Our view: Senior millage hike: Money well spent

The Midland County Council on Aging provides services to about 19,500 senior citizens. These services range from providing Meals on Wheels to shut-in residents, to providing taxi service to the doctors, dentists or the grocery store. They include handyman services, health care coordination, home care, counseling, education and support groups.

Senior Services also operates Seasons, a daytime program for individuals who are living with increased changes in their memory from dementias such as Alzheimers disease, or physical health changes as they age.

The number of seniors is increasing as the Baby Boomer generation reaches retirement age. According to Midland Tomorrow projections, the number of seniors will grow by 19 percent by 2018, to 23,000, or 26 percent of Midland Countys population. More than 5,000 of those individuals will be over 80, a 23 percent increase. Senior Services projects that it will have 500 new program participants by that time.

And Senior Services of Midland County is struggling financially to provide services for them.

Unfortunately, the money to pay for these services has not kept pace with the aging population. While costs have increased 3.5 percent annually over the past five years, the taxable value of property, on which the senior millage is based, has increased only 1.5 percent. And, support from the state through the Office of Services to the Aging has dropped 7.5 percent during that time.

Because of these reasons, Senior Services is facing a budget deficit over the next five years, a deficit they hope to eliminate with a request for an increase in the senior millage, something that has not occurred since 2002, and some judicious cuts to programming.

Currently, Senior Services operates with a 0.75 mill rate. It will be asking Midland County residents to increase that to 0.9 mill on Aug. 5.

The increase is justified the Midland County Council on Aging has been a good steward of public monies over the past decade. In years that it didnt need the full millage, it authorized a lesser amount. In five of the past 12 years, a lesser amount than the 0.75 mill was levied.

If you would like to see Senior Services continue to meet the growing number of seniors, and to help seniors maintain an independent living style, then you need to vote yes on Aug. 5 on the senior millage question.

Providing the best possible quality of life for our senior population is money well spent.

Go here to read the rest:
Our view: Senior millage hike: Money well spent