By Samuel Strait, Reporter at Large – November 7, 2021 Recently, on November 3,2021, the resurrected Del Norte County Tea Party had a second meeting hosted by former Sheriff, Dean Wilson. While the ultimate goals of the group remain virtually the same, a call for more education on certain issues to address deficiencies that have appeared recently within the local community has been made. The group was originally formed to combat fiscal irresponsibility in government, growth of the government, free markets, and education of the citizens to the meaning found within the Constitution. Originally it was formed during the Obama years to combat through education the perceived missteps of the federal government in increasing debt and over all growth of government. As the years passed the Tea Party morphed into concerns over social issues which clearly were felt by a gradual shrinkage of support. Recently, the current administration filled with ineffective leadership, growth in government, fiscal irrationality, and movement from the fundamentals of freedom found within the U S Constitution has encouraged the Tea Party to resurrect itself. By doing so the current iteration is seeking information on how to proceed in curbing some of the most blatant attempts by local government to abuse local taxpayers, reduce the size of local government, and educate locals in combating over reach by local authority with particular interest in activities by our local school district and their efforts to push a new construction bond of $47 million, Covid restrictions at schools, mask mandates, and a close examination at the City and County's use of their 1% sales tax revenue. As was recently revealed in a DNUSD Community Oversight Committee, public money was being spent without any independent oversight that is required by the terms outlined in the $25 million Bond measure of 2008. As is now being revealed, that same kind of activity is currently taking place in the County with their surreptitious repayment of the US Department of Commerce over the failure of yet another of the County's ill advised attempts to fund fiscally unsound business adventures, leaving the County and its taxpayers on the hook for over a million dollars. One can only wonder what the City's leaders have been up to with their sales tax slush fund. There does not seem to be any in your face pot hole or pavement work on going. Perhaps this is a task suited for the Tea Party in an effort to keep the school district , the County, and the City on the straight and narrow. It does not appear the Citizen Oversight Committees have done their jobs. Without allowing huge amounts of sales tax revenue to be expended in a slush fund like fashion, perhaps the Tea Party members can make it their business by attending oversight meetings to determine what the money is being spent on as the current oversight is significantly missing in action when it comes to being transparent with the public. In the same vein, perhaps many of the County and City's boards, Commissions, and Authorities need a helping hand at reducing tax burden, being transparent, making cuts of unnecessary employees and administration, bringing salaries and benefits under control, and being governmentally fiscally responsible. Maybe, in addition removing those current representatives in elected office that have been abusing the public trust. What a change from what is happening now…..