Mental health: Thanks to those who blocked tax

Re: “County leaders stumble in dark on mental health,” (TNT, 12/18).

Pierce County Council member Joyce McDonald was unfairly singled out in your editorial. There are already more than 700 taxes levied on the people of this state. Enough is enough.

The mental health problem began with funding cuts at the federal level. It was dropped on state legislatures, which in turn dropped it on local communities.

Government was created to solve problems individuals and local citizens cannot solve. Larger sources of community are needed to build interstate freeways and to handle mental health and homeless problems Both are bigger than any city or county.

Council members McDonald, Jim McCune and Dan Roach should be applauded for their efforts to divert the solution back to the political body that dropped it.

Remember, only 22 of the 39 counties in Washington have caved in to pay this type of tax. Proudly, Pierce County leads the other 17.

This story was originally published December 23, 2016 at 7:30 PM with the headline "Mental health: Thanks to those who blocked tax."