So here's the deal. Most students don't pay property taxes. Most of us don't earn enough to be hit by a proposed worker head tax. And while we're familiar with sales taxes, we also don't spend enough for it to hurt us that much.

So when the city mailed out ballots to voters asking for an extra two years before it complied with voter-approved tax capping measures, a lot of Fairbanks residential students probably asked why they should care. Our generation for the most part doesn't vote and few student pay property taxes yet. So why should we care about this?

Let's just put it this way – if you like the idea of having a well-funded police force and fire squad, you'll realize that while you don't pay the taxes, other people do. A tax cut means a funding cut to the essential services that protect you. In other words, that ballot, which is due April 3, is a measure on the essential safety services this city provides.

Here's a quick history on what led up to the vote: In October 2006, voters approved two ballot propositions that dramatically altered Fairbanks' tax regime. Since 1987, the city had operated under a tax cap, but these two new voter-approved initiatives meant a much stricter regimen. Property taxes were reduced from 6.7 mills to 0.5 mills. Another proposition required voter approval during a general election for any sales tax.

The proponents of these initiatives hadn't planned for both to pass simultaneously. Supporters of cutting property tax rates thought a sales tax could make up the difference. The antisales tax group felt property taxes were just fine. But voters, thinking with their wallets, approved both, leaving the city with a $10.3 million budget gap.

That's a massive gap, considering the overall budget is about $30 million. The city has spent nearly every week since those measures passed trying to find a solution, but have met opposition with several proposals.

Last week, the city mailed out ballots to registered voters asking them for a little more time. The city isn't asking right now to do away with these strict tax rules. It just wants time to plan. After all, $10.3 million is a lot of money to come up with in half a year. The city council has chopped the budget, and it's looking at where it can increase department efficiencies.

But it needs more time to come up with more money. A sales tax can only be voted on during general elections, or on Oct. 2, well after the new fiscal year starts in July. The city needs more time to examine other revenue sources. One possibility is a gross receipts tax, similar to a sales tax, except it's levied on the seller rather than consumer. And there is a bed tax, which is a tax on hotels. The ballots that were mailed out ask voters to approve a plan that would cap property tax rates at 5.5 mills.

If you're getting the ballot in the mail, vote for more time. Give the city an extra two years. Otherwise, the police and firefighters are threatened. And really, who wants a sub-par safety force?