- Signatures: 255
- Goal: 500,000
- Deadline: 6-5-2007
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This petition courtesy of the folks at Citizens Campaigning Against Renegade Legislators. Join us at www.CCARL.com Membership is FREE - Join our YahooGroup!
NO Taxation Without Representation!
Thank you.
Join Citizens Campaigning Against Renegade Legislators at www.CCARL.com Membership is FREE - Join our YahooGroup!
NO Taxation Without Representation!
The four men of the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners want the one million residents of Hennepin County to pay for improvements for a privately-held entertainment business. On AUGUST 29 they could choose to impose a 30-year sales tax upon one million people just because a private businessman wants a nicer place to play ball.
Does it matter that there is a Minnesota State law requiring that the residents of Hennepin County vote on whether to accept or reject this tax? Does it matter that the majority have repeatedly said that they want the law upheld and that they want the referendum vote that is required by law?
Not to the four men of the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners - four men who were elected to represent "We, the People" but who now seem to be representing their own special interests.
The referendum law was enacted in order to prevent just the type of abuse of power that these four men are about to implement. An abuse of power that is the direct result of spending too much time behind closed doors, in secret meetings, glad-handing and back-slapping with the Billionaire Boys Club, and conspiring to find any means possible to get the most taxpayer money with which to fund a private entertainment business. There has been nothing sportsmanlike, nor democratic, about the 8-plus year battle the Minnesota Twins have waged against the Taxpayers of Minnesota.
Maybe if our elected officials had been spending just a fraction of that amount of time listening to We, the People, they would have a better grasp of what the honorable, democratic, and law-abiding process should be in this matter. But they have lost sight of democracy, and they are planning to ignore the law and thumb their noses at the taxpayers.
If The Stadium Tax Bill is allowed to pass without a referendum, it will be a first-ever, precedent-setting exemption to the local sales tax referendum law - State Statute 297A.99 (Local Sales Taxes) Subd. 3.
Simply put, the Stadium Tax Bill stands for abuse of power and taxation without representation.
And, on AUGUST 29, we could be forced into a 30-YEAR SALES TAX over which we had no say!
Please do not allow this to continue unchallenged. Please "step up to the plate" and be a voice for democracy. Sign this petition and then ask everyone you know to do the same.Maybe if our elected officials had been spending just a fraction of that amount of time listening to We, the People, they would have a better grasp of what the honorable, democratic, and law-abiding process should be in this matter. But they have lost sight of democracy, and they are planning to ignore the law and thumb their noses at the taxpayers.
If The Stadium Tax Bill is allowed to pass without a referendum, it will be a first-ever, precedent-setting exemption to the local sales tax referendum law - State Statute 297A.99 (Local Sales Taxes) Subd. 3.
Simply put, the Stadium Tax Bill stands for abuse of power and taxation without representation.
And, on AUGUST 29, we could be forced into a 30-YEAR SALES TAX over which we had no say!
Thank you.
Join Citizens Campaigning Against Renegade Legislators at www.CCARL.com Membership is FREE - Join our YahooGroup!
| Number | Date | Prefix | Name | In what city and county do you live? | Please, tell the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners exactly what you think. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 255 | 11:06 am PDT, Oct 15 | Mr. | Lewis Camacho | ||
| 254 | 7:59 am PDT, Jul 8 | Anonymous | Brooklyn Park | I have no interest in subsidizing millionaires | |
| 253 | 4:34 pm PDT, Mar 12 | Mr. | RAY SALAZAR | Mound mn. | NO MORE TAXES! NO MORE TAXING AND SPENDING ESECIALLY FOR A SPORT! NO SPENDING FOR ANYTHING! |
| 252 | 1:41 pm PST, Nov 26 | Mr. | jeffrey joseph guest | ...minneapolis...hennepin | ...i would love to "share my thoughts" IF i knew they would be heard AND listened to...612.886.3746... |
| 251 | 10:11 pm PDT, May 12 | Evan E | This is outrageous!!! | ||
| 250 | 4:56 pm PDT, Apr 21 | Anonymous | Minneapolis, MN | ||
| 249 | 4:54 pm PDT, Apr 21 | Anonymous | |||
| 248 | 5:54 pm PDT, Apr 17 | Ms. | Anonymous | Chisago | I work for the City of Mpls and do not agree with circumventing the process. You are setting a precedence stating "anything goes", as long as it suits your purpose. Obey the law! |
| 247 | 4:22 am PDT, Apr 17 | Mr. | Maurice Schultz | Minneapolis, Hennepin | |
| 246 | 3:52 am PDT, Apr 17 | Deborah K. Rogers | Minneapolis - Hennepin County | ||
| 245 | 1:12 pm PDT, Apr 10 | Breanna Beck | Isn't there more important things our hard earned tax money can go to??? | ||
| 244 | 10:07 am PDT, Apr 3 | loretta bengivenga | |||
| 243 | 3:17 pm PDT, Mar 14 | Ms. | Jennifer L | ||
| 242 | 7:28 am PST, Jan 13 | Maranda Cohrs | Minneapolis, MN in Hennepin County | We're paying for a stadium for a team that has made no guarantees that they will stay. Who's to say in 5 or 10 years they won't be demanding another one? Now, I know the Twins team investors and owners are struggling financially and it's our civic duty to help those in need but at least let us vote for it. This was passed WITHOUT TAX PAYER CONSENT YET WE'RE PAYING FOR IT! Whether you're for the stadium or not, don't you agree that if the majority of the bill is to be paid from our pockets, we should at least get a say as to what we want to buy. It's as if someone is saying, "Yeah, Best Buy needs a new wing added to the corporate building so they can play racquet ball and you're going to pay for it even though you yourself will probably not get to come in and play. We may let you come and watch in the future but you'll have to pay another 20 bucks and if you want some water it's another 5. You probably won't be able to afford a beer or pretzel. No, you don't get a choice. We're just going to deduct a little bit here and there when you buy diapers and juice for your kids." Can you tell I'm a little passionate about this? You thought I was bad during election season! All kidding aside, is this really a precedent you want set? If some company wants a new toy, we're not going to have a say about who pays for it? | |
| 241 | 10:18 am PST, Jan 6 | Ms. | Anonymous | Minneapolis, Hennepin | |
| 240 | 6:54 pm PST, Jan 5 | Mrs. | Anonymous | Belle Plaine, Scott County | This is a ridiculous use of tax payers money. |
| 239 | 5:43 pm PST, Jan 4 | Anonymous | |||
| 238 | 6:51 pm PST, Jan 3 | Melanie Mack | Rosemount, Dakota county | I am not a baseball fan, but if I purchase something in hennepin County I must pay a tax that will contribute to a new stadium for the Minnesota Twins. I don't want a new stadium, but I am FORSED to help pay for one. And this doesn't seem unfair?? So if the tax stays I will make sure that my three children, husband and myself will never go to another baseball game again. I will go out of my way to make sure never to purchase anything in Hennepin county also. Hennepin County businesses lose not me. | |
| 237 | 3:40 am PST, Nov 18 | Donna Toone | Golden Triangle Saloon/Casino Area, Beaumont, Jefferson County, Texas | These gambling clubs provide a through-fare for anyone that will do the perverted dirt for easy money, and breed corruption in type of non-relative RITUAL ABUSE, by PEOPLE NEAR KIDS for greedy cruel cold-hearted pervised gains, from old west saloon times, the rackeet here is still putting their little girls out on the street. It must be one of the largest capitals for men killing young females here, robbery, and burglery. No community needs these kind of gambling characters. | |
| 236 | 12:22 pm PDT, Oct 21 | Rick Hammond | Minnetonka---Hennepin | ||
| 234 | 9:49 pm PDT, Aug 31 | Linda Berroth-Linderman | |||
| 233 | 2:21 pm PDT, Aug 31 | Anonymous | |||
| 232 | 1:35 pm PDT, Aug 30 | John Barnard | Minneapolis MN Hennepin County | If the majority of the people in this state don't agree on a stadium tax maybe they should be listened to. | |
| 231 | 12:20 pm PDT, Aug 30 | Julie Kleinert | |||
| 230 | 11:53 am PDT, Aug 30 | Ms. | Mustang Beam | Moiese, Montana USA | If you vote on a tax, it needs to be represented by a legal legislature. This is a very ridlicious tax. Reminds me of Illinois, overtaxed. |
| 229 | 11:00 am PDT, Aug 30 | David Dunkleberger | |||
| 228 | 8:39 am PDT, Aug 30 | Ms Zentura | |||
| 227 | 7:16 pm PDT, Aug 29 | Arlena Morton | |||
| 226 | 3:41 pm PDT, Aug 29 | Ms. | Amelia MacRae | ||
| 224 | 8:42 pm PDT, Aug 28 | Mr. | John Malich | Minneapolis, Hennepic County | Hennepin County taxpayers deserve the right to vote on a referendum to raise taxes to support the Minnesota Twins and a new stadium. Please do not ignore the RIGHTS of citizens of Hennepin County to vote. Minnesota State law REQUIRES that the residents of Hennepin County vote on whether to accept or reject this tax. I believe you know what is right and what is wrong. I would like to think that I do not need to ask you to do the RIGHT thing - to make the correct choice. Americans have fought and continue to fight for this right - you must allow citizens to exercise our RIGHTS! Not to do so is a big step, a dangerous step, in the wrong direction! Don't allow yourself to think that it's OK because it's a "small tax" - either way you think of it, it's a TAX! Hennepin County taxpayers alone should not pay an additional tax for the stadium. If anyone, the entire State of Minnesota should support the stadium for the MINNESOTA Twins. Our local professional baseball team is the MINNESOTA Twins - NOT the Hennepin County Twins! My final point: I live very close to the border of two other counties. If this tax is IMPOSED on Hennepin County, I will make it my mission conduct the majority of my business, and the business of my family, outside of Hennepin County. |
| 222 | 7:05 am PDT, Aug 28 | Keith McKenna | Hennepin | It is wrong to make the people who do not want a new stadium to pay for one! If the owners and the players want one, they should pay their own way. They have the personal resources to cover the cost. Perhaps the tickes prices could be taxed, If the fans want a new stadium, they could help foot the bill. We have way too much crime in the metro area, we need more police officers and better funded fire fighters to insure the safety of our citizens. When I came into work last week at the Wyman building at 400 First Avenue N, What greeted me as I entered the building? A big pool of human urine right in the middle of the entrance. I don't think that our clients should have to deal with that kind of mess. The graffiti and the trash is astounding. Everywhere you look are flyers from nightclubs lying in the gutters and alleyways, everyday there are panhandlers begging for a handout. I am getting soooo sick of it. There is a line that I think all of you should become proficient at reciting, should the stadium be approved, you will need to know it, That line is, Excuse me maam, would you like paper or plastic? | |
| 221 | 2:27 pm PDT, Aug 27 | Martin R. Wellens | Shorewood Hennepin | Changing your mind is very easy and you would instantly become a hero. | |
| 219 | 12:44 pm PDT, Aug 27 | Ms. | Susan P. | ||
| 216 | 8:30 am PDT, Aug 26 | Mr. | Galen Swenson | Maple Grove, Hennepin | I think this tax would suck. Let the wealthy money making sports teams pay for their own stadium |
| 215 | 7:25 am PDT, Aug 26 | Tom E. Schmid | |||
| 214 | 7:17 am PDT, Aug 26 | Ms. | Susan Harris | I live in Nordeast Minneapolis, the backbone of Hennepin County | In 25 years of being able to vote I have never been so ashamed of who we have in office. Who the heck do you think you are? No one I know has ever liked Mark S. (He does whatever his wife tells him to do, even if it hurts other people. Remember Mr. Maxwell? You wrote a letter that destroyed his family based on hearsay from your gossiping wench wife.) I hope you fall off the face of the earth. Move to somewhere where you can be the DICKtator that you want to be. |
| 213 | 12:12 am PDT, Aug 26 | Mr. | Anonymous | ||
| 212 | 9:08 pm PDT, Aug 25 | Mr. | Michael Shasky | ||
| 210 | 2:58 pm PDT, Aug 25 | Diane D. | St. Louis Park, Hennepin County | Enough is enough. There's too many REAL issues that need to be dealt with. Please stop trying to force this down the public's throat. The worst thing about this is breaking the public's trust that you will represent us. We're loud and clear - take your head out of the sand and listen. | |
| 209 | 1:52 pm PDT, Aug 25 | Matt Masog | |||
| 208 | 12:59 pm PDT, Aug 25 | Andy T | Minneapolis, Hennepin County | With all of the infrastructure issues that could be helped by our tax money, why are you using it to buy a shiny toy for a rich man? What the hell is wrong with you people? | |
| 207 | 12:32 pm PDT, Aug 25 | George Broucek | City of Plymouth and Hennepin County | The stadium issue should be decided by the voters by referendum and not by the Hennepin County Commissioners acting without voter input. | |
| 206 | 11:38 am PDT, Aug 25 | Anonymous | Plymouth, Hennepin | If you pass this tax for the good of the Pohlad's - then I want Hennepin County to build my business a new facility as well! | |
| 205 | 10:49 am PDT, Aug 25 | Maren Peterson | Maple Grove; Hennepin County | Taxation without representation is wrong. We deserve to vote. | |
| 204 | 10:46 am PDT, Aug 25 | Mrs. | Suzanne Raph | Maple Grove, Hennepin county | Do not over-ride what the tax payers want. All we are asking for is the right that we deserve, the right to vote before being taxed. |
| 203 | 10:01 am PDT, Aug 25 | Anonymous | Minneapolis Hennepin County | This looks like one more end run around legal process, simply because the prime movers behind it EXPECT that they won't have majority support from the public. This is the other America at work, the one that believes great wealth buys you the privilege to ignore what everyone else might want or need. This is also one more example of how the rich STAY rich: by getting everyone else to pay for what they're after. I don't go to the stadium, but I don't begrudge other people their desire to watch professional sports in a pleasant setting. But I DO object to the unrelenting pressure that's been applied to have this stadium (and other planned stadiums) built, whether most people want it or not, particularly when it comes at the expense of the real social needs of a lot of other people in this county and this state. | |
| 202 | 8:20 am PDT, Aug 25 | Ms. | Anonymous | Maple Grove-Hennein county | What happened to citizen's right to be heard? Let me voice my decision by letting me vote on the stadium issue. Isn't that what our government is all about? It is outrageous that four reps are trying to decide this stadium issue for me. |
| 201 | 7:24 am PDT, Aug 25 | Mr. | Travis Snaza | Brooklyn Park Hennepin | While I will admit that I am not an expert on the ongoings of this debate, the pros and cons, the politics of it etc., I know this - an imposed tax to help build a stadium is a ridiculous idea. First off, how can a mandatory tax that removes the democratic function that is this great United States, be good for the people, by taking away what has been rightfully earned?? Second, most people know and beleive that these athletes, owners, commisioners, and other various people involved in pro sports are overpaid. More money than most AVERAGE people will see in their entire lifetime. So what is their cost, the players and owners!!?? Must not be enough if the taxpayers are gonna be hit for the chunk they are proposing. So there is a trend of democracy, voting, fairness, and the parties reading this or those responsible for the proposed tax maybe saying blah, blah, blah whatever - when the truth of the matter is that the same voices expressing those views are the same voices that put those people making the proposals in the position they are in. So is it shame on the people then, or shame on the lawmakers? What reputation do we want to maintain? So a new stadium gets built...how about the good old analogy: make the punishment fit the crime. Instead of imposing on those that have little to no interest in this idea - how about making that money up in ticket and merchandise sales by increasing those amounts. How about paycuts, fundraisers. Basically, whoever wants a brand new stadium should be stepping up to the plate and pitching in for it more than they already might be. Maybe the tax idea works better for those interested parties because it is more definite than the ticket sales and merchandise sales. This might be a crazy idea for some but if they can't count on ticket sales and merchandise sales to fund this little project - why do we need a new stadium? |
Minnesota Taxpayers Demanding A Referendum For Hennepin County On The Stadium Sales Tax
Dear Hennepin County Board of Commissioners,
Minnesota State law requires that any local sales tax increase be put to a referendum by the public. To go against this law sets a dangerous and undemocratic precedent for all Minnesota Taxpayers. To inflict taxation without representation is wholly unacceptable and is a flagrant abuse of power on your part.
So, in the matter of the pending 30-year Stadium Tax, we, the undersigned Minnesota Taxpayers, demand you uphold the law and give the Hennepin County Taxpayers the vote to which they are entitled.
Thank you,
The Undersigned Taxpaying Citizens of The State of Minnesota
The Undersigned Taxpaying Citizens of The State of Minnesota
Note: This Minnesota Taxpayers Demanding A Referendum For Hennepin County On The Stadium Sales Tax petition was submitted by Shar in Minneapolis. ThePetitionSite.com is a free service provided to help concerned citizens rally support for issues they believe in. The opinions expressed by this petition do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of ThePetitionSite.com or Care2.com. There is no express or implied endorsement of this petition nor any newsletter offers (except those from Care2.com) by Care2.com, Inc, ThePetitionSite.com, or our sponsors. If you believe this system is being abused, please contact customer support.
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