Dear editor,
This does not include the majority of tax payers of the Village. At a recent village council meeting, it was unanimously approved that all village employees, full and part time, and all police officers, full time and reserves, will receive a free flu shot, compliments of our tax dollars.
While watching the meeting on TV, I was surprised that not one of the council members objected or even commented on the subject.
Maybe this is not the first time this has come up on their agenda, it could well be an annual decision, I have no idea. But I think this is a great misuse of taxpayers money.
How many employees are there? Are council members and zoning board members considered employees along with the staff at the village offices and the DPW? How many police officers are there (including the reserves)? Where will they be getting these shots, at one of the local stores for $20 to $30? Will they make an appointment at the Health Department for $11?
Maybe the plan is to have a health clinic come to the village to administer the vaccine, I have no idea what the cost of this would be. But how much money was approved for this?
I am not saying that these people are not hard working individuals, I believe the majority of them are, they are all compensated for their services, along with health benefits some of them receive. I truly believe that if they want to get a flu shot, then they should be able to cover the costs themselves. If the village would like to supply the vaccine for the entire tax paying community then that would be a different story.
I hope our local government has the best interest of its citizens in mind when making decisions about how to spend tax dollars. I don’t think they thought of anyone besides themselves on this decision.
If you would like answers to some of these questions, please attend an upcoming village council meeting. Please speak up!
-Renee Bridges
Village of Lake Orion