Budget versus actual;

On the financial front, according to information out of the town accountant's office; the highway improvement fund or the chapter 90 monies, there was $338,351.00 allocated for FY 2016 which began July 1, 2015, there has been expended to date ( received this on December 8, 2015) $282,471.00 and that leaves $55,879.07. It does not note what the money was spent on.

Jeff Bennett

At tonight's selectmen meeting;

It seems a secretary may be running the office and making decisions as the chairman of the board said at one point, "what is your pleasure Holly?". The subject was business licenses and what to do about some who have not turned in certain paper work or paid fees required. The secretary seems to have a problem with one business owner who went to a meeting and spoke up on his behalf and his lively hood. This is the same secretary that some members of the selectboard wish to make an assistant town administrator. Why the board will not do what the voters said to do and that is get a full time Town administrator!

There was also discussion about the original debt exclusion of $550,000.00 which apparently never went out to bond, it was simply handled by a BAN or bond anticipation note, government speak for short term borrowing, usually year to year. It was paid off by using available funds which equals to cutting into free cash, as in the big number often referred to by the town administrator. There also seems to be some question as to the payoff date for debt in regard with 252 Baldwinville Road. It has to be determined if the payoff date is in 2017 or 2019.

The police department wants to get a K-9 dog and no action on the tree growing out of the top of a building. The board does not seem to have the will or the moxy to put some pressure on the housing authority. So when you are in the area of the Tucker building, be sure to look up to watch for falling something or other. Once again, the same member was absent so we only have a 4 member  board at the meeting.

Jeff Bennett

While I am looking back.........to think of the future. . . .

Looking at another old Gardner news article, I have a question for you; how does 62% of 47 million dollars add up to 22.9 million?  Reading a story in TGN by Andres Caamano addressing the new Athol school at a cost of $43,931,361.00 with 62.94 % coming from MSBA or $27,651,620.00 with the Town of Athol on the hook for $16,279,743.00. So board of selectmen, how come Templeton only gets 22.9 million?  Any one, anyone at all?

Jeff Bennett

A check of history. . . . . . .

In looking through some old stuff, I came across an interesting item, a story from the Gardner news. At the end of it, there was a couple of lines that read; Light commissioner Dana Blais also stated that the department (Templeton Light dept.) would cover the electricity bills for municipal buildings and street lighting expenses for the next fiscal year. The story is dated July 15, 2014 and that would be fiscal year 2015 so the next fiscal year should be FY 2016, which we are in now. This means that when the annual Town report comes out, we should be able to check on the electric expenses for Templeton Municipal buildings and street lighting expense for the Town.

Of course the thing about this is the electricity for these things comes from some where and has to be paid for. If there is no budget item within the Town budget, where will this money come from? In my opinion, it is safe to say that everyone in Templeton will see an increase in their bill. You may also wish to check your water bill for any increases in the water service charge. Templeton water website says it is $237.16 per year! Rather than those costs coming from revenue from property taxes, you will be paying for it in other ways, which is just another tax! seems like more of the same stuff that has been going on for a long time in Templeton and it is policy that is the decision of the selectmen.

I wonder what the cost of wood chips are for the furnace at NRHS?

Jeff Bennett

Templeton Tax Rate set!

Yesterday, Tuesday, December 15, I spoke to the deputy assessor and was informed that the tax rate has been approved and set by the MA DOR. It was set at $16.47 per thousand. And here I thought the Town administrator stated at the last selectmen meeting on December 7, 2015 that the tax rate was set then?? You can check the Gardner news or the minutes of the meeting or the video.

The simple truth is, the selectmen do not set the tax rate, the elected members of the board of Assessors with approval from the department of revenue set the tax rate. As for it going down, that may not be a good thing either. As for the increase in taxes from the recently voted debt exclusion for the police station, that will not appear on your tax bill until January of 2017.

If you have any questions or concerns, call or visit the office of the Board of Assessors. One thing that you won't find out is how much your taxes will be when the police station or school debt tax increase will be because the assessors do not know that because they do not know what the tax rate will be then. Remember that this was a reval year and there was some new growth which is one time money and there was about 145 thousand in money from MSBA which is also one time money. I seem to remember most people in agreement that one time money should not be counted on in figuring out a budget. So why does it seem like the selectmen are again doing the same things that got the Town in trouble to begin with. Why use one time money from the planning board for highway dept. expenses? Oh, just for laughs, the Planning Board is now looking for additional money for the Town master plan which makes it look like a bad idea to give certain funds away to the highway when you need them for something else! Seems like the dog is still chasing it's tail.

Jeff Bennett

December 7, 2015 selectmen meeting

Town Administrator made the error by stating the Board of Selectmen would be setting the tax rate tonight. That is wrong, wrong, wrong! The selectmen do not do that! Selectmen do not set the tax rate! They do get to decide if there is a single rate for everyone, as in residents and business or if business gets to pay a larger share of the taxes.

I think if anyone checks, by calling the Assessors office, you will find the Board of Assessors come up with a proposed tax rate, as in so many dollars per thousand, then this information is given to the Massachusetts Dept. of Revenue and they ultimately either approve the rate or tell the Assessors to try again. So if anyone reads in the Gardner News or anywhere else that the BOS set the tax rate, that would be in error, misinformation, or bluntly put, a lie.

Another interesting tid bit was the Planning Board is now looking for additional funds to use for the new Town Master Plan. Seems not to long ago, the Planning Board had a sum of money that they said they did not need so they were going to give it to the highway dept. so they could pay for the excavator. Seems like they should have used that money to pay for the master plan, but hey, I am just a simple guy from Templeton.

One other interesting item was possible new job descriptions and job titles for people in the office of the selectmen. Sounds like growing government just to be bigger. Now it seems we may need an assistant town administrator. Seems like there is alot of work to do so maybe it is time to try something new. The posted hours for the office of selectmen stands at 31 hours. Maybe they should work a full 40 hour week or go back to five days a week. Either way, we do not need more supervisors, we need workers. Remember, this is essentially a 3 person office and perhaps it is time for the selectmen to begin to look for a full time Town Administrator so that position can pick up some of the load. Seems like the Town government is doing all the same things now that were done in the past that got the Town in a mess to begin with.

Jeff Bennett

Templeton Tax rate and associated costs.

Some people may think the timing of this announcement is tied to the school vote but in my opinion, that does not really matter. What matters is the details, which you can find out for yourself and in my opinion, you should contact the Assessors office and ask.

We all know inflation can have an effect on things costing us more and so can the tri annual reval conducted by the Board of assessors. The tax rate can drop but if the assessed value of your home goes up enough, this can actually equal an increase the cost of your property taxes. Again, the best thing you can do is to contact the Assessors office and ask about the assessed value of your home and you do not have to wait for your tax bill to come to do this.

Some people say and write that because of low electric rates in Templeton by way of a Town owned electric department, the same person, by the way, writes about voters getting to vote for high electric rates in Town, which you actually get to do, by way of electing Light & Water commissioners. So my question is, do we have high or low electric rates in Templeton? You may wish to contact Dave Smart and ask him that. Of course he is the same person who wrote on how the Town Administrator, the selectmen and the financial team were doing such a good job and remember, the selectmen and the Town Administrator are the same ones who voted to buy a loader and an excavator for the highway department of Templeton, where Mr. Smart works. They also approved a labor contract giving free boots and other items to those very workers of the highway department.

Dave Smart seems to have a problem with contractors and business people and appears to want the big bad business entities to pay more for simply being in business to make money. I think for the most part, if anyone takes the time to look, the majority of business in Templeton is on the small business scale and if you are a student of history, not to far back, there was talk of a big box retailer coming to Templeton, but then came the facts, such as the amount it would cost to get all the permits and such just to get started. If my memory has not faded too much, it was in the 10 thousand dollar range, while surrounding towns had the amount in the 25 to 85 dollar range. Did any big box retailer come to Templeton?

So, on one day, Templeton has very high water and electric rates and on the next, Templeton has low electric rates because of a Town owned electric department. I am no economic professor, but it seems to me that you do not build a business base, especially small business, by taxing them more. They do not want their taxes higher any more than the residents, which is why most overrides fail at the ballot box.

On another front, I spoke to my mother who is 82 and pays property taxes in Templeton. I asked her about the new school and she asked me if a new school is needed. I told her what I thought, which was that the new school is probably wanted more by the teachers and administration, shown by the questions from a principle that the teachers wanted to know about what areas would have A/C and where bathrooms would be located. Her response was the fith graders needed to be out of NRHS and if the schools had been better taken care of, they might not need to be replaced. She asked how much it will cost and I told her and I told her what I thought the total tax increase would be to pay for it, my thought is about $3.74 per thousand. She thought for a bit and told me to vote for it, so I will be voting yes for the new school. My mom is on SS, less than a thousand per month.

Jeff Bennett

What is up with the Town finance/?

At the recent STM, it was stated by the Town Administrator that the FY2015 books were about half done, but they wil be done on time to set the tax rate by December 31. We shall see as we shall see someday, just how much so called certified free cash the Town will have

At the special town meeting, i was concerned about using one time funds to pay recurring expenses. That would be article 4, from planning board detention pond fund to highway expense account, $16,000.00, and that is where some concern should be, in my opinion.

FY2016, voted at Town Meeting, $65,000.00, spent as of budget vs. actual, Nov. 10, 2015; $50,222.21 with $14,777.79 at the middle of the 5th month of the fiscal year. I hope people do not still wonder why the Finance Committee or Advisory Board wishes to have each department head come before the board to explain and justify their budget wishes. So now the highway department has $14,777.79 plus $16,000.00 or $30,777.79 to make it the rest of the way or about 6 1/2 months.

Now for the folks who say the Town should keep what they have and fix it or update it, that is a good idea but the folks still have to provide the funds, as in the money, to do the work and considering that Town Meeting vote turned down requests for funds on multiple occasions and different amounts of money for just one roof, who thinks the town will give up millions to update two buildings. Before anyone points the finger at the school district, you need to read the regional school district agreement. Any amount over $5,000.00 falls to the Town and yes I have seen at least one instance in which the school district bundled projects together to get over the $5,000.00 dollar amount but any major repair or update will fall on the Taxpayers and so far they have refused to pay so we may as well go thru the motion of a new school with Templeton probably going to wastes one million, fifty thousand dollars on nothing.

Jeff Bennett

With the upcoming meeting of the Town of Templeton, as in a special Town meeting in November. First, by state law, all Towns have to have one Town meeting per year to take care of Town business, then any Town can have any number of other Town meetings, which are called special Town meetings and the selectmen or a certain number of residents can call for a special Town meeting at any other time. Now with regards to a proposed transfer from a Planning Board fund to help pay for the excavator bought for the highway department, I think this looks like the taking of money from other entities in a fraudulent manner, in my opinion anyways. It was reported that this money was originally collected from developers and such for the purpose of maintaining detention ponds but now it is said that the highway department does this work so this money remains in an account unspent, possibly some more "found money". Seems to me that if this tax was collected for a specific reason, it should be spent on that or given back from whom it was collected. I am sure however, that a case might be made that since the funds were collected for this purpose and the highway department is doing said work then technically that money is being used for said purpose. I wonder however how those developers might see this? This could also be one more reason why there are not more business's trying to locate to Templeton. I am also curious on why to majow debt questions at this special Town meeting come before those financial transfers? Why should people be asked to go into debt for about 50 million before they hear the reasons why a FY2015 bill was not paid in a timely manner, what department failed to make the payment or keep track of their purchases? Kind of makes the argument for centralized purchasing, in my opinion. What is the reason (s) for more money to the accounting department or office, as I thought  this had already been addressed/ Kind of makes one wonder just what condition Town finances are in and what the "financial Team" is doing. See you at the Town meeting in November.

jeff Bennett

Wednesday, October 28, 2015 - budget versus actual.

What was budgeted versus what has actually been spent to date;
According the last budget vs. actual report from Town hall, highway department expenses, which began with an allotted amount of $65,000.00 for fiscal year 2016 (July 1, 2015 - June 30, 2016) and now has $17,092.50 left in it. Accordingly, $47,907.50 has been spent with October being the fourth month in the fiscal year, so either not enough funds were budgeted or the department has spent quite a bit of money on something, can you say used old Ford ten wheeler? On the other side of the fix it fence, there was $90,000.00 allotted for Town vehicle / machinery supplies with only $20,549.50 spent so far with $69,450.50 left. If you are keeping track, here are the amounts for the salaries for the people in the highway department:

Department head - $  63,809.00
Secretary             - $  30,832.00
Mechanic            - $  46,385.00
drivers/laborers   - $243,683.00

Jeff Bennett

Apparently someone does not like this alternative blog, oh well. It is here to stay for as long as it seems relevant. At tonight's selectmen meeting, one thing on the agenda was changing the boards meeting night to Wednesday, apparently there is a problem with getting selectmen into the office on that day to sign the weekly warrant, which is required to pay the town's bills. I guess some want the title of selectmen but are unable or unwilling to to do the things required of them, some required by state law!  Apparently there is a big stone that was dug up on Boyton road and it was said that the highway boss Bud Chase told the Town Administrator that it would probably take $1,000.00 to put it on a truck to remove it. It seems there will be some discussion on what to do with it, the large stone. It is really not that large.

Looking over the warrant for the upcoming special Town meeting, there are again more money transfers. I am personally in favor of a new school but how are residents to support it when it seems the finances are not yet in order? If additional funds go the accounting department, that will equal about $100,000.00, which I was told would be used in part to hire outside help to do the FY 2013 - 2014 books so the Town Accountant can concentrate on FY 2015 books.

Boyton Road paving is done, good job by the contractors who have the equipment and expertise to do the work, which is only paid for when needed, no additional fat like benefits or free boots, only pay when actual work is done. With the required budget item for OPEB, other post employment benefits, people will now see at least part of what it costs to have all of them town employees. The state of Massachusetts owes or needs 15 Billion over the next thirty years just to pay retiree health insurance. The 351 municipalities in the state are no better off and this could be the thing that brings more and more cities and Towns to the brink. It is something that is not going to go away and when government of any size grows, so does this EXPENSE. So badmouth contractors all you want, ignore cost saving things like regionalization of some services and reduction in other avenues or any of the other option to help reduce these long term costs, it is not cheaper to have a large in house work force because that thing that is at the very end of many financial reports is not going away, it is always growing and that is OPEB.

Jeff Bennett

Just for GP, a few years back, shortly after Pauly started his blog, I did a printed paper titled Templeton Watch so I decided to take it online. I may in the future do a printed version again.

Jeff Bennett

Ultimatums, demands and blackmail

I do not go to the corner nor do I go to time out, I have other options and I will use them. I think I will borrow a phrase from a good friend, "I am speaking"

Jeff Bennett

Jeff Bennett has started this blog because I feel not all things are being done correctly in Templeton, MA. This will be an editorial type blog and will include information on the goings on in Templeton Government.

Jeff Bennett