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Jackson County Belt Tightening Helped Avoid Tax Increases

Kansas City, MO – Three years of planning against rough economic times have paid off for the Jackson County government. That is the assessment county executive Mike Sanders gave in his "state of the county" address yesterday. He says that without years of belt tightening, county government would have shut down.

Sanders: "The impact of decreased revenues, as the economy has continued to struggle, has resulted in a total reduction in the county's funds of $12.1 million since the adoption of the 2009 budget. Once again, our employees rolled up their sleeves and made it possible for us to present a 2010 budget that is balanced,"

Sanders credits some of that to county legislators who voted this year not to raise the tax levy to overcome a record, third straight, budget shortfall. Lower property values mean less revenue in 2010, but Sanders says homeowners will see their Jackson county property taxes go down.

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