Defining the terms

I want to thank the contributors to this blog for their input. This blog has really worked out better than I had hoped, mostly due to your input. I have found writing this blog has helped to organize and clarify my thinking about issues in the town. Without your comments and questions, I would not have continued writing. And so, I would not have refined my thinking. Thanks and I hope the continuing dialog is useful to you as well.
I think it is important to define the terms in the debate over our fiscal troubles. It is easy to get bogged down in details and numbers. So I want to start by defining the problem. It is impossible to agree on a solution without defining the problem. While it may seem obvious, it must be clearly stated and understood. The problem is that our spending exceeds our revenue.
Having defined the problem, we need to understand how we arrived at this state of affairs. Taxes (revenues) are increased nearly automatically by 2-1/2% per year, so our revenue grows every year. Dartmouth experienced a period of growth over the last few decades that added new growth revenue on top of the 2-1/2% increase. That new growth is slowing and so the rate of increase of revenue is slowing or falling. Every year, the town's expenditures also increase. For several years now, the rate of increase of spending has accelerated.
We can now define the cause of the problem - the rate of growth of expenditures exceeds the rate of growth of revenue. Notice that I am talking about the rates of growth for revenues and expenses, not just their growth in absolute numbers. This is a very important distinction. If the rate of growth in revenues and spending were equal, we could solve our problem by simply cutting expenses or raising revenue. That is not the case currently in Dartmouth.
Instead, what we see is that the rate of increase in spending is higher than the rate of increase in revenue. Let me state this another way, if our revenue is growing at 3% per year but our expenses are growing at 5% per year, the gap never ends. At the above percentages, the revenue shortfall for a $66 million dollar budget is $1.3 million for the first year. For the following year, the shortfall is $2.8 million. This gap continues with higher and higher deficits year after year. When you hear the term "structural deficit", I think that it is this differential in growth rate of expense and taxes that is being referred to. Now having defined the problem and the cause of the problem, we can start looking for solutions. I'll present my thoughts on that in my next post. Do you agree with my formulation of the problem and it's cause? If not, why not? Leave your comments below. Click here to read on!

Take it for what it is

I think it is important that we not ascribe criticism leveled at ourselves, or town leaders, or anyone else to some sort of bad faith, mean-spiritedness, or personal vendetta. I hope that those who comment here are genuinely interested in resolving the fiscal problems in Dartmouth. We may disagree with town leaders and each other, but it's not personal. We have differences, that's all. If we discuss them civilly and reasonably, all can come to a better understanding of the goals and objectives of the other side. Some may be persuaded and some may not. Even if the differences persist, we have all gained insight, sharpened our logical arguments, and perhaps, found common ground.
I don't think the town or school officials are bad people in any way. They just have different opinions than I do. Mainly they are sincere, thoughtful, hard working, and honest. When criticized about policy, philosophy or position, I hope everyone takes it for what it is, a difference of opinion, not a personal attack. As I see it, the proper response to criticism is a reasoned defense of the positions by each side. If that occurs, we all win. What do you think? Click here to read on!

Mittmentum returns to the Bay state

Tuesday Feb 5, the presidential primaries come to 22 states including our own. Following Florida, there has been a shake out of candidates in both parties, leaving Clinton and Obama for the Democrats and McCain and our own(?)Willard Milton Romney for the Republicans as the only remaining viable candidates. Ted Kennedy endorsed Obama this week. McCain garnered a pile of delegates from Florida. Can Mitt regain momentum by winning his home(?)state and others on Tuesday? How much weight does Kennedy's endorsement bring with state Dems? Who do you think will win in Massachusetts?
Give us your take in comments. Click here to read on!

How much is too much

A few observations about the override season now upon us. If an override were proposed which restored the residential rate to last year's level, it would raise about $3 million dollars in added revenue. What I am saying is, for example, if your tax bill was reduced by $200 due to the adoption of the split tax rate and the override amount added $200 to your tax bill, then the amount of added revenue raised by restoring everyone to last years tax amount would be $3 million. Of course, not everyone is back to the previous level because businesses are now paying more.
The school department has already floated a plan for a menu of override questions totaling nearly $4 million. We have not yet heard from the town side with their menu of override questions. But I would not be surprised if it was for a similar amount.

You can learn more about the budget process for the town and schools and about the override process here, here and here.
So it seems that the town will be asking voters to raise their taxes above the amount that they were reduced by going to the split rate. Do you think that the voters will approve the override? Let us know in comments. Click here to read on!

CH-CH-CH-CH-Changes

Now that we have begun the spring override season, I think it is fair to ask, "What changes have been made since last year to stem the flow of red ink?"
I believe the answer is not much. We have had Tuesday working sessions by the Select Board, citizen input meetings by the school superintendent, and added members to the Personnel Board. But has the town implemented any of the recommendations of the DOR from their July 07 report? I don't think they have. Many of these are administrative changes that only require someone to direct that they be done. Have they implemented any other changes besides the DOR recommendations? I don't think so.
Turning off the streetlights has resulted in a fiasco of lamp removal and subsequent reinstallation. The town has already had to ask the Finance Committee for $65,000 and received $40,000 from reserve funds for the overrun in the street lighting budget this year. The $1.8 million transferred off the budget to the new solid waste enterprise fund has been gobbled up by expenditure growth which is still outstripping revenue.
So what's the plan? We'll know soon because override questions have to get to the town clerk by early February to make the April general election ballot.
Let's hope that the town's side entry into the override sweepstakes is as informative as the school department request. Although I have philosophical differences with the school administration about priorities, I have to compliment their initiative plan. They lay out what they need, why they need it, and what will be done if they don't get the money. That's the way it should be done. Hope the town side is as well thought out.
David Bowie sang:
I still don't know what I was waiting for,
And my time was running wild,...
Don't want to be a richer man,...
Just want to be a different man,
CH-CH-CH-CH-Changes

UPDATE-INFORMATION
Barry informs us in comments that policies to limit appropriations to the annual fall meeting and to not use non recurring revenue for funding ongoing operations were adopted, and a municipal health consultant has been hired. A forward looking plan may soon be issued. All the above were recommendations of the DOR

UPDATE-SELECT BOARD
Update on DOR recommendations is on the Select Board agenda for Monday 1/28. Be sure to watch if interested. Click here to read on!

What's it all about? Warning: Math involved!

The February issue of SoCO magazine is on newsstands and has an article about Dartmouth’s fiscal woes. In it, Paul Bergman, our Director of Assessing, Greg Lynam of the Finance Committee and two of our Select Board members, Diane Gilbert and Joe Michaud, talk about the tax levy, tax classification and overrides. Mr. Lynam is quoted saying that nothing has changed in town spending since the failure of the override last year. Not good news.
I think that perhaps my readers would like a better explanation of how the tax rate and tax levy are set and how tax classification, overrides, and capital exclusions work. My posts on how the town and school budgets are developed and approved can be found here (town) and here (school)
The tax levy, the tax rate, and tax classification are related. The tax levy is used to calculate the tax rate. The tax classification changes the tax rates for residences and businesses. A single tax rate is one where both residences and businesses are taxed at the same rate. A tax classification system allows residences and businesses to be taxed at different rates.
TAX LEVY
The tax levy is the dollar amount that can be assessed in real estate and personal property taxes by the town for a given year. The levy amount is limited statue and the state commissioner of revenue provides this number to the town. The amount of increase in the tax levy is limited to 2-1/2% per year. (e.g. If last year’s levy amount was $10,000,000, the most that this years levy can be is $10,250,000) Applicable MGL here. The levy is also increased by new growth in the town. The new growth amount is the net increase, due to building, in the assessed value of property times the tax rate (e.g. Construction of new homes and businesses resulted in an increase valuation of those properties of $10,000,000 and the tax rate is $10 per thousand of assessed value. The new growth amount would be 10,000 X $10 = $100,000) Combining the 2-1/2% and the new growth figures from these two examples, the new levy amount would be $10,350,000. Towns always increase their levy by the maximum 2-1/2%. They don’t have to, but they do.
TAX RATE
The tax rate is determined by dividing the total assessed value of property in the town by the tax levy. Using the tax levy amount from above of $10, 350,000 and an assessed value of property of $1,000,000,000. The tax rate would be set to ($10,350,000 divided by $1,000,000,000 or) $10.35 per thousand of assessed value. Now suppose that due to increased valuation, the assessed value was not $1,000,000,000 but $2,000,000,000. The tax rate would then have been set to (10,350,000 divided by $2,000,000,000 or) $5.17 per thousand of assessed value. Note that the amount collected, the tax levy, would be the same. The tax levy cannot be more than 2-1/2% plus new growth. So increased property valuation lowers the tax rate but doesn’t change the tax levy. The tax rate is set each year by vote of the Select Board after receiving the report of the assessor. MGL here.
TAX CLASSIFICATION
Tax classification, or split tax rates, allows the town to assess residence and business properties at different tax rates. Adopting a split rate plan does not change the tax levy, it only changes the proportion of the levy paid by each class. The Select Board must vote on whether to have a split rate and the amount of the split every year after hearing the assessors report.
The math for an example follows;
Let’s use our example above of a tax levy of $10,350,000 and a valuation of $1,000,000,000 and a base tax rate of $10.35 per thousand. Also assume, the business property valuation was 20% of the $1,000,000,000 total valuation or $200,000,000. In a single rate plan, residents would pay $8,280,000 (80%) of the levy and business would pay $2,070,000 (20%) of the levy. The total levy is still $10,350,000. Both classes pay a tax rate of $10.35 per thousand. Dartmouth adopted a split tax rate where businesses are assessed at 140% of the base rate. So if we take 40% as our split rate, the new proportion of the total tax levy becomes $7,452,000 (72%) for residents and $2,898,000 (38%) for business. Now the tax rate for business becomes $14.49 per thousand and for residents is $9.135 per thousand.
OVERRIDES AND CAPITAL EXCLUSIONS
There are a couple of provisions in the law that allow the tax levy to be raised by more than 2-1/2% per year. MGL here. The first is an override which is a permanent increase in the tax levy, and the second is a capital exclusion which is a one year change in the tax levy. In order to raise property taxes more than the 2-1/2% per year allowed by law, either by override or capital exclusion, the Select Board must authorize a question to be put to the voters of the town in an election.
An override of $1 million would raise our tax levy in the example from $10,000,000 to $11,000,000. The following year levy would be raised to $11,275,000, or 102.5 times $11,000,000, and so on.
A capital exclusion of $1,000,000 would raise the tax levy to $11,000,000 but the next year, the allowable levy would be $10,250,000 or $10,000,000 times 102.5.
Bottom line is overrides are permanent tax increases and capital exclusions are one year tax increases.
Hope this is informative. I know that all these numbers make some peoples eyes roll up into their heads.
If I have made an error or got something wrong here, let me know in comments

UPDATE
I edited this post for content based on comments I received. Edits are in italics.
h/t to frankg Click here to read on!

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Playstation and education

The need to educate children in the use of computers seems to be a frequent topic when talking about the cost of today's schools. I have been thinking about that and it seems to me this argument is unfounded. I agree that the technology is progressing rapidly. The Playstation, XBox or Wii that can be found in our homes is a many, many times more powerful and accessible computing device than ones I had to work with in college during the 70's. (How many of you remember the punch cards?) As the processors, data storage capacity, and software features of these computers become more and more powerful, the need to understand the underlying technology lessens. In my lifetime, I think that we will see computing devices that understand human languages and can respond to verbal requests and commands, just like the computer in Star Trek. So the need to teach technology diminishes as technology advances because the application of that technology allows us to interact with the device without specialized knowledge.
Additionally the pace of change in technology virtually guarantees that we will never be able to provide the latest within our means. In my personal experience, a liberal education that emphasized critical thinking, logic, reading comprehension, and clarity in written and oral communication has served me better, as technology progressed, than my courses in FORTRAN or COBOL programming languages did. The latter have been relegated to the dust heap while the former allows me to continue to learn and adapt to the changing technological landscape. Click here to read on!

Kids and budgets

After the School Committee meeting on Tuesday, I was approached by several parents who asked me to justify my position on overrides for school spending. They felt that extra curricular activities were very important and worthy of funding. I agreed that these programs are indeed worthy and that they are good for the kids. However I still oppose funding them ahead of teachers and textbooks.
Let me use my own experience to illustrate a point on school spending. I love my children and wanted them to have the very best education. But I did not send them to Friends Academy, Tabor Academy and on to an Ivy League college. I didn't do so because I simply could not afford the cost. I'm still paying off loans to fund their education at a state college. So my children got the very best education that I could afford.
Funding the public schools is the same thing. Dartmouth can not provide the best education, (e.g. small class sizes of Friends or the facilities at Tabor) we can only provide the best education that we can afford.
Since available funds are limited, I want to prioritize spending on those things which provide the greatest educational benefit to every child; teachers (to reduce class sizes) and instructional materials for every student. I am sure that many of our citizens agree with my position. See this op-ed letter in the S-T from today. At the present time, I think the voters believe that the schools have their priorities wrong and so they are reluctant to provide more funding.
If the school department responds by focusing on providing the best classroom education that we can afford and shows a willingness to cut costs on other non-instructional activities, then the voters can be persuaded to provide the needed funds for extra-curricular activities. I have seen the Town Meeting vote to fund many programs in the town which benefit our kids and I expect that they would do so in the future. What is the down side of a focus on classroom instruction? Some children will not be able to pursue their non academic interests in the schools, but every child will benefit from smaller class sizes and better materials. I don't think that would be so bad. Let me know what you think, leave your comments below. Click here to read on!

AND THEY"RE OFF!!!

The school department is first out of the gate in the sweepstakes race for the FY09 override. The School Committee was presented with an override and debt exclusion menu amounting to nearly $4,000,000 to be forwarded to the Select Board. Only the Select Board may authorize an override or debt exclusion vote by the town. MGL here (NOTE the local authorizing authority referred to in the statute is the Select Board for our form of town government) The school department initiative and supporting literature can be found here and here(PDF) The first proposed override question is for $985,078 for "priority needs". Of the proposals made, this is one I could get behind with a few tweaks. If you have read my other posts, you know that I think the priorities should be teachers and curriculum. Most of this proposed request seems to be for classroom teachers. Bravo! Just take out the secretary and assistant principal positions from the Middle School request, saving $95,000. Put the two teaching positions considered but not requested back in for Middle School($90,000) and I'd be interested in supporting this request. Nearly 20 additional teachers if you include the additional two that I put into the Middle School. Some questions I like answered before giving my unqualified support are, Why 1.5 phys ed teachers? What are you doing for phys ed now and why does that require additional staff? Why is the School Resource Officer (SRO) in this request and does the Police Chief think that this is a priority for his department.
For the second override question proposal, we have $685,000 for textbooks and technology. Meets my criteria right, spend for teachers and curriculum. No, this needs to be a debt exclusion which is a one time, one year tax increase. Prudent administration would include some money in the school budget every year for these items so that they can be kept up to date. That didn't happen and now they want a override which is a permanent tax increase to fix it. One time, one year, and then get a plan for future spending into the normal school budget.
Third override proposal, $325,000 for school fee elimination. See my post "Where are our priorities" for my thoughts on fees.
Fourth and Fifth override proposals, Reopen Gidley $226,788 and Cushman $197,565 and reconfigure the school population among buildings (Additional override required!) Why wasn't this the plan last year before closing these buildings. And the costs are only $424K to open both but we had to close them because ????
When I see this kind of stuff, I understand why the town is so reluctant to pass an override. Things just don't seem to add up.
The last proposal is for a $1,525,000, debt exclusion. I oppose this because these items need to be sent to the town's Capital Improvement committee for review and prioritization. The town budget processes need to be observed and adhered to or we may be spending unwisely.
Overall, this whole override question process for the schools has been pushed out ahead of normal budgeting because they need to get the questions to the Town Clerk before an early February deadline for the April general election. We didn't fall into this fiscal crunch overnight and we are not going to get out by passing overrides as fast as we can. Let's set our priorities, get our fiscal house in order, go to the voters with a plan that addresses the long term needs of the town and does not involve serial override requests. What is needed is fundamental change in the spending structure that requires these overrides. Click here to read on!

Taking the plunge

I have taken out nomination papers to run for the Dartmouth Select Board. I am running on a platform of bringing fiscal responsibility, transparency and civility to the board. I have to confess that I don't really want the job but I feel that, as our school administrator said at his public input forums, "if nothing changes, nothing will change." Dartmouth needs to change the way we are running our government. Not just nibbling at the edges but real fundamental change. If you read the posts on this blog, you'll see that I am pretty critical of the leadership of the town. I don't think that the current leaders are bad people, they are just not willing, in my view, to shake things up. I will try to do that, to question and challenge the status quo until the taxpayers have confidence in the process. I will continue to post my thoughts here on politics in the town and I'll let you know how my candidacy progresses too. Click here to read on!

Talkin bout my generation

After watching the CBS News program on climate change last night, I can't help but feel disappointment in my generation of Americans. We were the ones who started Earth Day and were concerned about our environment. I remember discussions in my engineering classes in the mid 70s that our impact on the planet was not sustainable. And that impact accelerated throughout the intervening decades. So now, here we are 30 years later and we are on the verge of disaster. What are my fellow hippies doing about it? Driving Hummers. Opposing wind power generation. Invading other countries to get oil. Very disappointing. Click here to read on!

School Committee wants override in April

Curt Brown's blog, link at left, says the School Committee will hear from the administration tomorrow (7PM, DHS Media center) about how much they will ask for in an override. The schools have rushed this override planning forward, in advance of their normal budget process which isn't complete yet, so that it can be put on the April ballot. I wish they would work as quickly to reduce costs as to plan for overrides.
Leave your thoughts in comments below. Click here to read on!

Why won't people run?

Still no challenger for Horan McLean. Does everyone think we are on the right track?
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Who is running this nuthouse anyway?

The Chronicle reports that the Finance Committee has devised a plan to forecast the town's fiscal needs and resources beyond the next budget year. They deserve kudos for this long overdue action. Why our Select Board has not required this from our executive administrator all along is an open question. Here is what the Town Charter says about such planning,

The budget message of the executive administrator shall, include, specifically, projection of the fiscal and financial needs of the town for at least the next five fiscal years, or such longer period as may be deemed
appropriate, both as to income and expenses, as well as any substantial financial expenditures contemplated by any department, committee, or board during such period, including budget programs related to infrastructure maintenance, improvement and expansion. The message shall also include a forecast of any fiscal trends which the executive administrator believes are likely to have an affect on the town’s revenues or expenses. Dartmouth Town Charter, section 5-3 adopted April 3, 2000. Link hereMS Word file

Here is what the DOR report from last year said in Recommendation #1:

We recommend that the executive administrator, in consultation with the budget and
finance director, annually build a 3-5 year revenue and expenditure forecast and review it with the select board, finance committee and school committee. Link here PDF file

Total Finance Committee Salary - $0.00 Click here to read on!

Look at results, not spending

Lest readers think I am one of those cranky old folks who complains about the government full time, I would like to point out that Dartmouth does have some areas where we are well served by the town.
One such example is the water department. I made an informal and admittedly unscientific survey of water rates in surrounding towns and cities. I found that Dartmouth residents pay a small fraction of what others in the area pay for water service. Our costs are something like 1/4 or 1/3 of that in surrounding towns. In other words, a Dartmouth resident yearly bill is what a New Bedford resident pays in a quarter. In addition, the Dartmouth water department has won state awards for quality. By careful stewardship and prudent planning, the water department provides high quality water to the residents at low cost.
Now back to cranky mode. One of the problems with comparisons between spending in Dartmouth and other communities is that spending comparisons do not take results into account. Just looking at spending in the water department, one could come to the conclusion that Dartmouth doesn't spend enough. But as I said, we get excellent service at low cost. Win-win. So when presented with comparisons on spending, be mindful that spending is not necessarily the whole picture. It's the results of that spending that count!

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Recent vacancies on town boards

Curt Brown's blog, link here, says that there is a vacancy on the Personnel Board created by Chris Cassara's resignation. Send a letter to the Town Meeting Moderator, Steve Sharek, if you are interested in serving. Call the Town Clerk at 508-910-1800 for his contact information.

Also on Curt's blog is news that Hope Atkinson will not seek re-election to the Library Board and as a Town Meeting member in precinct 10. Nomination papers can be obtained from the Town Clerk. You must reside in the precinct and need the signatures of 20 voters who reside in precinct 10 to get on the ballot for Town Meeting member. The Clerk's office can fill you in on the details. They are very helpful.
UPDATE
The last day to take out nomination papers for the April election is Feb 8. They must be returned by Feb. 12
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Check out the discussion here

What do you think? Click here to read on!

School Committee race is on!

Curt Brown has news on his blog, link here, that Joan Britto will run for re election and Joanne D. Moniz has taken out nomination papers for School Committee. So it looks like we will have at least 3 candidates. Phil Lenz had previously taken out papers. Chris Perreira's seat is vacant as he is not running again.
Will anyone come forward to run for Select Board against Horan McLean? Click here to read on!

Make our library a priority

Read in today's S-T that the Dartmouth library is in danger of losing their certification due to insufficient funding. I hope that they don't and that our town will make it a priority in future budgets to fund the library at least to a level where they can remain certified. A good library is a treasure to any community. I would close the transfer station, take reduced hours at the town hall, or close parks rather than lose our library. What are your feelings on library funding?
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Is Town Meeting the right form of government for Dartmouth?

Several people have told me recently that they feel that Dartmouth has outgrown the Town Meeting form of government. I disagree. I feel that the Town Meeting is really democratic government as it should be, everyone gets a chance to have their say, and then the question is put to a vote, majority rule. I have great faith in the people to know what is the right thing for their community at large. Special interests and power cliques will find it difficult to influence this disparate group of residents and money has no influence at all. If our other governments could operate as democratically, we would be better off. A column in today's Standard Times talks about a city councilor spending $30,000 on a re-election campaign. Where did that money come from and what favors are now due?
I believe that what is really going on is a failure of leadership. Dartmouth has grown a lot in the past few decades and that growth and added revenue has made for easy choices. Now growth is slowing and we need to take a hard look at our priorities and make some changes. Those in leadership, being accustomed to flusher times, are not willing to make the hard choices required. I don't see how a different form of government changes that dynamic at all. What do you think? Would a mayor and council be more or less representative of the interests of the townspeople?
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Where are our priorities?

Some reading this blog may feel that I am anti education or against children or something to that effect. Not so. I do feel that the taxpayer is on the hook for educating children in academic subjects so that they can become productive citizens. Sports, band, after school programs and other extracurricular activities are great and I hope they can continue. However parents should not feel that the rest of the community has to pay for those programs. They are extra, not part of the curriculum, and as such, not a taxpayer responsibility. Some point to the excellence and success of the band and sports teams as evidence that these programs should be funded. When the academic success of all our students matches that achieved by the band and sports teams, funding extracurricular activities may be justified. Until then, I think we are suffering from misplaced priorities.
What do you think? Click on comments to leave your thoughts

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Business as usual

According to Curt Brown's Dartmouth Beat blog, link here, Kathleen Horan McLean and Phil Lenz are the only ones to have taken out nomination papers for the Select Board and School Committee respectively. Horan McLean is running for reelection and Lenz for the seat vacated by Chris Perreira.
I think that we are in desperate need of new leadership on both the School Committee and Select Board.
Reading over Mr. Lenz's website, he seems to be on the same page as the current School Committee. We need someone who will question priorities and challenge the administration, I don't see it from him based on his website.
Ms. Horan McLean has lead efforts for an override but not articulated any other solutions than just raising taxes. I am sure she would argue that the re-energized Personnel Board and other minor changes are evidence that is not true. I disagree with her there. We need fundamental change, not nibbling at the edges.
But in the absence of another choice in these races, it seems it will be business as usual in Dartmouth government. Do you think anyone will come forward to run against these two?
Leave your comments by clicking on comments below
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Menu to go?

Commenter ECON101 has a interesting question about the menu or a la carte override on Curt Brown's Dartmouth Beat blog. Link here
ECON101 asks:

While the idea of a dozen or so mini-overrides on the same ballot is interesting, how would these overrides be implemented? Overrides are permanent increases ... not one-time one-year cash infusions. Or is the SB suggesting mini-debt-exclusions that last for a certain number of years and then expire?

For example, if $x is voted for trash and recycling, then is every SB from now on required to budget at least $x for trash and recycling

That's a great question and I believe that the answer is no, they don't have to continue spending the money on X, if the override was for X. See my post on the town budget process here.
If you think differently or have knowledge of the laws in this regard, let us know in the comments below
UPDATE
I looked up the MGL section regarding overrides. You can find it here.(Section 21C f & g) I may be in error in my original post that the amount would not have to be approved each successive year by the Select Board. The local appropriating authority referenced in the statute is the Select Board for towns with our form of government. I am not a lawyer and have no particular expertise in municipal government finance. Perhaps someone with knowledge in this area could leave a comment and clarify the question Click here to read on!

Punish the voters?

A letter in the Chronicle today brings up a point that has been in the back of my mind for some time now. The writer in the Chronicle feels that the trash fees imposed in Dartmouth are in "punishment "for the voters having rejected the override last year. I hate to admit but I have a similar opinion about some of the measures undertaken. Shutting off streetlights has saved a pittance. I think most residents would be suprised to hear that the town already had to ask the Finance Committee for more money this year for streetlights even though some where shut off. Closing school buildings has strained the capacity of the remaining schools and I have heard no clear answers on what the closings have saved . The trash fees are probably generating twice what it costs to actually pick up the trash. And what more are the DPW workers doing, now that they only have a fraction of the trash to collect? Maybe I just need to pull my tin foil hat down a little tighter, but some of this seems punitive to me. What do you think, are the residents being punished for rejecting the override?
Leave your thoughts by clicking on comments below
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Traffic on Faunce Corner Road

I didn't think that the traffic light at the 195 off ramp was going to help much with traffic but it has. Along with the other changes made, such as providing two lanes southbound from the off ramp and two north bound to the on ramp for 195, I found the gridlock was much reduced this holiday season. What do you think? Click on comments below to add your 2 cents Click here to read on!

Town Budget Process-school budget

This is the second posting on how the town budget is prepared and approved. This post looks at the process used to determine the school budget. The school budget is different than other town departments in that state law requires a specific minimum amount be allocated by each town for its schools. Towns can provide more funds than the minimum but must spend at least the minimum. The applicable laws on minimum school funding can be found here. The formulas used for the calculation of required spending are convoluted and complicated and I don't claim to fully understand them. But essentially, the state gives each town a school spending number that must be funded for the year. This spending amount is often referred to as the minimum net school spending requirement. Spending for school lunches, transportation, long term debt, and other items can not be included in spending to meet the requirement. The minimum local spending requirement is reduced by the monies provided in federal and state aid and grants. So unlike the other departments in the town government, the school department minimum spending is set by law.
The other difference in the school budget is that the School Committee has sole discretion on how to spend the funds that are allocated by Town Meeting for the schools. The Town Meeting, or anyone else for that matter, cannot direct how the money for the schools is used. The laws governing the School Committee can be found here. The school budget is developed by the school administrators and business manager and presented to the School Committee for approval. The School Committee must hold public meetings to discuss and adopt the budget. The allocation of funds within the total school budget is set at these public meetings of the School Committee. Information on the school budget and budgeting process can be found here. Once the school budget is approved by majority vote of the School Committee, the total spending request for schools is forwarded to the town administrator. The town administrator includes the school budget request in the budget submitted to Finance Committee for their recommendation. The town charter requirements for school budget submission can be found here.(MS Word, section 5-2) The Finance Committee may increase or reduce the total school request but cannot reduce it below the minimum spending requirement or change how funds are allocated within the total. The Town Meeting then considers the total spending request for the schools as a single line item in Schedule A. Again, the Town Meeting can increase or reduce the total school request but cannot reduce it below the minimum spending requirement or change how funds are allocated within the total.
As you can see, the school budgeting process differs from that of other town departments since there is a minimum spending requirement and the School Committee is solely responsible for how the funds are spent.

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Town Budget Process

I thought that citizens may be interested in how our town budgets are prepared and approved. This is the first of two or three postings that are a basic primer on the budget process for the town.

The town's fiscal year (FY) runs from July 1 to June 30. We are currently in FY'08 for accounting purposes in the town. The next Town Meeting will vote on the FY'09 budget.
The Town Meeting, which can be thought of as the legislature of the town, must authorize all expenditures and must allocate funds for specific purposes. Revenues come from the tax levy, fees, state aid and other sources. There are some exceptions to these requirements, but almost all spending must be approved by Town Meeting. The Town Meeting is made up of 39 residents from each of the 10 precincts of town for a total of 390 members. Town meeting members are listed here (PDF) At the spring Annual Town Meeting, members vote on a budget summary, called Schedule A, which lists the town departments and the amount of money to be allocated to general items in each department. The FY08 Schedule A can be viewed here (PDF) The Town Meeting can vote to add or subtract monies from the line items, but this is rarely done. The total spending allocated at Town Meeting must equal the available revenue. No deficit spending is allowed. Monies added to one line item must be subtracted from another, or drawn from reserve funds. If you are interested in the laws governing Town Meeting, you can find them here
The Town Meeting is aided in making decisions on the budget by the town Finance Committee. The Finance Committee is made up of 9 people who are appointed by the Town Meeting Moderator. You can learn more about the Finance Committee here. Prior to Town Meeting, the town administrator forwards a proposed budget and a budget message to the Finance Committee for their review. The Finance Committee spends many hours with the town administrator, budget director, and department heads going over the proposed town budget. They review the budget in much more detail than the Schedule A summary. The Finance Committee requires the town administrator to justify budget requests and they may negotiate changes in spending with the administrator and department heads. Then by majority vote, the Finance Committee recommends the budget to the Town Meeting. Once again, revenues must equal spending, no deficits allowed. If you are interested in the laws governing Finance Committee, you can find them here and here (in section 5). An exception to the above procedure is the school budget which will be covered in the next posting

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A la Carte override

In an editorial, the Standard Times recently advocated an override menu for Dartmouth. I was reminded of a story that I know about just such a plan. The air force was building a new base and had completed the enlisted men's club, the NCO club, officer's club, the golf course, the gym, and the food court. Then they ran out of money before the runway was built. Why, I asked, didn't they build the runway first? Well, came the reply, we know we can get money to finish the runway, but probably could not for the golf course. Which item do you think will make the override menu, the runway or the golf course? My bet would be the runway. More importantly though, this demonstrates the lack of leadership that Dartmouth suffers from. Rather than make hard decisions to put our fiscal house in order, our leaders and administrators will try to foist it off on the voters.

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Blind lead the lame

Undoubtedly Dartmouth is facing fiscal challenges, but what is it that the town needs? Some would say unity of opinion on the Select Board, others, smaller elementary schools, more dog officers, or a policeman at the schools. Some just want their streetlight back on and several members of the Select Board are adamant that more revenue will solve our problems. While these are all issues in the town, I think that they are all symptomatic of an underlying problem. When a small group of parents are the only ones with a comprehensive plan for the schools, when the town has yet to develop a plan for reconciling revenues and expenditures six months into the fiscal year following an override failure, when the town and school fees multiply but services decline, citizens have to wonder what is going on. I believe Dartmouth is suffering from a breakdown of leadership. Expected revenues and departmental spending requests for the next fiscal year are already known to the town and school administrators and to the Select Board or the School Committee. Maybe not down to the penny, but generally, we know that our revenue will not cover expected budget requests. In fact, they are likely $1 million in the red. What have our town leaders done about it? Well, they have added new members to the Personnel Board, had Tuesday working sessions by the Select Board, had citizen input meetings with the school administrators, and then, nada, nil, zip, zilch, nothing. What Dartmouth is crying out for is a plan. A concrete, quantifiable plan of action with dollars saved and dates for implementation. A plan that lays out what will be cut and what will be kept. We have not seen such a plan from either the town or the schools because there has been no leadership. A single member of the Select Board can’t develop a plan by herself, nor is it her job to do so. Others on the Select Board and School Committee have been cheerleading for an override, pointing out how hard town and school employees work, and pointing fingers at the state legislature. This is not leadership, and is not getting us anywhere. The Select Board and School Committee need to direct department administrators to prepare a spending plan in line with our revenues (and a list of what will be cut to do that), and set a date (sooner, rather than later) for the presentation of that plan to the public. That is what Dartmouth needs, the necessary leadership to have a realistic fiscal plan prepared and then implemented. Let’s get a plan immediately, debate the merits of that plan, and adopt a course of action. Dartmouth needs to stop this nonsense about sighs and head shaking, stressed out recess breaks, and the like. Lead, follow, or get out of the way, but please, give us a plan.

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