Email back and forth from Jeff Bennett to Town Admin and selectmen and police chief.

From: jeff bennett <j_bennett506@hotmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, September 14, 2023 1:16 AM
To: Adam D. Lamontagne <alamontagne@TempletonMA.gov>; Currie, Michael <mcurrie@TempletonMA.gov>; Rivard, Matthew <mrivard@TempletonMA.gov>; Griffis, Terry <tgriffis@TempletonMA.gov>; Toth, Timothy <ttoth@templetonma.gov>; Bennett, Mike <mbennett@TempletonMA.gov>
Subject: select board dog hearing

 

Wednesday, September 13, 2023, select board held a hearing which involved determine whether a dog was a nuisance or dangerous dog and there was a lawyer for town present, 2 police officers and animal control officer. The agenda lists the basis for the hearing as MGL chapter 140 section 146. My concern is does anyone read the law or check what is being used to hold such a hearing? Do the police and the animal control officer know the law which they are there for?

Section 146 deals with "a license valid throughout state; removal of dog into another town or city, whereas section 157 deals with nuisance or dangerous dogs; orders for remedial action; appeal; violation of order. I have to wonder if any order to the owner of said dog is valid when the wrong section of the law was used to prosecute a resident? 

 

regards,

Jeff Bennett

From: Adam D. Lamontagne <alamontagne@TempletonMA.gov>
Sent: Thursday, September 14, 2023 2:50 PM
To: jeff bennett <j_bennett506@hotmail.com>; Currie, Michael <mcurrie@TempletonMA.gov>; Rivard, Matthew <mrivard@TempletonMA.gov>; Griffis, Terry <tgriffis@TempletonMA.gov>; Toth, Timothy <ttoth@templetonma.gov>; Bennett, Mike <mbennett@TempletonMA.gov>
Subject: RE: select board dog hearing

 

Dear Jeff,

 

Thank you for pointing out that scrivener’s error.  Rest assured that the notice sent to the dog’s owner correctly referenced the law and the Board’s actions will be valid. 

 

Adam D. Lamontagne, MPA, MCPPO

Town Administrator

From: jeff bennett <j_bennett506@hotmail.com>
Sent: Friday, September 15, 2023 4:27 AM
To: Adam D. Lamontagne <alamontagne@TempletonMA.gov>; Currie, Michael <mcurrie@TempletonMA.gov>; Rivard, Matthew <mrivard@TempletonMA.gov>; Griffis, Terry <tgriffis@TempletonMA.gov>; Toth, Timothy <ttoth@templetonma.gov>; Bennett, Mike <mbennett@TempletonMA.gov>
Subject: Re: select board dog hearing

 

The scrivener's error?? Just who is responsible for creating the agenda for select board meetings, key word, responsible, as in it is possible to delegate authority but not responsibility, anyone who has served in military knows that one. Fact, in the select board operating procedures policy, page 2,it very clearly states "B. Preparation of Meeting Agenda & Packet: The Town Administrator shall cause the preparation of meeting agendas, in consultation with the Chair, and information packets and shall make the requirements thereof known to persons who may have business before the Board." So do not go giving me a scriven made an error, it falls on the town administrator and the chair and since you all failed again, you should at least own up to it. With all of your education, you should be able to admit you all goofed again. It is a pattern that is so obvious. As for Harrington, his firm and your lawyer, wrong again!

regards,

Jeff Bennett

 From: jeff bennett <j_bennett506@hotmail.com>

Sent: Tuesday, September 12, 2023 6:12 AM
To: Bennett, Mike <mbennett@TempletonMA.gov>
Subject: non criminal disposition

 

Good day, i have a law enforcement question; Templeton has a number of bylaws with fines in place and we have non criminal disposition means of further enforcement. My question is if proof exists that a bylaw was violated and there is a fine listed but the party ignores the fine, would it be proper procedure for a resident to file a police report so as to pursue collection of money owed the town? According to town bylaws, the party responsible for enforcing bylaw is not the police department but ignoring the fine, would that constitute criminal or non criminal behavior that would become the business of law enforcement?

regards,

Jeff Bennett

 September 13, 2023, a dog hearing is scheduled for selectmen meeting, how can selectmen with a straight face have a hearing to decide if a dog and/or owner violated or did not follow a town bylaw when the selectmen and other town officials do not follow the town bylaws themselves. Town bylaw states the selectmen shall appoint a town counsel in June, yet the chair and the town administrator waited until July to appoint town counsel. This means they either do not know the bylaws or chose to ignore them. Since the selectmen are law breakers themselves, they have no right to sit in judgment of anyone else, so I hope they do not bring up town bylaws and by not following the bylaw, nor their own policy, they need to pay up the $300.00 per selectman fine, that is another town bylaw under non-criminal disposition.

 On face book there is a letter from the Templeton fire department union ( I think 4 members) the letter talks about union declining a bonus from arpa money, but then suggests the department could use some arpa money for ems things. So, to members of the union, there is a thing called ambulance receipts, which is money collected to cover costs of ems service. Town meeting was told the ambulance service would pay for itself. The department chose a new tanker over replacing the 2014 ambulance. July monthly expenditure report shows a balance of $7,000.00 in fire/ems donation fund and $961,000.00 balance in ambulance receipts. Fy2024 Ambulance/EMS budget voted at town meeting is $534.500.00 while the FY2023 ambulance/EMS budget was $290,250.00 - almost 100% increase in ambulance funding from fy23 to fy24. EMS does not require any arpa money.

 An insult to the residents of Templeton.

Employees of the Templeton municipal light & water dept. along many other departments are asking for premium pay for working during covid. While many important things to benefit residents remain on a to do list. Employees wanting to suck up arpa funds is a joke in my opinion. One of the purposes for arpa funds is to replace lost revenue due to covid. Best of my knowledge, no government employee lost a cent in pay, lost no job, lost no benefit, tax money still rolled in being paid by people who actually lost work time, lost jobs and had to pay more for things while supporting the government and its employees. Suddenly to collect extra money, the light and water dept. suddenly say they are part of the town.

 The pavement has been put down and concrete blocks are in place, just waiting on the carpentry part to be completed for the resident salt/sand shed at highway barn. This shed will allow residents to get sand/salt from highway barn without having to dig thru snow. That is a project brought forward and pushed for by former selectman Jeff Bennett to be a small benefit for the residents of Templeton. Thank You to Fischett construction for offering free time and labor to get the carpentry part completed.

 BULLETIN-2023-5: Tax Title Foreclosure Surplus Proceeds

The Division of Local Services (DLS) Municipal Finance Law Bureau (MFLB) has a new Bulletin. Bulletin 2023-5 discuss a recently decided United States Supreme Court case, Tyler v. Hennepin County, 598 U.S. 631 (2023). As a result of that decision, there is uncertainty as to whether or not tax title foreclosure surplus proceeds will need to be returned to property owners. The Bulletin notes that DLS will not object to a community temporarily holding any such surplus proceeds in an agency account until there is a directive from the courts on this matter.