Some more town finance for Templeton.
From the DOR; Templeton's new growth dollar figure will be $69,000.00. This is 11 thousand lower than what the selectmen voted in to present to town meeting back in May 2016. Even as the Board of Assessors were saying 65 thousand was probably a likely number. Advisory Committee recommended a dollar figure of $50,000.00. I believe it is better to get the "surprise" that you have a little bit more money coming in rather than learn you counted on more and you end up short.
At the recent meeting of Advisory, the Town Administrator informed the committee that the Town's group insurance (health insurance) fund may run out and require a transfer before the annual town meeting in May 2017. The administrator did say the time frame is a little flexible, as in it could be sooner than that. In my opinion, this shows again that Templeton selectmen need to open a can of moxie and change the health insurance approach. Put the lower cost plan on the table along with the cadillac plan now available. Then change the town / employee cost split. employees are going to have to pay more. With union contracts in place and pay adjustments in place to be more competitive or in line with other area towns, this can and should be done. Time for selectmen to think about the good of the whole town. Looking at town finances and the numbers, the system in place now cannot keep going without some changes. Back to the health insurance cost, when I was a civilian federal government employee, I had a yearly choice to pick the health insurance plan I wanted. If I wanted the cadillac plan, which I mostly chose after one year on the cheap plan, I agreed to pay more for it by choice. If town employees wish to keep the current plan, they have to pay more.
We need to take a close look at the amount of Templeton Town debt, Town median income, property valuations and a five year look back at revenue. The current interim Town Administrator stated "we budget on expense, not on revenue." Regardless of how it is done, you cannot spend more than you have or expect to have. If you spend 20 dollars every week even as you only take in 15 dollars every week, sooner or later, you are in trouble. It does not change no matter how many zeros you add in, 20 dollars or 20 million. Spend more than you have, you get in trouble.
watch the Advisory Committee meeting of September 28 to see!
posted by Jeff Bennett
The "Town" has been playing games with the money in the Town budget for a long time, (yes years). When we end up laying off people, this is because there is simply not enough money to cover all of the bases, and the game has to have a time out to give these budgets time to recover. Of course, there is never enough time to recover enough to make any real savings. In reality what we pay for unemployment insurance just goes up, so there is really no gain. As long as this behavior continues our Town will never be stable. I do believe it is time for us, as a Town to get our act together. We can not continue to do business like this. Why our past Administrator would push a budget that was no good, in my opinion, and give raises when he knew we did not have the funds for, bewilders me. It is like his one finger salute to the Advisory Board, and in reality the Tax Payers of the Town of Templeton, on the way out the door. I have to tell you one thing, The Advisory Board is working for you, the tax payer. I do not think the Selectmen really understand how deep this problem is and that is too bad. I find it interesting that Selectman Columbus will bad mouth Mr. Spring, saying he, or we, were the reasons for the 500,000. dollar shortage back in the day. Some people still think someone stole the money. In reality there is no money the Advisory Board ever touches. The only account in their control is for emergencies, for other departments, and the checks are written by another department. The question is why Mr. Columbus is so dead set against having the A.G. come in to take a look, to see if there was any wrong doing, as Pauly called it. As it was when we ended up 500,000, short, bad numbers in results in bad numbers out. What Will Spring used were numbers provided by our then Treasurer. Bad money management is one thing, but to blame people for what they did not do is something else. Not only do they want Jeff off the A.B., I am on "the list" also, but as long as I can I will work for the people of my Town. This is my opinion, Bev.
ReplyDeleteThere is something I would like to make clear, no one person on a board, such as the Advisory Board has the ability to do anything but give the numbers they have gotten from other sources, and to use those numbers in presenting a budget. I said that Will used the numbers he received but that is not really the case, as the whole AB would have had to approve the budget before it was brought forward. So, this is the truth, no matter how anyone wants to spin it. Bev.
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