Look For the 2012 Hamilton-Wenham Free Press

The 2012 Hamilton-Wenham Free Press will be delivered shortly to all residences in both towns. The Free Press is a complimentary newspaper provided by Citizens For Fiscal Responsibility, aka Enough Is Enough.  The paper includes timely information regarding upcoming issues for the Annual Town Meetings, political commentary, local community projects, property tax charts and data for the North Shore and more.  There's even a tasty chili recipe!

This year the paper has expanded from eight pages to twelve as more and more citizens have written articles of interest about the goings on and important issues in our towns.

Contributors this year include:

Terrill Jennings, Julianna Kallas, William Dery, Edwin Howard, Jack Lawrence, Kerry Mackin, Bruce Wadleigh, Robert Sica, Leigh Keyser, James Kent, Betty Gray, Lee Fremont, David Thompson, Joseph Palermino, Bob Gray, Rick Mitchell, Jay Burnham and Ron Powell.

Be sure to look for this year's Free Press in your mailbox and read what your friends and neighbors and thoughtful citizens have to say about the two great towns we are so very fortunate to live in.

Enjoy!

When Is An Override NOT An Override?

Several readers of this blog have asked me to print the statement which I had the honor to deliver on behalf of Enough Is Enough at the Hamilton Town Meeting, in support of an amendment to the School Committee's proposed budget.  Here it is:

**********************

Good Morning fellow residents…I come before you today to speak on behalf of Enough Is Enough.

We support the proposed amendment before you.

QUESTION:...When is an override NOT an override? We suggest it’s when a budget includes funds that are not needed. This year the School committee is demanding $500k MORE than our Finance Committee and our Board of Selectmen and our Town Manager unanimously agree the school’s need.

If you think about it, bloating the school budget by $½ million is quite clever. You see, the last time the School Committee asked for an override, it was denied by the voters. And despite claims to the contrary, the sky did not fall in. That last attempt at an unneeded override was for $1.2 million. I say “unneeded” because the schools got along just fine without it. In fact… even without that $1.2 million, services remained in place, teachers were not laid off…AND this past year the district ended up with a SURPLUS of over $1 million. A SURPLUS!

Today, rather than risk being denied another override by already overburdened taxpayers, the School Committee has simply added unneeded funding into their budget. Don’t be fooled by this ploy. It’s tantamount to an override… but disguised as a budget. At least a real override is for a specific purpose. This unneeded $500k is for things that “may” or “could” or “might” happen…....possibly.

All we have heard over the past few weeks from the School Committee and their budget supporters has been non-specific rhetoric, such as:

QUOTE: “We can’t rule out POSSIBLE service cuts and teacher cuts.”

QUOTE: “It’s POSSIBLE that the E&D account may not be large enough to cover UNEXPECTED expenses.”

(B/T/W…one veteran member of the SC has stated that the E & D balance would be one of the highest amounts he has seen in 19 years on the committee.)

QUOTE: “Anytime you take money away you put things AT RISK.”

QUOTE: “We COULD be faced with revenue shortfalls”

QUOTE: And this is my personal favorite: “It’s difficult to IMAGINE what services might be cut.” YES, it is. It surely is.

That’s a whole lot of innuendo… a lot of “could’s” and “might’s” and “maybe’s” and “possibly’s”. On the other hand, here are some FACTS we would like you to consider:

FACT: The Blue Ribbon Committee (remember them?) came to the conclusion that our school district outspends comparable school districts by between $2 and $4 million a year. As did the Department of Education.

FACT: An expert and detailed independent Operational Audit came to the same conclusion in a four hundred page report.

FACT: The district administration’s original budget, supported by a majority of the members of the School Committee's Working Finance Sub-Committee, was for $350,000 LESS than what the School Committee is demanding from you today.

FACT: Since that time we now know that an additional $120,000 in state funds will be available to the schools.

FACT: The School Committee’s budget ALSO includes salary compensation ($77,000) for a Latin teacher…but there is NO Latin teacher.

I could go on, but in the interest of time and in conclusion, we ask you to consider the following 3 things as you prepare to vote on this important issue:

1. Since 2001, our towns have funded 8 school overrides that have cost the taxpayers $43,947,000 over that 10 year period.

2. With over $1 million in EXCESS funding left over from LAST year, it is fair and appropriate to ask the school district to return a portion of those unspent funds to the taxpayers. This year the Town of Hamilton mistakenly over-charged the taxpayers $275,000. The Selectmen, with the support of the Fincom, did the right thing and immediately voted to return it to you, not keep it in a reserve fund as the schools are demanding. The school district owes you the same courtesy and respect your Selectmen provided you when they “gave back” your money. And although the chairman of the School Committee has publicly referred to the $500,000 as (quote) “our money”, it is NOT their money…it’s yours.

If UNEXPECTED costs are incurred, we suggest the district use the other $500,000 in unspent fiscal year 2011 funds… and if need be, include the $77,000 salary of the non-existent LATIN TEACHER.

3. Lastly, it’s no secret that Hamilton’s property tax rate is one of the highest in Massachusetts, the direct result of unchecked and spiraling school spending. As a Realtor, I can assure you that such a high property tax rate diminishes your home’s market value and your equity…as well as your ability to sell should you need to. If you want to reverse this trend, you need to vote to approve the amendment before you.

Please join me and EiE’s members and supporters… along with ALL the Selectmen and Finance Committee members and our Town Manager… and cast your vote to APPROVE this amendment.

It is right… and it is fair… and it DOES NOT and WILL not result in diminished educational services for our children.

Don’t approve another unnecessary override… cleverly hidden inside the School Committee’s proposed budget.

Please vote YES... in favor of this amendment.

Thank you.

*******************************

The motion passed 181 to 128.  Congratulations to those who supported the Town budget, as amended.

UPDATE: Posted 5/22/2011: By now you have likely heard that the School Committee has abruptly TERMINATED the employment of Superintendent Dr. Raleigh Buchanan.  It makes you wonder about the "unexpected" expenses they touted at Town Meetings earlier this month in support of keeping the over-funded $500k of unspent taxpayer's money.  Also, does anyone else sense that they deliberately waited until AFTER Town Meetings were over to announce their reveiw of Dr. Buchanan...which in turn led to this unfortunate event?

Citizens Win Operational Audit of Schools at Town Meeting

The following is the text of the presentation made by Enough Is Enough at the Hamilton Town Meeting on Saturday, May 8th. After minor debate the motion was passed by a margin of more than 5 to 1.

* * *

Presented by Jay Burnham

Thank you Mr. Moderator… and greetings fellow residents of Hamilton. Last week I had the privilege of speaking to this same motion at the Wenham Annual Town Meeting. Because we are a Regional School District, the motion needs to pass in both towns. It passed by an overwhelming majority in Wenham and it had the unanimous support of both the Wenham Board of Selectmen and the Wenham Finance and Advisory Committee. In fact, it was reported in the Salem News the following day:

“Any lingering doubts that a proposal for an operational audit of the Hamilton-Wenham Regional District enjoys broad-based community support were buried under a blizzard of white voter cards at Wenham’s Annual Town Meeting on Saturday afternoon.”

I understand that the Hamilton Board of Selectmen and the Hamilton Finance and Advisory Committee also support this motion and you will hear from them shortly. It should also be noted that all the current candidates for election to the BoS and the School Committee that spoke recently at the League of Women Voters Candidate’s night stated support for this motion as well.

A little more than a year ago Enough Is Enough was sufficiently concerned with the costs associated with our schools that we suggested that an operational, or efficiency audit, of the school district would be advisable. Shortly after that the Blue Ribbon Committee (BRC) was formed and began investigating school costs. When they reported their findings last June, we discovered that our school operating costs were much higher than comparable school districts. Unfortunately, nothing was ever done about it.

Then in February of this year, Dave Reid and other members of the BRC received new, current and updated information, working directly with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). That updated information showed that our costs were now even HIGHER than they were in last year’s study. It was reported that we spend between $2 to $4 million more a year than comparable or cohort school districts…or nearly $2,000 more per student…without the benefit of a better education as measured by scholastic test scoring.

Once again, nothing was done about it. The School District set about denying the results, defending the spending and delaying a solution. It was clear that something had to be done and the district was not going to be the one to initiate the process.

As a result Enough Is Enough prepared and began circulating a Citizen’s Petition requesting an amendment to the Regional School Agreement calling for an Operational Audit. An amendment of the Regional School Agreement is the ONLY recourse that citizens have when it comes to the school district, which is otherwise autonomous.

The motion before you is different than what was originally proposed. Despite claims of support for an operational audit, the School District placed numerous roadblocks in the path of the Citizens Petition. In an effort to find common ground and compromise, EiE voluntarily modified the original motion as follows:

1. We have removed the obligation of the Superintendent or School Committee to adopt the recommendations of the Operational Audit.


2. We have removed the obligations of the Superintendent or School Committee to present a plan for such adoption.


3. We now only require the Superintendent or School Committee to report to the Selectmen, at an advertised Public Hearing, their response to the recommendations made in the Operational Audit.


4. We have removed, as a result of agreement by the towns to fund the costs and expenses of the audit, the requirement that the School District pay for the Operational Audit.


5. We have added the requirement that the costs and expenses of the Operational audit shall not exceed $90k and that the Towns of Hamilton and Wenham will fund the costs according to the current fiscal year rolling average assessment percentage…which is roughly 1/3 Wenham, 2/3 Hamilton.


6. We removed the requirement that an Operational Audit be conducted every five (5) years.

What we have NOT changed and WILL NOT modify is the SCOPE of the Operational Audit or the MECHANISIM for assuring that the audit is performed.

The mechanism for that assurance is the Regional School District Agreement and the motion before you calls for amending that agreement so as to require the Operational Audit. The Regional Agreement is the CONTRACT between the District and our two communities. Bound only by the terms of that CONTRACT, the District is, as I mentioned before, otherwise autonomous. The School committee has suggested that the article should not be in the Regional Agreement because it is now a one time event and that we therefore somehow risk approval of the amendment by the Commissioner of DESE. We say that if the Commissioner considers denying this amendment, an amendment designed to improve the schools…at no cost to the schools…an amendment supported by the BoS and Finance Committees of both towns, an amendment that resulted from a citizens petition signed by 879 registered voters…and approved (at least so far…in Wenham) by more than 80% of the voters at Town Meeting…well then, ladies and gentlemen, our problems and far worse than we think. We’re willing and insist upon taking that alleged risk.

And lastly, we come to the SCOPE of the audit. The District wants to limit the focus to only a study of Instructional Services and SPED. That would be like asking the voters in this room to approve the Town Budget with only 2 line items presented. To the contrary, what is needed is a full and complete operational audit by an unbiased, professional auditing firm with expertise in exactly this kind of school operational study and review.

I have a copy of a full operational audit report. It is 331 pages in length…It’s a report of a school district with 3900 students, or a little less than twice our size. It is a study and complete review of an entire school system including:

• District Administration


• Financial Management


• Purchasing


• Education Service Delivery Costs


• Special Education


• Human Resources


• Facility Use & Management


• Transportation


• Technology Management


• Nutrition Services

The report is full of commendations, (yes…recognition of what the district is doing well and right) as well as “best practice” recommendations and fiscal recommendations for savings…in the case of that school district, $16 million over 5 years.

Being half the size, just imagine if we could save half that amount. Perhaps we could eliminate some User Fees…or make repairs to this auditorium…or fix up the high school lockers…or maybe all of those things.

The primary goal of the operational audit is to insure that non-instructional functions are running efficiently so that as much of school district funding as possible goes directly to the classroom and to identify savings that can be gained through best practices.

Making a positive difference…making our schools better…lies today with you and your vote.

I urge you to vote YES to the motion before you for an operational audit. We need it, it’s the fiscally responsible thing to do, and it’s the right time to do it.

And in closing, I’d like to offer one other quote from the Salem News, this one by Steve Landwehr the day before Wenham’s supportive Town Meeting vote.

He wrote:

“On its face, it’s a straightforward proposal for an independent examination of the finances and operations of the Hamilton/Wenham Regional School District. What’s at stake, however, is trust.”

You know, there just may be more truth in that statement than any one of us in this room would like to admit.

Let’s begin building trust back up within our community. It can begin if we all agree to a full and complete operational audit that will surely provide the transparency we all desire and deserve.

And along with that transparency… I believe we can find that missing trust.

Please vote YES… and make a positive difference.

Thank you for your consideration.

Wenham Voters Support Operational Audit at Town Meeting

"Any lingering doubts that a proposal for an operational audit of the Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District enjoys broad-based community support were buried under a blizzard of white voter cards at Wenham's Annual Town Meeting on Saturday afternoon."

...Steve Landwehr, SALEM NEWS

Town Meeting backs audit of school district

[click above for full story]

Wenham voters mull independent review of schools

Wenham voters mull independent review of schools

From the Salem News, April 30, 2010

by Steve Landwehr

Posted using ShareThis

How Do You Like It Now?

The fiscal watchdog group Enough Is Enough (EiE) in Hamilton and Wenham has released an amendment to their motion calling for an operational audit of the Hamilton/Wenham Regional School District (HWRSD)...to be presented to the voters in Wenham and Hamilton at their respective Town Meetings.

[click here to view the amendment]

When EiE's original citizen's petition warrant article was published, the HWRSD rushed to their attorney for an opinion of whether or not the article was allowable and enforceable. Their attorney's opinion was that it was NOT enforceable as it applied to the "requirement" that if audited, the school committee (SC) had to implement the recommendations of the audit firm. The HWRSD then announced that EiE's proposal was "illegal", a suggestion that represents spin at its worst. There is a distinct difference between "unenforceable" and "illegal". The suggestion that EiE was somehow attempting to "break the law" is clearly ridiculous.

Nonetheless, EiE then made attempts to reach common ground and compromise with the SC, but they received no response from that committee. So EiE forged ahead without a reply and have now made public their amended motion that addresses the issues raised by the HWRSD attorney (cause for his complaint has been eliminated), as well as other issues expressed by the SC.

The amended motion should put to rest all the concerns previously expressed by the SC...except for two: the funding for the operational audit and the SCOPE of the audit. Those issues have been fully discussed and justified here on this blog, other blogs and in the local newspapers so I see no point in beating that dead horse again.

Which brings to point one final question... Will the SC finally accept the will of the citizens and the reasonable and rational changes proposed by EiE's compromise amendment? Or will they simply find something else to object to and attempt to place additional roadblocks in the way of an initiative designed to make our schools more efficient and effective? Will they try to water it down and propose support only for a "mini" audit, or "audit-light" that will serve no other purpose than to waste additional taxpayer dollars on a restricted and SC controlled review of limited portions of the district school system and would inevitably result in failure to solve the district's problems at money management?

I guess we'll find out at Town Meeting.

Make a positive difference...

Attend Town Meeting and VOTE YES for the operational audit.

Wenham: May 1st at the Buker School

Hamilton: May 8th at the High School

The "Final Word"

Compliments of The Informed Hamilton Blog:

http://tinyurl.com/23tjkup

Seize the Day

Aspiring to Excellence in Our Schools

The Annual Town Meetings for Hamilton and Wenham are scheduled for May 8th and May 1st respectively. With a winter coat of white still on the ground and more in the forecast, it may seem as though May is a long way away.

Not really, when you consider the time and effort that goes into preparing articles for the warrant, the budgets from the various departments and, of course, the school district budget which is currently in it's preliminary stage. To spice things up, there is also a new teacher contract that is currently being negotiated.

And let's not forget any citizen's petitions that may be working their way onto the warrant for a vote at the Annual Town Meetings.

Which brings me to the topic of this blog...

The citizen's tax-watchdog group Enough Is Enough (EiE) has prepared and is currently obtaining signatures for a petition requesting an amendment to the the Regional School District Agreement. According to that agreement, any such change request must be signed by at least 10% of the registered voters in EITHER of the member towns (not both). At this time that means 571 registered voter signatures in Hamilton... or 270 in Wenham.

The petition is requesting an amendment to the district agreement that would allow for an operational audit to be conducted within 6 months of approval and within every 5 years following that initial audit.

This is an initiative that is long overdue. Here is a link to a recent Salem News report about how the HWRSD significantly outspends comparable school systems: [Click Here]


FEATURES and BENEFITS of an Operational Audit:

• An operational audit is not to be confused with a financial audit. An operational audit's purpose is to appraise the effectiveness and efficiency of an entire organization...in this case the Hamilton/Wenham Regional School District (HWRSD). The entire HWRSD operations would be analyzed, including appraisal of structure, controls, procedures and processes. Recommendations to improve performance and save costs would result from such an audit.
  
• An Operational Audit should provide at least three deliverables:
  

1. Value-driven recommendations that would enhance the HWRSD's efficiency and ability to achieve specific and long range objectives and cut costs.
   
2. A clear road map of how to manage the change process during the implementation of those recommendations.
   
3. The ability to recognize the need for change in the future, coupled with the ability to do it right the first time.

Some of you will recall that last September I posted a poll asking how many readers supported the concept of an operational audit of the HWRSD and I announced the results here.

89% of all respondents voted YES to such an audit and since that time even more residents have embraced the idea, including parents, teachers, town employees and even some selectmen. Even the Blue Ribbon Committee (BRC) recommended a somewhat limited operational audit (SPED only). And now, with updated information from select members of the BRC about to be made public, it is the right time to consider and vote on this amendment at Town Meeting.

Over the next few weeks you are likely to encounter volunteers asking for your support, and signature, to place this request on the town meeting warrants so that voters can decide collectively at town meeting whether to approve the audit...or not. You are welcome to place comments here on this blog if you wish.

Your signature on the citizen's petition is not a "yea" or "nay" vote on the initiative...It simply guarantees that the article will make it to Town Meeting where open discussion can take place and the outcome decided by the majority of registered voters present.

To view a copy of the requested amendment: [CLICK HERE]

IN OTHER NEWS...
Many leaders seem to be
abandoning the Hamilton/Wenham School District

School superintendent Marinel McGrath has accepted the job of superintendent of schools for Andover, MA.

Assistant superintendent Paul Syzmanski has accepted the position of school business manager in Billerica.

Philip Conrad, associate principal at Miles River Middle School and Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School is leaving to go to Rockport.


And there are currently only two candidates for the three positions available on the School Committee.

Can you say "Abandon Ship!"?

Also... The SOS group is promoting what they refer to as the "Fair Share" initiative for the schools, demanding that the towns give the schools a minimum of 2.5 % increase (plus .05% from new growth) every year.

One might argue that giving the schools more than $40 million in cumulative override funding over the past 11 years was a "Fair Share".

What would you call the increase in school funding of 9.8% two years ago, if not a "Fair Share"? (Maybe taxpayers should demand a refund?)

Wouldn't you call the average increase in school funding of 5.6% a year over the past 10 years a "Fair Share"?

For more details about this issue [click here]

How about a "Fair Shake" for taxpayers for a change?

Lastly, the Education Fund group recently sponsored a "feasability" study on rebuilding the auditorium at the high school. The architectural firm Dore & Whittier presented two options before a meeting of the School Committee.

Option #1: $6.7 million

Option #2: $8.8 million

I'm not sure, but I get the sense that neither option is particularly palatable to the taxpayers, or even the School Committee for that matter, during this fragile economic period. But thanks should be extended to the Ed Fund folks for paying for the study and for giving us something nice to dream about. Too bad we could not have purchased the North Shore Music Theatre, which was just sold on February 3rd for only $3.6 million. That probably would have been more "feasible", even if you threw in the cost of bussing students there for rehearsals.

Democracy in Hamilton...There's an App for That

On October 17th Hamilton held it's first Saturday Town Meeting since a motion to hold it on that day was approved by the voters at spring Annual Town Meeting. The special Town Meeting commenced at 9:00 AM sharp with a quorum in attendance. As I glanced around the room at the Winthrop School, I noticed that the majority of residents seated and ready to begin the meeting were (dare I say it) aged 50+. The room was about half full.

By 9:30, the room was about 3/4 full and the age composition had clearly shifted with many more voters under age 50 meandering in. If I had to guess, Id' say it was close to 50/50.

It was a sight to make even the biggest skeptic proud...nearly 400 residents in attendance at a fall Town Meeting. And opponents to the Saturday morning meetings said it couldn't be done! Special thanks to all in who came and for the organizers and donors of refreshments and child care.

The meeting progressed well through nearly 20 articles and motions and then there was a brief break, after which Moderator Bruce Ramsey continued the meeting by taking up the motion for funding a debt exclusion override for the Cutler School HVAC.

Then I noticed something unusual.

The room was now completly full...with standing room only. Residents were lined up all around the room. I'm told that there were over 500 people present at that point.

Wow! Small town democracy at it's best! Fantastic!

But wait a minute...how did it happen that so many voters suddenly appeared at just that point in the meeting?

Well it turns out, as they say in the iphone commercials, that "there's an app (application) for that". It's called TWITTER. You've heard of TWITTER right? It's a messaging app that allows you to send and receive short messages (called TWEETS) instantly over your mobile phone or PDA.

It seems that the group Support Our Schools (SOS) set up a TWITTER account recently as a way of notifying their supporters exactly when to come to the meeting to support their cause, in this case the debt exclusion override. No less that 24 TWEETS (as the instant messages are known) were sent advising their "followers" of the status of the meeting and when to come down to vote.

Now I'm not saying there is anything wrong or unlawful about what was done. In fact I applaud SOS on their ingenuity.

What bothers me is what I observed immediately following the Cutler HVAC vote, which was overwhelmingly supported by nearly everyone - including Enough Is Enough.

Immediately following the vote, about half the voters left the hall, even though other town business remained to be completed. And guess who were still in their seats at the end, having taken part and listened and voted on ALL the items on the agenda for the day?

That's right...the same people that arrived and were seated and ready to partake in the process at 9:00 AM.

A tip of the hat and special thanks to them for their COMPLETE participation in the Town Meeting process.

Read a Salem News editorial about the same subject: http://www.salemnews.com/archivesearch/local_story_291231239.html

Surprise Endorsement From Enough Is Enough

Enough Is Enough surprised a packed Hamilton Special Town Meeting today when they endorsed the motion made on behalf of the School Committee and Administration for a capital debt exclusion override for replacement of the Cutler School boilers and HVAC.

At their last meeting (10/15/09) members of the School Committee specifically asked members of EiE in attendance what the group's recommendation would be. They were told simply that the recommendation would be made at Town Meeting, not before.

Strategically, it was a very good move by Enough Is Enough and probably resulted in greater attendance at the meeting by voters. By not knowing the position EiE would take on the motion, it's likely that many more made the effort to attend so as to support their choice, whichever way they were voting. And that was good for the democratic town meeting process in Hamilton. I will have some more observations about the meeting in the next few days.

The following is the statement that was read in SUPPORT of the motion by EiE:

Enough Is Enough regrets that we find ourselves in the position where the School Department has come before us to ask, once again, for additional funding above and beyond the $27 million approved at the ATM, $592,000 of which was approved as a line item for maintenance in this year’s budget. EiE believes that if the maintenance funding approved each year was properly managed and not directed away from maintenance to other sources, we might not have to be addressing this issue today. Soon perhaps, but not today.

Today we are told we have a crisis that needs immediate attention and funding. Rest assured that no other group or entity, save the School Committee and Administration, has spent more time meeting, researching, discussing and debating this issue than Enough Is Enough.

We have broken the question of whether to approve or not approve the motion into 2 major parts. There are other issues to be considered, to be sure, but we think these are the underlying ones.

First, the condition of the existing boilers. It is clear to us that the boilers at the Cutler School appear to have met their life expectancy and should be replaced.

Second, the reimbursement funding from the MSBA. Jack OKeefe has made the case that if we do not move forward with the motion before us, the window of opportunity with respect to MSBA’s reimbursement will close. We believe this to be true.

As previously mentioned, we now find ourselves in crisis mode. The residents and taxpayers of Hamilton deserve to see better long range school budget planning in an effort to avoid this kind of crisis management in the future.

That said, and given the condition of the current heating system, the availability of guaranteed reimbursement of 42.58% by the MSBA - resulting in reducing the impact and burden of the additional tax we would each have to pay - EiE supports the motion before us.

The motion was then approved by about 500 voters in attendance. The only thing lost in the approval of this article was Enough Is Enough's reputation (held by a select few) as a "knee-jerk, anti-school group". Sadly, a statement made about Enough Is Enough by the Chairman of the School Committee at their 10/15/09 meeting was, "We're going to be contending with this group of people in the future and this is their tactic: They don't care what the truth is."

Ouch.

I wonder how they will choose to brand Enough Is Enough now. We can only hope that they learned something positive from the group today.

To read the Salem News coverage of the vote and several comments, go to: http://www.salemnews.com/punews/local_story_290163855.html

To read the Hamilton/Wenham Chronicle coverage of the vote, go to: http://tinyurl.com/yjwacom

Let The Dead, Beaten Horse Rest In Peace

DEFEATED...The Special Town Meeting warrant article calling for (yet) another study of combined services and/or merger of the Wenham and Hamilton police departments was defeated last night in Wenham. Considering the numerous studies already conducted over the years, this defeat should finally put the issue to rest.

Guess again. According to a report in the Salem News, after the meeting petition supporter Deb Evans said "The issue isn't going to go away."

Does that kind of thinking sound familiar? It should. It's the same attitude that override supporters have used in the past to reverse votes defeating their overrides. They just keep coming back for revotes as many times as it takes until their agenda finally is approved. All it takes is filling the hall with your own special interest supporters and then wearing down the opposition with revote after revote.

Selectman Harriet Davis framed the issue best at the Town Meeting and had clearly given it serious thought and had researched thoroughly the reasons NOT to approve the study. Anyone questioning the reasoning for the defeat should read her statement.

Now please... let the poor dead, beaten horse rest in peace.

And the Answer Is...Cap Our Property Taxes!

THE VOTES ARE NOW IN

...Regarding the question: "Would you like to see a 0% increase in your property taxes for one year?"

59% voted YES, even with large cuts to services.

27% voted YES, provided there were minimal cuts to services.

14% voted YES, provided there were no cuts to services. This represented the "NO" vote, since we can assume there would be some cuts to services.

So 86% of respondents would like to see a cap on their property taxes for one year, even it it means a cut in services.

The answer to the question was what the tax watchdog group Enough Is Enough (EiE) was attempting to discover when it proposed that the Board of Selectmen (BoS) place a NON-BINDING citizen's advisory question on the warrant for the upcoming Special Town Meeting on October 17th. It was denied, unfortunately, and this writer would have liked to have seen a larger sampling of voters that a warrant article would have provided. However, the BoS themselves suggested that perhaps a poll could be taken using the town's new website...once some of the bugs had been worked out of it.

Not knowing when that might be, and in the interest of time, I decided to conduct the poll myself here on this blog site and the results speak for themselves. We seem to have the answer EiE's initiative would have provided...and perhaps some insight as to why the BoS denied placing the question on the warrant. It's the answer they surely did not want to hear.

But hear it they must... if only to grasp the seriousness of the economic plight of so many residents in Hamilton. The Wall Street Journal recently posted findings by The Tax Foundation showing the states with the highest property taxes as a percentage of income. Massachusetts ranked 9th with 4.1% of income paid toward property taxes. With the highest property tax rate on the North Shore, you can imagine the role Hamilton taxpayers play in that standing.

"Budgeting by override" fortunately ended last spring at the Annual Town Meeting. Now it seems as though voters also feel that increasing yearly budgets by +2.5% needs reconsideration, at least in the short term. Perhaps next time EiE will, instead of asking permission, submit a citizen's petition that will require the BoS to place it on a Town Meeting warrant so that voters can decide.

Don't be surprised, however, if it calls for a BINDING resolution next time.

Secret Balloting in Hamilton?

The following article appeared recently in the Salem News:

Group wants ability to vote in secret at Town Meeting

By Steve LandwehrSTAFF WRITER
August 12, 2009 09:15 am—

HAMILTON — At their best, they are freewheeling wrangles over the public will, where the high and mighty and the low and powerless each have just one vote. At their worst, town meetings dissolve into name-calling, booing and other displays of boorishness before moderators restore order.

What if some people fear the latter more than they welcome the former, and claim to be uncomfortable expressing an opinion in such a forum, unwilling even to raise their hands or voices "yay" or "nay"?

They should be able to vote in secret, a group of Hamilton activists is proposing.

Members of Enough is Enough, a grass-roots group that has been lobbying for "fiscal responsibility" since 2007, have asked selectmen to place a question on the Special Town Meeting warrant this fall that would set a threshold for a secret ballot at future meetings.
Presently, town bylaws don't address secret ballots, meaning they are Moderator Bruce Ramsey's call. Ramsey said he asks that anyone who wants a secret ballot to say so before discussion of an article begins. After that, he lets a simple majority of those present make the decision.

Instead, proponents of the citizens' initiative want 20 percent of the voters at the meeting to make the call.

Ramsey can recall only one time when a secret ballot was employed in Hamilton. That was for a single-issue meeting called to decide the fate of new and renovated middle and high schools, when several thousand voters were expected. School operating budgets have been contentious in town for years. When a Proposition 2 1/2 override is called for to boost the budget, battle lines form quickly.

Opponents of the overrides have long claimed they are intimidated about appearing to be voting "against the children" if they speak up during a meeting. "I was actively booed at a town meeting," resident Betty Gray told the selectmen during their Monday night meeting. Others in the crowded room clamored in agreement.

While state law mandates some of the conduct at town meetings, individual towns decide whether secret ballots are allowed and how they can be called. Until two years ago, Middleton allowed a secret ballot if just five voters stood for it. Now, 25 percent of those present must favor it, and Town Administrator Ira Singer said the change seems to have dissuaded those who were routinely calling for it.

Undemocratic?

In Middleton, as in Hamilton, proponents of secret ballots claimed voters were intimidated by a public vote. But opponents say open discussion — and voting — is the very essence of democracy in this most basic of forms. "It's the nature of the system," Singer said. "There's nothing necessarily wrong with people having different opinions."

Hamilton Selectman Bill Bowler was vehement in his opposition to the citizens' initiative, on a number of levels. First, he's heard the arguments about reluctant participation, he said, but thinks they're overstated. Second, "Town Meeting is the legislative branch of town government," Bowler said. "Legislators vote in public." Finally, permitting 20 percent of the meeting to direct the actions of the other 80 percent would violate the very basis of Town Meeting, he said. "It's undemocratic," Bowler said, drawing rebuttal from Enough is Enough members.

"People are intimidated to vote on certain issues," Betty Gray said.

Selectman David Carey is of two minds about the proposal. He said that he wouldn't oppose "occasional" secret votes, because some people do feel intimidated. On the other hand, the point of the meeting is to gauge the community's support or opposition for the various items on the agenda. "Secret ballots don't do that," Carey said.

Ramsey's biggest concern is a rash of secret ballots that could bog down meetings and discourage attendance. If voters are so reluctant to speak and vote their minds, why not elect people to do it for them and adopt representative town government? In Hamilton, where the subject of merging with neighboring Wenham has consumed volumes of time over the years, dumping open Town Meeting would be a nonstarter, Bowler said.

"I think we'd merge the towns before we'd go to representative Town Meeting."

For an unquestionably fine and thoughtful

response to this Salem News article, go to:

http://unquestionablyquestionable.blogspot.com/2009/08/why-not-secret-ballot_15.html