The Issue:
The Facilities Action Plan will be a ballot-item in the upcoming November 8th election in Champaign County, IL. It is straightforward, transparent, and deserves your “Yes” vote. It is a suggested plan to raise sales tax by one quarter-cent on items other than food or medicine in order to fund the continued operations of different facilities (Champaign County Jail, Nursing Home, Court/Legal System, animal shelter, and several others) which serve the people in our community. As the date approaches, there’s a lot of misinformation circulating out there.
The Facts:
This is a plan that has been put forward with strong endorsements from all parties.
On top of that, both parties are actively working towards making much-needed improvements to our criminal justice system. In fact, this plan actually reduces the capacity of jail inmates from 313 beds to 252 beds. It provides 30 beds for a medical unit, as well as space for behavioral health programs to be implemented and offer services. This is a plan that will repair jails and build programs at the same time. This will include approximately 5 million dollars allocated towards behavioral health services.
What This Means:
Voting ‘Yes’ will save you money, while still ensuring that a minimum level of services will continue to be provided.
The Facilities Action Plan is the product of a very long and well-documented process, and the details have all been made available on the official site: http://www.co.champaign.il.us/2016FacilitiesProposal/PDFS/Facilities_Action_Plan.pdf . You can find out exactly what is being funded, a plan for when the projects will be done, as well as thought out explanations why. If you’d like, you can even watch footage of the plan being developed through the County Clerk’s Website!
A vote of ‘No’ may save you a little money in the short-term, but will cost us all much more in the long-run.
This plan is largely about addressing the neglected state of essential buildings in our community. When investigated by state authorities, conditions in the jail were rated as “deplorable”. This is one of many such buildings that simply require maintenance. Voting ‘no’ on this plan is a vote to postpone the repairs and updates required to prevent huge, additional, expenses in the coming years. A vote of ‘no’ will subject individuals in the jail to even worse conditions than they already endure and the nursing home will continue to suffer.
What should you do?
Consider your sources and get informed with the direct links above. Remember that even news articles online and yard signs have their own, differing perceptions of the matter. Avoid paying many millions over the long-term in our county, and ensure that necessary services continue in the short-term. The only way for you to know how to vote on the plan is for you to read the plan itself!