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hi,
the indianapolis star reported that some recreation fees were going to be increased by the dnr director. The Natural Resources Commission voted to give the director discretion on how much fees need to be increased. Some of these fees could be increased a ridiculous amount. Just seeing what everybody else thinks. A campsite B anywhere between 10-50$. I just believe this is ridiculous. here is a link to the proposed fees.
[url]http://www.in.gov/nrc/minutes/current_agenda/Item%201.doc[/url]
I feel that the fees should be paid by the people who use the facilities and not the taxpayer in general.
What I have a problem with, is having to pay $9 just to go fishing somewhere. I don't see where it should be more than a couple of bucks to launch your boat. The ramps were probably put in with federal money and the state paying a smaller percentage.
I really feel some areas are so special that high user fees are justified. Places such as Yellowstone National Park for instance. If you have ever been there, you know paying $20 to get in is the greatest deal you will have in your life time. I would pay $100 to get into Yellowstone if I had to, or even more.
There are many other places I don't mind paying up for access to the property. Gulf Shores National Seashore, Cape Hatteras, many many places that are worth every penny.
I am almost always against higher fees. Higher taxes are the worst. :)
Regards,
Moose1am
Moose,
User fees are not taxes. User fees should reduce taxes, by placing the burden of cost upon the person who uses the facilities or property. It should take the cost off of the general taxpayer who does not ever go to a facility.
Its like going to a Pacer game. If you want to go, then you can't really gripe about the cost of the ticket. Also the Pacers should not ask the public to buy them a building to play in.
What the city of Indy and the state are trying to impose on the taxpayer to build the Colts a new stadium is not only immoral, it has got to be illegal. There is no shortage of money in the NFL, or by the Colts either. They should pay for their own stadium, and when they are not using it, can rent it to whomever they want.
Charging taxpayers who never go to see the Colts to pay for it in the very least is immoral. To the majority of the people in the multiple county area where the state is wanting to tax, the Colts have no economic impact at all.
OK OK!
Geeze Louise? Sorry that I used the wrong term. "Taxes"
Fees or taxes just means more money out of my (our) back pocket(s).
While I do agree that user fees should target those that use the facilities and not the regular tax payer. The roads and such are used by just about everyone. I just wish to keep the user fees down to as low as possible. ie I want the best bang for my buck.
Over the last 5 years the facilities at Patoka Lake have been let down. The people who use the lake most had to take up where the state left off. Locals are taking out the trash to help keep the place up and running and clean.
I would think with all the extra money that the State of IN gets from the lotter ticket sales would have kept the property tax rate down. How much money can the state spend? The more you give them the more they will spend or put in their back pockets.
I am generally against raising the price of anything these days.
Regards,
Moose1am
Moose,
Calm down there son, I think we are both on the same side here.
At what point in time did government funding become necessary for entertainment in the country? It is a mis-use of taxpayers money.
My point is that, in a supposedly free society, you do what you want, and I do what I want. I should pay for my hobby, you pay for yours.
If people want their kids to play soccer or little league, then let them pay for the ball fields, upkeep etc...
If you like the Colts, then you should pay to the new stadium, not every single taxpayer in an 8 county area around Indy. It seems almost every NFL team in the last 10 years is trying to hold the taxpayers hostage by demanding a new stadium or we be leavin' attitude. Rich owners getting richer, yet using public funds to make their millions. Don't cry for the Colts, the NFL is litterally flooded with excess cash, swimming in money. Just like Exxon and etc....
If the taxpayers are called upon to do anything to help in the private sector, it should be all about job creation. Would it be prudent for the taxpayers to help GM out and save 30,000 jobs? Probably not, but at least I think it would do a reasonable amount of good to keep people out of the unemployment lines. Every time someone losses their job, your taxes go up. Its a trickle affect, but how much taxes to 30,000 GM workers pay a year? No small piece of cash I would say.
If you like fishing at Patoka, the state should calculate a reasonable cost for each service you use, then charge accordingly. If that ends up being $30 bucks a trip, then its just tough love and you need to pay up or don't fish.
I try to pick where I would be willing to pay to fish. I tried a few state lakes this year at $9 bucks a pop. The fish I caught, then released ended up being quite a bit per pound. Was just the experience of being out on a beautiful lake worth it in itself? Without a doubt.
Next spring give me a yell Moose, I will invite you to come up and fish my lakes, have a beer, grill a burger, and argue about taxes forever. You have to pack out your trash though, or I might have to start collecting a user fee too... LOL
topwater
An increase in user fees is nothing more than a back door tax increase. Politicans have all kind of creative ways of getting more money from us.
If the money would stay at Patoka from higher "user fees" I don't have a problem with paying a little more. I buy boat launching permits for two boats every year plus a yearly gate pass. I use the south ramp at newton stewart most of the time and incase any of you haven't been there lately we have new docks for 14 boats thanks to the Indiana Bass Federation and the DNR. They also built a new concrete walkway for wheelchairs to get down to the docks. The north ramp has new docks as well. Its something that was needed for years.
I agree with you that the taxpayers shouldn't have to build the colts ownwers a new place to play football. I didn't see anything wrong with where their at now.
If you want to fish patoka give me a shout next spring. I fish by myself most of the time. The oldest is married with kids and the youngest is in the navy having the time of his life seeing the world. I'll take you crappie fishing or bass fishing if you like, show you some good spots to fish for either that most people don't know about, furnish the beer, the boat, the gas and provide you with great company. I ain't boring to be around. You can ask those who've fish with me about their experience. Bandit my little ShiZu dog goes along as well. I do know the lake pretty well. Fished it since it was first impounded. We also have a camp at Wildridge right before you go through the gate at newton stewart. I'm there every weekend from March till november 1. I can even ride you around on the golf cart and show you all the other camps in Wildridge. It's a nice place to be in. Sure beats driving home after a long day on the water. Who knows you might like it so well you may want a camp of your own. We've had ours 8 years now.
See ya around sometime.
Larry
Thanks for the offer Larry. I will give you a shout in the spring. You can come up and fish my ponds too. I have 13 with bass and bluegills in them. Remote location with only woods around, and the only neighbor is one of my best friends.
It's another poke in the eye ! Restructuring houseing tax,wheel tax, this is plain out and out another type of taxing our pockets!$50.00 per night camping fee's !! Plain stupid! You can stay are a whole lot of hotels cheaper then that and a lot more poeple will. SO now they will loss money by rasing the fee! Rasing my fishing & hunting license's again! BULLCRA$ They rasied our license by as much as 70% just a couple years ago, and now they want to rasie it just a tad over 20%again BULLCRA$
Lets see now, Fri.&Sat. night camping with the family(OR WORSE ALONE)Fishing or just motor boating? Gate fee+ Ramp fee+camp fee+ firewood( Can't bring it in anymore)2 nights=?=$121.00
Sounds more like going to a ball game and paying the million dollar pay checks for the bunch of spoilded little kids on the feild or court. A blind person can see whats happing here, they are going to out price our parks and lakes.
Look for county or city, or private camp grounds and lakes, let our man Mitch go camping he has a camper he used that was given to him to help get his job,and pick up the drop in lack of interest of being raped by the leader ship of this state! You have not showed me anything yet Mitch as far careing a thing about our outdoors in this state, just stick it to the sportsmen and women again!!Charlie
Charlie,
I agree with you. I think there should be a law in place, that states when a politician is running for office, they must declare in writing their plans on taxes.
If so, you would not see this kind of thing happening. Did Mitch Daniels campaign and say "I am going to raise taxes" ? No, of course he didn't because he would not have gotten re-elected.
Under the Bush administration, the only people who got real tax relief were the seven, eight, and nine figure income people. You and I got a small de-crease in federal taxes, which caused the states and local governments to raise our taxes.
State budgets cannot run in the red very long, and local budgets simply can't run in the red at all, yet the federal deficit just grows and grows, no end in sight.
The federal government is also hiding inflation numbers out of the calculations, by excluding energy and food prices in the reported figures. Notice now they always state first "Excluding energy and food prices, inflation remains tame at a mere 2% rate". How can you exclude food and fuel costs is beyond me.
Good luck, and remember, its only going to get worse.
topwater.
It's cool. If you ever get down here to the Southern Part of the state we could fish Patoka. Maybe we can get larry to show us a few more crappie hot spots or bass hot spots on Patoka.
Regards,
Moose1am