PRESS RELEASE: Jason Patrick Sager to Seek Hernando BOCC District 3 Seat
At 8:00am this morning, Monday October 31st in the year of our Lord 2011, I submitted the necessary paperwork to Supervisor of Elections Annie D. Williams seeking the District 3 Seat on the Hernando County Board of County Commissioners. This seat is currently being occupied by John Druzbick.
For the past six months I have been contemplating this decision with my friends and family. I made the decision personally last month. Making the decision with my friends and family however was not enough. For roughly two months I have been speaking with local conservative leaders, Republican leaders, influential business owners and the campaign team from my 2010 congressional run. I was seeking someone to tell me that this decision was ill advised. After several months I have not spoken with one individual who made the recommendation that I not challenge incumbent Commissioner John Druzbick. Instead, I received enough encouragement to allow me to confidently announce my candidacy today.
For at least the past two years John has been the leading advocate for raising the property taxes on individual property owners in Hernando County. The excuse has always been that our property values have decreased to the point that a millage increase would not be felt as a tax increase. What our elected officials tend to forget is that these same millage increases also affect our businesses. In the current economic climate, it is completely irresponsible to raise taxes on anyone in this county. No amount of political double-speak and spin can change this tax increase to be something other than what it is. We would not tolerate our newly elected Republican Federal legislators to raise our income taxes one penny. Why would we allow them to do it here at home?
Over the next several months I will be introducing a jobs plan for Hernando County. Every county in our State has to deal with an oppressive State and Federal government. Why is it then that Hernando County continues to rank near the bottom of the 67 in job creation and near the top of the 67 for unemployment? This is not a new problem, yet our County Government has refused to address these matters effectively. That, my friends, is about to change. There are simple solutions to create the environment necessary to make Hernando County #1 in job creation and dead last in unemployment. That should always be our goal. Whether that goal can ever be achieved is of no consequence. Everyday a County Commissioner rolls out of bed, he or she should be working towards achieving it. Our Government was designed to serve and protect us. Unfortunately, several generations of liberal commissioners have changed that to be just the opposite. The time is now to begin to turn our county around. I look forward to being the champion of that cause.
Why announce so early in the election cycle? Every 10 years our BOCC and County School Board is tasked with redrawing the 5 legislative districts into which our county is currently divided. The initial discussions begin tomorrow with a final resolution being needed by the end of this calendar year. According to Florida Statute, county legislative district lines can only be changed in odd numbered years. I reside in District 3, along with John Druzbick. The district redrawing is initiated by the US Census that is required by our Federal Constitution. These districts are to be drawn to assure that each district is proportioned properly according to our population +/- 5%. Over the next several months, our County Commissioners, School Board members, Supervisor of Elections and Hernando County’s Planning and Zoning Department will be drawing new district lines. One of the most important considerations that will be made is the physical residence of all “Declared Candidates”. The reason this is so important is to ensure that there is no appearance of impropriety by those who currently hold elected office. Yes, our BOCC and our School Board members could actually manipulate their district lines in order to “block out” any competition they might receive in the upcoming election by placing their opponents into a different legislative district. I am not suggesting that any one of our elected officials would ever do this. I would hope that they would welcome a strong debate with a challenger. If the people of Hernando County are happy with the job they have done, then they will be overwhelmingly re-elected. This is why it is so important that I officially declare my candidacy before these discussions begin to take place.
Friends, the most pressing issue facing us as a united people is that we have lost all faith in our government. We wake up daily to newspaper articles regarding issues that would never be tolerated in the private sector. Our businesses won’t even contemplate expansion until they too have confidence that their local government will not do something counterproductive to their long term plans. How many unqualified managers do we have to read about in our newspapers that are due to receive excessive salaries? How many local construction projects and “improvements” have to go astray before we begin to change leadership? 2012 is the year that we cannot settle. We must look for leaders who are unafraid to stand up to the status quo in government and I am that man.
Thank you all for your continued support. We have a major task ahead but our mission is just. God bless America and may He continue to bless Hernando County.
In Liberty,
Jason Patrick Sager
Candidate for Hernando County Commission District 3 Seat