Let’s get straight to it.

We strongly encourage Oxford and Addison voters to REJECT the proposed 20-year, 1.2-mill property tax to pay for the grandiose plans of the Regional Transit Authority (RTA) of Southeast Michigan.

Bottom-line, it’s a slick scam designed to bilk north Oakland County residents out of their hard-earned dollars.

Make no mistake, the only thing “regional” about the RTA plan is its proposed funding source. If approved, it will confiscate an estimated $2.9 billion or $3.2 billion, depending on whose numbers you use, from property owners in Oakland, Macomb, Wayne and Washtenaw counties between 2016 and 2035.

But the RTA plan isn’t at all “regional” in the transportation it seeks to provide. This plan is not going to benefit the townships, villages and cities in northern and western Oakland County. That’s roughly 540,000 residents ignored.

A report prepared Oakland County Executive Bob Daddow, who is the very epitome of a ‘details guy,’ summed things up nicely.

“Oakland’s northern and western communities (some 39 communities) receive little or nothing in exchange for the underestimated $625 million to $650 million in property taxes they will be asked to pay,” he wrote.

Daddow characterized the tax revenue as “underestimated” because “if the taxable value growth factor is properly considered at the historic 4.5 percent,” the total RTA tax to be paid by the northern and western communities is actually “closer to $919 million and $956 million” over 20 years.

Daddow goes on to write, “Ultimately, the RTA Plan adopted by the Board (without the support of the Oakland County representatives), included roughly $122 million in funds that could (but not must) be allocated in these 39 communities.”

So, if the 39 northern and western Oakland communities do end up securing any transit services – and mind you that’s a huge ‘if’ – the “return on their contribution,” according to Daddow, would be “roughly 13 percent” based on a tax collection of $919 million to $956 million.

That’s a terrible deal for us.

Who in their right mind would make an investment like that?

The only reason the RTA wants places like Oxford and Addison included in this millage proposal is so they can get their grubby, thieving, little mitts on our money. We’re the deep pockets needed to make this plan happen.

The RTA doesn’t give a fig about us out here where the pavement ends. Its main interests are Detroit, Wayne County and Ann Arbor. This whole plan is designed to funnel country cash to urban interests.

Regional transportation? That’s a giant, steaming load of Barbara Streisand.

We already have a wonderful millage-funded transportation service and we’re perfectly happy with it.

It’s called the North Oakland Transportation Authority (NOTA) and it faithfully serves the needs of our senior citizens, disabled individuals and low-income folks.

NOTA is locally-controlled, inexpensive, efficient and quite frugal in its spending habits. It serves our area and our area alone. And it does it all for the bargain price of just under 0.25 mill. That’s good enough for us.

We don’t need to pay another transportation millage, especially one that’s not going to do anything for us.

Our local governments agree as the Oxford and Addison township boards, along with the village councils of Oxford and Leonard, have all passed resolutions opposing the RTA millage.

Unlike the feeble county leadership that never should have allowed this to be put on the ballot in the first place, our local officials stuck up for us. They didn’t cave in because it’s an election year. Bravo to them.

We cannot stress enough how important it is for Oxford and Addison residents to vote NO on the RTA millage.

Let’s not get taken for a ride.