Enon resident Chuck Waszczak stepped up at the Enon Village Council meeting on March 28 to announce that he along with Marge Travis have taken the steps to form a Political Action Committee in support of the May Enon Police levy. Travis will serve as the treasurer for the PAC and an account has been established at Wes Banco. Waszczak noted that the official name of the group will be “We Serve the Village of Enon” and has had all official paperwork submitted.
Council member Steve Trout noted that he has heard around the community that the Enon Police Department had a million dollar budget. He asked Clerk / Fiscal Officer Diana McCubbin to pull past records to show just what the income and expenses have been for the department over the past few years.
Reports provided by Trout and McCubbin show that the department has rollover balance from 2016 for this year of $8,275.31. In 2016 the department had a rollover of $19,266.62. At no time over the past five years did the department have income or rollovers equaling a million dollars.
Increased costs for wages, benefits and equipment have put an increased strain on budgets for all local police departments across the State of Ohio. In addition, the departments have see steady declines in State and Federal funds coming into departments leading many to come back to the local taxpayers in order to maintain standards of service expected. If the 5 mill property tax is approved in May, it will appear on the January 2018 tax bill for village residents.
“We Serve” organizers will be working with Chief Lew Wilcox and the village council to develop literature that will be distributed door- to – door in the coming weeks. They also hope to be able to purchase some yard signs to promote the levy with support from local residents.
Anyone who would like to volunteer to help with the levy campaign can contact Waszczak at 864-7192 or to make a donation contact Marge Travis at 864-1375. Both volunteers ask that you leave a message if they are not available. To send a donation to the PAC, make checks payable to “We Serve the Village of Enon” and mail them to Marge Travis at 111 Taylor Street, Enon, OH 45323. Cash donations are limited to $100 but there is no limit if the donation is in the form of a check. “Volunteering is unlimited” said Wasczak who is dedicated to the passage of the levy in May to support the citizens of Enon.