<html><body><span style="font-family:Verdana; color:#000000; font-size:10pt;"><div>Dear Town, <span style="font-size: 10pt;"> </span></div><div><br></div><div>I am concerned about opening up voter rights to everyone in the Riverdale. What if every immigrant moved to Riverdale Park. They move into houses. They bring large families, because they have large families. This extends the voting right to everyone living on that property. </div><div><br></div><div>Americans are not reproducing at the rate immigrants are. This means given time, our town might be giving the highest percentage of voting rights to immigrants. When this is made into policy, how would it be reversed? How many immigrants are here now? What's the breakdown in the population today? </div><div><br></div><div>I want to say, I am very supportive of immigrants and was even married to one. None the less, I do <u><b>NOT</b></u> support voting rights unless they are here legally and allowed to vote in US Elections. </div><div><br></div><div>I do want any immigrants to be welcomed warmly into Riverdale Park. They do pay taxes (they can get tax ids from the IRS). They are mostly wonderful people. They are doing wonderful jobs right in our community. </div><div><br></div><div>Just sharing my thoughts....</div><div>Patricia Moore</div><div>Property Owner </div><div>Riverdale Park, MD</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div>
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Subject: Re: [RP TownTalk] EXT : Proposed "Voter Expansion" legislation<br>
From: Dwight Holmes <<a href="mailto:dwightrholmes@gmail.com">dwightrholmes@gmail.com</a>><br>
Date: Fri, March 09, 2018 10:14 am<br>
To: "McDougall, Sherene [US] (Law)" <<a href="mailto:Sherene.McDougall@ngc.com">Sherene.McDougall@ngc.com</a>><br>
Cc: "<a href="mailto:towntalk@riverdale-park.org">towntalk@riverdale-park.org</a>" <<a href="mailto:towntalk@riverdale-park.org">towntalk@riverdale-park.org</a>>,<br>
"<a href="mailto:townannounce@riverdale-park.org">townannounce@riverdale-park.org</a>" <<a href="mailto:townannounce@riverdale-park.org">townannounce@riverdale-park.org</a>><br>
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<div dir="ltr">Actually, it's quite the opposite. Benefits such as TANF, social security disability, etc. are not available to non-citizens. And they do pay taxes. The most recent estimate I could find for Maryland is that undocumented residents of Maryland paid over $332 million per year in state and local taxes in Maryland (<a target="_blank" href="https://itep.org/immigration/">https://itep.org/immigration/</a>) They pay sales taxes, gasoline and other excise taxes, property taxes (either directly as property owners or indirectly as renters). And if they do work with a false social security number then they pay payroll taxes (social security and medicare) for benefits they can never receive, and may de facto pay income taxes through payroll withholding.<div><br></div><div>Every study I've seen has found that immigrants commit fewer crimes and are as likely (if not more likely) to be employed than those of us who were born here. A quick Google search found this news release from Bureau of Labor Statistics from about a year ago, reporting that the unemployment rate among foreign-born residents was 4.3% while at the time the rate for native-born residents was 5.0%.</div><div><br></div><div>I have not weighed in on the issue of whether or not to extend the right to vote in local elections to our noncitizen residents, but I found myself unable to let such false assertions as these go without a response.</div><div><br></div><div>Dwight Holmes</div><div><br></div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br clear="all"><div><div class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div>_____________________________________<br style="font-size:12.8px"><span style="font-size:12.8px">"A budget is a moral document." --Jim Wallis </span><br></div></div></div></div></div></div> <br><div class="gmail_quote">On Fri, Mar 9, 2018 at 10:01 AM, McDougall, Sherene [US] (Law) <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:Sherene.McDougall@ngc.com" target="_blank">Sherene.McDougall@ngc.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"> <div lang="EN-US" link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"> <div class="m_850188455090297632WordSection1"> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1f497d">Bruce,<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1f497d"><u></u> <u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1f497d">They don’t want to become citizens because that would mean getting a job and having to pay taxes. Why go through all that hassle to become a citizen when they are receiving food, money, housing and education. Things that we taxpayers are paying for.<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1f497d"><u></u> <u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#1f497d">Sherene<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif">From:</span></b><span style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif"> <a href="mailto:towntalk-bounces@riverdale-park.org" target="_blank">towntalk-bounces@riverdale-<wbr>park.org</a> [mailto:<a href="mailto:towntalk-bounces@riverdale-park.org" target="_blank">towntalk-bounces@<wbr>riverdale-park.org</a>] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Bruce Wernek<br> <b>Sent:</b> Friday, March 09, 2018 9:41 AM<br> <b>To:</b> <a href="mailto:towntalk@riverdale-park.org" target="_blank">towntalk@riverdale-park.org</a>; <a href="mailto:townannounce@riverdale-park.org" target="_blank">townannounce@riverdale-park.<wbr>org</a><br> <b>Subject:</b> EXT :[RP TownTalk] Proposed "Voter Expansion" legislation<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><u></u> <u></u></div> <div> <div id="m_850188455090297632AOLMsgPart_2_3d4f4e0e-eaab-434d-b9b4-ca9244a62ef2"> <div> <div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">The proposed "Voter Expansion" legislation appears to patently marginalize town residents and US citizens in general. If I understand it correctly, a non citizen can break the law, illegally enter our country, and 6 weeks later be rewarded for doing so with the right vote our Town. Essentially, there are no requirements for voting privileges other than being 18 years of age or older and being a "resident" of Riverdale Park for 30 days. I don't think the bar could be much lower. Given this proposed legislation, one has to wonder, what benefit is there in being a long time resident committed to the Town, a tax payer, and a US citizen? <u></u><u></u></span></div> </div> <div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><u></u> <u></u></span></div> </div> <div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">I find it hard to believe this legislation wasn't patently rejected by our Mayor and Council much less drawn up in the first place. If non citizens want the right to vote, they have to demonstrate their commitment to our Town and country by becoming naturalized citizens. My grandparents and father did. Why don't these people have to?<u></u><u></u></span></div> </div> <div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><u></u> <u></u></span></div> </div> <div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">Bruce<u></u><u></u></span></div> </div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><br> <br> Bruce<u></u><u></u></span></div> <div> <div class="MsoNormal" style="font-size:12pt;margin-bottom:12.0pt"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><br> <br> <br> <u></u><u></u></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <br>______________________________<wbr>_________________<br> TownTalk mailing list<br> To post to the list, send mail to <a target="_blank" href="mailto:TownTalk@riverdale-park.org">TownTalk@riverdale-park.org</a><br> <a target="_blank" href="mailto:TownTalk-request@riverdale-park.org">TownTalk-request@riverdale-<wbr>park.org</a> is for automated subscription processing only<br> <a href="http://riverdale-park.org/mailman/listinfo/towntalk" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">http://riverdale-park.org/<wbr>mailman/listinfo/towntalk</a><br> <br> For more information about Riverdale Park, visit <a href="http://www.riverdaleparkmd.info" rel="noreferrer" target="_blank">http://www.riverdaleparkmd.<wbr>info</a><br> <br></blockquote></div><br></div> <hr>_______________________________________________<br>
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