1. To become active participants within our communities.
2. To educate the public on their Constitutional Rights and Duties
3. To stand up to and ensure government responsibility and accountability to the people they were elected to serve.
4.  To plan and set up mobile interactive exhibits for the purpose of getting children and adults involved in the history of the founding of The United States and its’ and the several states’ Constitutional documents.
5.  To encourage people to take interest in the functions of government, [local, state and federal], and encourage them to register to vote.
6. To Participate actively in eliminating property taxes in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania either by government doing the right thing or through Constitutional challenges.

11/16/2004

The Patriot’s Voice’s positions on property taxes are:

1. Property tax reform? Yes

• Property owners in Pennsylvania are the bearers of the subsidy of the teachers and administration salaries and benefits, which have become next to impossible to bring under control. We have people all across this state sitting on school boards who have no clear understanding of accountability to those who elected them, let alone have the knowledge or the will to stand up to the NEA and the PSEA who use their teacher members to bring education to a standstill to acquire their goals. We also find many school board members who hold special interest towards teachers and would vote for any spending increase with the false belief it would serve to somehow forward an educational advancement.  On the other hand we have an electorate that do a lot of complaining about school district spending, but fail to show up in meaningful numbers or consistently to demand accountability, so the beat goes on.
•  It is totally unfair taxation when nearly half of all school age children in Pennsylvania are from non-property owner parents. There is something seriously wrong when property owners subsidize the bulk of all public education. Non-property owners with children in school get a free pass at the property owners expense.
• Because it is vital that the children of Pennsylvania have the opportunity to a quality education that will serve to lead Pennsylvania into the 21^st century it should go without question that it is the responsibility of all Pennsylvanians to share equally in the funding of education, not just a pointed finger at property owners.
• Yes, we do have a plan. Fair and equal.

2. Complete elimination of property taxes? Yes, owning property is one of the most fundamental Constitutional rights you have!

• A citizen of Pennsylvania should never be subjected to ownership of property on the basis that one must pay a tax on such property to be able to own it. Paying head taxes, property taxes and income taxes serve to place you the citizen into servitude to your government. It makes you the citizen into subjects to the government. Merry old England has subject citizens, remember! we threw them from our shores for these basic beliefs. We adopted National and State Constitutions that assured the limits of government. To protect the people against the intrusion of government into the lives of the people we adopted a Bill of Rights, again, National and State.

• Looking at the Pennsylvania Constitution, Article I, we see it contains constraints of government and the tools by which the people would need to challenge transgressions of their government. 

• There are presently 28 sections of Article I. The greatest of these is the Reservation of Powers in People. Section 25. “To guard against transgressions of the high powers which we have delegated, we declare that everything in this article is excepted out of the general powers of government and shall forever remain inviolate.”

• Simply put, your inherent and indefeasible rights are above the powers of government and can never be violated. And there are recourses to follow if they are.

• Section 1 “All men are born equally free and independent, and have certain inherent and indefeasible rights, among which are those of enjoying and defending life and liberty, of acquiring, possessing and protecting property and reputation, and of pursuing their own happiness.”

• Your right to own property without government intrusion is expressly shown in Section 1. Any law, statute, or other changes to the rest of the constitution can not be in violation of Article 1. See Section 25. Therefore the state would clearly be in violation of the rights of the people with its taxation of property in that it says you may only own your property as long as you pay a tax on it. To test these facts try clearly defying the government in paying your property tax. How long would you own it?

3. Fair and equitable

• The fair taxation is one that is not a levy, head tax, property tax or income tax. It would be a tax of choice. It would be paid only on the things you buy, and only once per item, the Sales Tax. It would be paid by all citizens, visitors, businesses, even the criminal element and those that would try as they might, find no loophole, and it would be driven by the strength of the economy. It could and should be set up as a designated account. In economic downturns it would force the state to enhance the business climate and take away the bogus tax-free status the state has been handing out to entice businesses to the area.
• The full and updated version of our stance on property taxes will be posted within the next week or two. In it you will find ways to strike back at government and bring accountability. We are currently in touch with other conservative organizations across Pennsylvania and will be formulating an e-mail – Mail campaign to put pressure on the governing body to do the constitutional duty and rid the people of an unconstitutional tax. You can all help by sending e-mails and mail to the various legislators telling them that the property tax in PA must go
• .

Robert Runyon