Bruce Simmeth – 3/26/09

This page was last updated on March 29, 2009.

Demands on safety net keep growing; Bruce F. Simmeth, Executive Director United Way of Beaver County; Beaver County Times; March 26, 2009.

This is the at least the ninth letter from Mr. Simmeth since June 2005 lobbying for more government redistribution of income/wealth. If you look at my previous critiques of his letters (here, here, here, here, here, here, and here), you’ll find Mr. Simmeth tends to overstate alleged cuts and requests huge increases. In one case, Mr. Simmeth appeared to request a spending increase of from five to 10 times. In January 2006, Mr. Simmeth wanted federal taxpayers to increase their funding of the Low Income Heating Assistance Program (LIHEAP) by $2,000,000,000. I did not critique that letter (“Hike LIHEAP funding”; January 24, 2006) and it is no longer on the Times website.

While I applaud Mr. Simmeth’s efforts to help the less fortunate among us, I oppose the use of taxpayer dollars to fund any of these efforts. It’s wrong to take income from one person and give it to another, regardless of good intentions.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“This year’s United Way campaign has a goal of $900,000 to achieve during this deep economic recession.

“I would like to give credit to U.S. Sens. Arlen Specter and Robert P. Casey, Jr., along with U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire, for their support of legislation that has increased the amount of funding available for several safety-net programs, including the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“Despite these welcome increases in funding, frontline agencies like the United Way and the human service agencies that it supports continue to see a growing need for these emergency services as the impact of the recession continues to expand among both the unemployed and the underemployed.

“Due to the deepening recession and the continued increases in community needs, there is a great need for the success of the United Way’s campaign on behalf of our 20 member agencies and their critical programs they provide for all of us.”

[RWC] I wish Mr. Simmeth would focus his effort on the United Way and stop trying to pick my pocket via government programs. Should people in need get help? Of course, but from private charities funded by voluntary contributions, not by confiscated earnings.