Most of the letters to the editor regarding the public letter that county officials sent to the commissioners, requesting they focus limited funds on mandated responsibilities, do not point out that the county doesn’t solely support nor is responsible for the non-mandated programs.

The county only helps support these programs by using our tax dollars. Other organizations and individuals, including many of my friends and us, also help maintain them. All of us agree with the need and value of these programs, but many of the contributors have found it necessary to reduce or discontinue donations this year.

As with the county, individuals taxpayers also have mandatory needs, i.e., medical expenses and insurance, mouths to feed, taxes, mortgages, et al. But unlike the county commissioners, if we don’t have sufficient funds to cover everything, we must rightly decide to take care of those mandatory expenses first and make charitable contributions if anything is left.

Many of us resent that the county takes our tax money and gives it to non-mandated organizations as a donation, meanwhile cutting the very services for which we supposedly pay taxes.

Commissioners, you are the custodians of Island County’s taxpayer funds and assets. Show some chutzpah and perform your fiduciary duty. Don’t mortgage our resources at the expense of the future.

Please, you are not entitled to spend taxpayer money just to satisfy your personal “feel good,” or politically motivated desires.

William D. Strowbridge

Oak Harbor