By Val DiGiorgio, Guest Columnist

"Think what you do when you run in debt; you give to another power over your liberty." -- Benjamin Franklin

As Chester County controller, it is my daily mission to protect and fight for Chester County taxpayers. In an effort to increase taxpayer awareness on how much our government programs cost taxpayers, I have also sought to spark serious debate about government spending. I write today to further that debate.

As a result of federal government debt and unfunded entitlements, every American child is born with a debt of about $250,000 — and this figure grows every day. As citizens, we have correctly focused on spending and debt at the state and federal levels, both of which have structural deficits and unfunded entitlements that, if left unchecked, will undermine our liberty and standard of living and, quite possibly, our way of life. We should also be mindful, however, of the dangers poised by borrowing at the county and municipal levels.

The financial pressures facing Chester County government and taxpayers cannot be understated. In the past few years, we have seen a number of factors that create serious challenges to our county budget and our AAA bond rating. Some of these are:

Nominal and even falling growth in real estate values.

Employee pension issues as a result of declining stock market values and state law that requires taxpayers to be the guarantor of our employees' defined benefit plan.

Unfunded state and federal mandates that will only continue to climb as Pennsylvania and the federal government attempt to plug their budget deficits.

A county nursing home that requires a subsidy from county government of almost $4 million in 2009, which is expected to climb to more than $7.5 million in 2014.

Increasing health care costs that are expected to rise by over 30 percent in 2010 alone.

One factor that we must closely monitor is an increasing debt burden that, while currently manageable, will require future tax increases if we continue to borrow at current levels. Chester County, like all governments, borrows money to fund capital projects and its award-winning open-space program. We have borrowed responsibly and, due to our excellent bond rating, at very good interest rates.

We cannot, however, continue to borrow for these programs without raising taxes. Chester County leaders are being asked to fund a number of capital projects including maintaining our commitment to fund open-space preservation ($20 million per year), funding a first responder training center (county commitment $10 million), rebanding the 911 system ($70 million to $90 million), funding a much-needed trauma center and funding the continual need to upgrade equipment and county facilities.

While each of the above programs are worthy in their own way, they cannot be funded without increasing the burden on taxpayers and threatening other important programs. I am asking my fellow Chester County residents to reach out to government leaders to make their voices heard and help set our county's priorities.

In addition to reducing our level of borrowing, one thing we can and must do is find ways to make government operate more efficiently. Our county commissioners have done so, but we can and must do even more.

During the budget hearings in 2008, I presented a comprehensive plan, listing a menu of options to the commissioners to avoid raising taxes. In the coming weeks and months my staff in the controller's office and I will continue to provide our citizens and our commissioners with creative and realistic thoughts on this matter. As part of my ongoing effort to make county government open and transparent, I will make such recommendations available to the public for comment and questions.

My hope in presenting such options is to spark an honest and open debate over the budget and to find costs savings in county government to minimize tax increases in a time when taxpayers are losing their jobs and homes.

From Chester County taxpayers, I ask only that they remain vigilant about what government at every level is doing and that they make their voices heard.

(Valentino F. DiGiorgio III is the controller of Chester County.)

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