Cheer C

The Rotary Club of Butler added to its record of accomplishments Nov. 6 by sponsoring another successful Election Day pancake festival. The nearly 1,300 people who attended the 48th edition of the event merit a thumbs-up for the positive impact their participation will have on the Lifesteps Family Caring Fund.

Over the past six years, the festival has raised more than $42,000 for the Caring Fund, which pays costs not reimbursed by federal, state or county programs.

Lifesteps, a local nonprofit agency, offers child developmental screenings, developmental preschool, integrated child care, a medically monitored day program for older adults, and programs and services for adults with mental retardation.

Not only is the participants' money going to a worthy cause, but many of those who attended — or who provided volunteer service in manning the festival — also exercised their important responsibility of going to the election polls and casting ballots.

The community spirit that dominates the event are the product of energy and skillful organization by Rotary members and other individuals and groups dedicated to making this annual event something special for the community.

Actually, for many area residents who have made festival attendance a personal tradition, Election Day wouldn't seem quite the same if this event weren't part of their day.

Jeer D

The federal government deserves criticism for not cracking down on more than 30,000 Medicaid providers who owe at least $1 billion in back taxes.

The providers, who include doctors and others in the health care field, continue to receive federal payments for their services, despite their deadbeat status.

Medicaid is a federal-state partnership that provides health coverage to about 55 million poor people.

The federal Government Accountability Office looked at doctors, hospitals and other Medicaid providers in seven states. Besides Pennsylvania, the probe focused on California, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, New York and Texas.

A troubling finding of the federal report is that some of those identified as tax deadbeats are living in luxurious million-dollar homes, driving expensive vehicles and spending huge sums gambling at casinos in places such as Las Vegas and Reno, Nev.

The report says 56 percent of the unpaid taxes were payroll taxes, while 31 percent were individual income taxes.

The remaining 13 percent included excise, unemployment, corporate income and other taxes.

The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations plans to explore ways the government can collect the unpaid taxes without making it harder to provide health care to poor people.

That will be a challenge, but it should not be an insurmountable one.

Cheer C

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation isn't at the "front of the class" in experimenting with road resurfacing material that includes rubber particles from ground-up old tires.

But at least the Keystone State finally has joined the ranks of states trying this alternative resurfacing technique.

The use of this technique emerged in states without the challenging weather conditions that Pennsylvania oftentimes faces. But having been successful in states where it has been tried, it is time for harsher-weather states like Pennsylvania to join the experiment to help determine how widespread the use of this special resurfacing material can and should become.

As a means for addressing some of the nagging streets issues cities in the commonwealth face, it would be welcome for the state to find a way to include Butler in a pilot program for evaluating this resurfacing option.

It was Adams and York counties that were selected for PennDOT's initial trial of the crumb rubber and asphalt surface. PennDOT used rubber particles made from 16,000 ground-up tires to resurface a 10-mile stretch of state Route 194, which carries approximately 5,000 vehicles a day.

It is anticipated that the material will extend the life expectancy of the road for about 10 years.

A challenge facing local governments has been addressing waste tire disposal and recovery. Many communities are faced with illegal dumping and tire stockpiles that are a breeding ground for rodents and mosquitoes.

Butler County hasn't been immune to that problem.