A study group to look at regional school district agreement, including what are the steps and process of leaving the district is really no different that the stone bridge study group. It is simply looking at options and the process, whatever it might be, for a town to withdraw from a regional school district. It is not really anything to lose sleep over. Perhaps one thing that will be brought to light is the fact Phillipston selectmen have ignored the agreement completely.

Section VIII in both the 1977 and 2004 versions reads in part:

"Any such proposal for amendment shall be presented to the Secretary of the Regional District School Committee, who shall mail or deliver a notice in writing to the Board of Selectmen of

each of the member towns that a proposal to amend this agreement has been received and shall enclose a copy of such proposal. The Selectmen in each member town shall include in the warrant for the next Special Town Meeting called for the purpose, an article stating the proposal or substance thereof."

Phillipston refused to put it on the warrant for the 2023 Annual Town Meeting. Look at 2024 Annual Town meeting, it was not on the warrant to be considered. The Department of Education has advised that the last agreed upon Regional Agreement remains in place in situations such as these. The district has been in front of the Templeton capital planning committee for a couple things for TES. In short, the last agreed upon Regional Agreement (District, DESE, Templeton, Phillipston) uses the $5,000 threshold. The Draft Regional Agreement's has a threshold of $15,000 which needs Phillipston to put before its voters to either approve or vote down. If voted down, then a RACC needs to be reinstated to discuss the issues that Phillipston has with the draft.

As of right now, they are in violation of any of the Regional Agreements you pick (draft or prior).

Since Templeton is an 85% stake holder in district and the owner of the new elementary school, I believe it to be a good option to look at our options.

 

Town of Templeton, MA

April 15, 2014  · 

Holly Young

April 15, 2014  · 

Message from Town Administrator Bob Markel

The Department of Revenue has always discouraged the use of free cash to balance the budget. Bond rating agencies do the same, and the low bond rating for the Town reflects, in part, the lavish use of free cash to fund the operating budget. However, this is not illegal; it is simply unsound financial policy.

The amount of free cash available changes yearly, and it is not predictable. Free cash is considered one-time revenue, and the Department of Revenues recommends that it used to augment the Stabilization Fund (reserves) or for one-time purchases like capital items.

Audit firms do not do a thorough job of auditing the books (unfortunately). They come and test various areas of the town’s finances to see if there are problems, but some problems are not caught and can persist for years. They tell you up front that they cannot do a thorough audit for the relatively modest amount they charge. The DOR representative at today’s meeting called the standard municipal audit a “hit and run” audit. Still, some firms are more reputable and more competent than others. I cannot name names in this message, but there are several firms that I would never hire.

Recommendation: The Selectboard should create an Audit Committee of knowledgeable citizens who will have two responsibilities: 1) Bid the audit contract every three years, and hire an independent auditor; and 2) Receive the annual audit and do a public review of the findings and the management letter. Municipal auditors are typically hired by the Town Administrator, Town Accountant or Finance Director. This is an inherent conflict of interest since town officials who do the hiring are the ones whose work is being audited. Hiring and receiving the audit should be an arm’s length transaction from the Town’s financial team.

The Department of Revenue oversees 351 cities and towns in the Commonwealth. They accept data provided by the Town Accountant, the Treasurer/Collector and the Assessors. They often question the data, but they are not always able to verify if data submitted on the Tax Recap or Schedule A are accurate. The DOR does not have access to the town’s accounting system. For example, the DOR was in Templeton today to question whether the Town has properly reported debt obligations on the DE-1 section of Schedule A. Some debt is paid from general revenue within the town budget and some debt is paid through debt exclusion. There is a correct way to report these two types of debt on Schedule A. The DOR representatives checked to see if the Town reported the data correctly, but they are limited in their ability to verify the accuracy of the data.

The long term solution to Templeton’s financial problems is to hire a professional Town Administrator who will put in place a competent financial management team – Accountant, Treasurer, Collector and Assessors. The Selectmen and Advisory Board have the responsibly to oversee the T.A. and the financial team on their management of the Town’s finances. To complement the BoS and Advisory Board, the Audit Committee should retain a reputable accounting firm to conduct an annual audit with the results made public.

Bob Markel

Interim Town Administrator

 Open Burning Permit, Residential$10.00

Open Burning Permit, Agricultural$10.00

Smoke Detector Only Inspection$25.00

Fire Sprinkler System Inspection$25.00

Tank Removal Permit$25.00

Tank Installation Permit$25.00

Blasting Permit$25.00

Oil Burner Installation Permit$25.00

Oil Burner and Tank Installation Permit$25.00

Unvented Gas Appliance Permit$25.00

Black Powder Permit$25.00

Fuel Storage Permit$25.00

Fuel Transport Tank Permit$25.00

Various other inspections and permits as may be deemed necessary by the Department of Fire Services from time to time.$25.00

Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Detector inspection $50.00 / single family

$100.00 / two family

$150.00 for any building or structure with six or fewer residential units

$500.00 for any building or structure with more than six units.

Pay taxes for salaries for fire dept. employees and then you have to pay again for a "service" Keep in mind, you have to pay a fee, if you get a permit, to do work and build a home, remodel, etc., and it gets inspected by building inspector, for a fee. When it comes to fire dept, you have to pay extra for them to do their jobs that you already paid for. This is not just a Templeton issue, residents of may towns do things this way. I wonder how many people skip the smoke detector check because of the fees. Town has employee/citizen award at town meeting, perhaps a residents week in say September, smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors inspected free as a service to residents.

 So, should there be a town bylaw to prevent selectmen from serving on any appointed committees, boards, commissions, etc.?

 

from Massachusetts Transportation funding task force.

 FY24 Revenue Gas Tax - 

Tax on motor fuel (gasoline and diesel) $0.24/gallon = $712.7million dollars

 Yesterday, went to meeting of Templeton Council on Aging. The senior center was packed, I had to park in the snow. At the meeting, it was pointed out that senior center staff had helped a senior get housing, now that is really service to residents. That is why funding for the center is important and vital to the town.

Not all of the senior center budget is from taxation, some is paid for by formula grant and others are covered by MART reimbursement to town, so if one looks at budget for senior center, it can be deceiving

 Templeton Center fire station is/would be a great place to have office for town emergency management and for CERT to work out of.

If anyone looks at deed / transfer paperwork involving the Templeton Senior Center, one will find it is "zoned" if you will, for senior services only.

Just like some areas of town are zoned for residential only, so is the senior center. It is for Seniors, not to be used as a "utility closet" because of bad financial management by town administrator and selectmen. We selectmen screw up enough, it needs to stop.