According to the latest Ton Administrator report, 

Alan Mayo has resigned as Director of Public Works for Templeton.

I wish Alan well!

Alan mayo is apparently headed to Westminster to be superintendent of parks and cemeteries. I truly believe that is where Alan is happiest and that is a gain for Westminster.

VOTE Jeff Bennett for Selectmen

Does Templeton have a Town Collector or a Tax Collector?

On Monday evening, April 23, 2018 at Town Hall, Conference Room, selectmen by way of the Town Administrator (part-time) stated Templeton has a Town Collector (result of a question by the Auditor during his presentation).


So off to research to see what available Town records state:

from Special Town Meeting - February 1, 2015:


Article 2. To see if the Town will vote, pursuant to M.G.L.c. 41, s.1B, to have its elected Collector of Taxes become an appointed Collector of Taxes of the Town, or to take any other action relative thereto.
On a motion duly made and seconded the Town voted, pursuant to M.G.L.c. 41, s.1B, to have its elected Collector of Taxes become an appointed Collector of Taxes of the Town to be appointed by the Board of Selectmen.

 Passed @ 7:14 

TOWN OF TEMPLETON 

WARRANT FOR ANNUAL TOWN ELECTION 

MAY 2, 2005 

COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS 

Question 2. Shall the town vote to have its elected Tax Collector become an appointed Tax Collector of the town?                                       YES_____ NO____ 

QUESTION #2 APPOINT TAX COLLECTOR. 

Yes                                                                      369 312 681

No                                                                       264 193 457

Blanks                                                                   26   32   58 

TOTAL                                                              659 537 1196 

Apparently, a Town Collector has greater leeway in collection of receipts, so the collector could then collect not only real estate and personal property taxes, but sewer receipts as well, I would assume water and electric receipts also.

What the law says:

from the Division of Local Services:

Although a city/town collector has greater collection authority than a tax collector, their statutory duties and compliance standards are the same. 

 As a tax collector, the office possesses the authority to collect only real and personal property taxes, excises, betterments, and certain other charges added to and committed as taxes (MGL c. 60 sec. 1, 2). 

 As a city or town collector under a local acceptance statute (MGL c. 41 sec. 38A), the office has expanded authority to receive and collect all monies or accounts due a municipality. 

So, is there a word game going on in Town Hall, as in a Collector of taxes being called a Town Collector, presumably to make the case that sewer bills should be received in the Treasurer/Collector's office?  Did the selectmen have legal counsel (new) research to find the acceptance of Tax Collector or Town Collector statue vote from a past Town Meeting ? Is it possible selectmen are playing a word game (Collector of Taxes) to make the case we have a Town Collector. Either way, if selectmen try to have sewer bills paid in Town Hall for a "one stop shop" approach, as was quoted in the Gardner News by select board chairman John Caplis, will the effort follow suit with light & Water receipts being paid in Town Hall. It was presented that it is not a good idea to have the same person create the bills and collect the bills. (something about the goose and the gander comes to mind). Clearly, this requires more time to research the vote on which MGL was accepted creating the Tax Collector position.

WTF?? question one on the ballot for Templeton May 7, 2018 election.

Shall the Town of Templeton be allowed to assess an additional $470,246.00 in real estate and personal property taxes for the purposes of protection the public safety including the provision of fire services, advanced life support ambulance service, additional training of police officers beyond state minimums, a community notification system, supplemental funding of the highway and snow and ice budgets and the associated costs of insurance and benefit programs for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2018.

Here I thought the selectmen said it was for ambulance service.
What about the $40,000.00 in raises? If the Town is hurting that bad financially, why not level fund and avoid raises this year. Selectmen need to be management and look out for the whole Town.

 Seems like few if any current selectmen have learned from past mistakes. Just like not having a stand alone Town Meeting article concerning ambulance receipts appropriation, this override is hard to support as written and presented.

I guess the current selectmen don't have the moxy to tell people we do not have enough of your money to run the government the way we wish to so give us some more. They have to put it on "public safety" and the Ambulance service (because that way, it might pass) My thoughts on Town ambulance service have been put forward many times, but even I see this approach as an unfair, cowardly approach. Also, put the spot light on ambulance service and then slide this other stuff in there too.

A stand alone question for override for ambulance service is one thing, but this question is going to be hard to support.

Julie Richards own campaign signs state "it is time for a change"

I agree with her, it is time for a change: 

Vote Jeff Bennett for Selectmen

Please be sure to vote May 7, 2018

TO: Board of Selectmen
FROM: Carter Terenzini, Town Administrator
RE: Administrator’s Weekly Report
DATE: April 19, 2018
CC: All Departments


Town Clerk:

Absentee ballots are now available to those who qualify. All of the requested absentee ballots have mailed out. In reserving the auditorium for the Annual Town Meeting, the school has informed me that the auditorium is booked for May 19th and that it cannot be changed. The TA and myself will be looking at the Middle School & High School gyms to see which one will best fit our needs

from an earlier post:

With recent discussion and newspaper articles talking of Templeton, MA being under effort in support of the school district, I find it interesting that the Narragansett Regional school district shows the highest average teacher salaries in the immediate area; if you look at the report on the web site of DESE (department of secondary elementary education, you find NRHS at $76,742.00, Gardner at $69,195.00, Winchendon at $71,029.00, Athol-Royalston at $65,972.00 and Ashburnham-Westminster at $70,190.00. Templeton voters/taxpayers also voted to appropriate (make available) 47 million dollars towards the building of a new elementary school. The other town in the two town school district opted to not support this effort. Templeton residents, you are not under effort in supporting your school (s), in fact, you are providing more funding than even the DESE mandates and have been doing so for a number of years.
Time for that myth to be put to rest.

Seems there are two different places to look for comparison on Teacher Salaries:

Link #1 ---  www.doe.mass.edu/finance/statistics/ 

Link #2 ---  http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/statereport/teachersalaries.aspx 

Link #1  divides by 91 teachers and is for FY17.

Link #2  divides by 102 teachers for FY16;

yielding two different averages, $ 76,742.00 and $ 67,147.00.

So depending on which one you look at or use, you can present a different dollar figure, one high and one lower. The question becomes which one to use in presentation, are the figures correct, with regards to the number of teachers? I try very hard to present correct information, so if you read this and go check, you will be aware of the variation.

Article 31 of the Annual Town Meeting warrant to be held May 19, 2018 requires a 2/3 vote rather than the posted on Town website as only a majority vote required. This was questioned at recent Advisory Committee meeting. Town Administrator acknowledged it did require a 2/3 vote to pass. The original draft copy had it as a 2/3 vote. The final, for posting Town Meeting Warrant has it as majority vote required.
Watch for this at Town Meeting.

Vote Jeff Bennett for Selectmen