locally?
What
would happen? Well, the Chamber of Commerce would put it in their newsletter,
and the Ambassadors would do a ribbon cutting. Debi Durham would come over from
Des Moines and do a big press event, and the Governor just might join her. ICAD
would tweet this success to the world. Mayors would grab gold shovels and pose
for a photo. You might get a visit from a US Senator. The Press Citizen and
Gazette would both do front page stories. The Corridor Business Journal would
write a nice editorial. The region would be hailed for its forward thinking,
and folks would talk far and wide about how well we do economic development.
So
what if I told you the exact equivalent has already occurred? It has.
Several
years ago, I went to a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference and
learned about a program that had started in Cook County, Illinois.
As
it turns out, a huge number of low-income workers leave money on the table when
it comes to the federal income tax system, particularly the Earned Income Tax
Credit (EITC). Cook County created a series of free tax clinics to ensure this
money returned to their county.
I
did some investigating, and it just so happened that Johnson County had the
same problem, though obviously on a much smaller scale.
So
I pushed for Johnson County to begin a free tax help program. It struck me that
we had a potential partner in the Tippe College of Business, and as luck would
have it, I could not have had better timing. Dr. Joyce Berg was ready to
greatly expand the work her student tax preparers would do. It was a perfect
fit.
Former
Supervisor (and current Legislator) Sally Stutsman was very supportive. Amy
Correia had just been hired as Johnson County’s first Social Services Director,
and Amy took the ball and ran with it, including securing grants to cover all
operating costs. The Tippe College, ICCSD, United Way, Iowa City Public
Library, and many others have become valued partners. In recent years, current
Social Services Director Lynette Jacoby has maintained and improved upon all
this success.
What
are the results? The Free Tax Help Program brings well over $1.5 million into
the local economy every year. It goes to low-income local workers, who spend it
locally. And it uses no local tax dollars.
Remember
when I said “50 full-time jobs at $15 per hour”? That adds up to a $1.5 million
annual impact, just like the Free Tax Help Program. But the Free Tax Help
Program is actually even better, because it serves over 1,100 Johnson County
tax filers and their families!
Economic
Development can take many forms. I happen to believe the Free Tax Help program
has contributed a lot of good things to the local economy. We have not had any
fancy groundbreakings or ribbon cuttings, but we have accomplished something!
So
if you know Lynette Jacoby, thank Lynette Jacoby. She has done great work! If you
know Joyce Berg, thank Joyce Berg. Her students have given much more back to
this community than they could ever take.
*Stock Market Perspective
From Steven Greenhouse: “As we celebrate the Dow reaching 25,000,
let’s not forget: Half of all Americans are not helped by this. 40% of all
stocks are owned by the richest 1%. 85% of all stocks are owned by the richest
10%. The top o.1% of Americans has the same wealth as the bottom 90%.”
*Radon Action
Radon is an odorless, colorless, naturally-occurring
gas formed by the decay of radioactive materials. Radon itself is radioactive
and poses a health threat when sufficient concentrations collect in enclosed
areas such as basements and crawl spaces. Radon is the second leading cause of
lung cancer overall and the leading cause among nonsmokers. Iowa has the
largest percentage (71.6%) of homes above the US Environmental Protection
Agency action level of 4pCi/L, in the US.
January is National Radon Action Month. Radon test kits are available at Johnson County Public Health,
(319) 356-6040. Kits are available at our office for $8.00, or $10.00 if you
would like the kit mailed directly to you.
*DID YOU KNOW?
There are almost 1 million Haitian Americans living in the US. Well over
half live in just two states – Florida (450,000) and New York (200,000).
Anyone
interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the
County website-
"Sullivan’s
Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a
brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
These messages
come solely from Rod Sullivan, and neither represents the viewpoints of the
whole Board of Supervisors nor those of groups or individuals otherwise
mentioned.
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As always,
feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan@mchsi.com. I look forward to
serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 3:24 PM
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