Subject: [NEXTEL-1] DHS Inquiry

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 27 Oct 2003 10:36:21 -0500

------- Original Message --------
From: Robert Schwaninger <[email-masked]>
Subject: DHS Inquiry

The problem facing the DHS is not just technical, but political.  As the
P-25 folks discovered, public safety agencies require substantial funding
and direction which leads to coerced cooperation for any standardized method
to take root.  For example, County A sets adjacent to County B, however,
County A due to gerrymandering by the state legislature, is run by
Democrats, while County B is run by Republicans.  Now, if the governor of
the State is a Democrat, he will fund projects in County A at a faster rate
than B.  However, if the state legislature is run by the Republicans, they
will only vote for bills that benefit County B.  Meanwhile, if the member of
Congress is a Republican, she will vote funding for B, but not A, if
possible.  But then, if County A evidences a higher property tax rate, those
revenues can be applied toward adoption of new systems and standards.
However, County B may have an urban center with commuter taxes which might
help augment the effort.  Yet, County B's urban center may jealously expend
its funds solely for the city, leaving the remainder of the County without
any hope of achieving the new standard.  So, if the Counties rely on federal
funding, instead of local taxes or state revenues, the problem is solved,
right?  No, because County A's population numbers place it in line ahead of
B for receipt of those monies, which if those federal monies are "matching
grants" County A cannot obtain them because the shortfall in tax revenues in
the County due to added expenses from aging schools, snow removal from a
harsh winter, and a tax relief package that passed in the 1990s, have placed
in the County in a deficit position.  So, the federal government decides to
pay all of the money via the Homeland Security budget and both County A and
B have all of the funds needed to do the job.... That is until someone
discovers that County B's court house has a stone tablet with the Ten
Commandments on it in the lobby and the funds are withheld until the issue
of church and state is resolved.....

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