Paying for not paying

In Jackson and Delta, candidates for public office have been removed from the ballot because they failed to pay their property taxes.

Businessman John Graham filed for mayor in Jackson last December. At the time, he was required to sign an affidavit stating he owed no city taxes or user fees. His sworn statement was true when he signed, but by the deadline Graham had not paid more than $400 in personal property taxes and more than $440 in real estate taxes to the county collector. he owed more than $150 of the total amount to Jackson.

Graham sued to be reinstated once taken off the ballot, but Circuit Judge Benjamin Lewis ruled against him.

In Delta, Alderman Dennis "Slim" Bowers was dropped from the ballot because county tax records showed his real estate taxes for 2005 and 2006 were unpaid and that he had not paid his personal property taxes for 2006.

Bowers was appointed to the board of aldermen in April 2006 and was seeking a two-year term.

Candidates for public office have an obligation of trust. One of those obligations is to pay taxes. But Graham's attorney, Bekki Cook, pointed out that a law that just became effective Jan. 1 that gives candidates 30 days to pay their taxes after a delinquency is discovered. Another state law says candidates in fourth-class cities like Jackson can't be elected if they are delinquent on their taxes at the time of their election. She argued unsuccessfully that there are too many "conflicts and ambiguities" in the law to take Graham off the ballot.

For the sakes of candidates and voters, establishing some sort of single statewide standard would be appropriate.