Residents want roads fixed but do not wish to pay for it?
Recent moves by Hubbardston Town voters seem to back that up.

HUBBARDSTON — Voters turned out but were not supportive of a plan to tackle road repairs through an override that required election approval.

A ballot question seeking a tax increase of up to $350,000 to fund the municipal road repair and maintenance fund, created at the June 3 Town Meeting, failed, with 190 voters in favor and 219 against.

The override article won approval by required two-thirds at Town Meeting, but it also required a majority votes in support of the tax measure at the election in order for the plan to move forward.

Templeton, MA:

People may feel that the gas and diesel tax paid at the pump is where the money comes from or should come from for road repair / rebuilding. While it is true some monies do come to towns from that program, it is not enough, for several reasons.

First and foremost, state legislature and governor do not put forward enough money in the chapter 90 program for it to really work. (200 million shared by all cities and towns in state) Secondly, and I am not sure if this has been tracked at any level, with the advent of electric cars, hybrids, better gas mileage, push for mass transit, what are the annual gas tax collection rates over the years? We, as residents, may be waiting a long time for that to happen. In the mean time, the way our roads will become passable and in decent shape, which affects many things, to include how much is spent on clearing roads in the winter, damage to personal vehicles, danger to kids riding bikes, walking on roads without sidewalks and even people moving to our town.

There is one option available; it involves creating a stabilization fund strictly for roads, requires two thirds vote of town meeting, then a funding mechanism, one being a tax override which only goes to provide money for that fund. If the fund is emptied or the roads are fixed, the override goes away. Something to be looked at and considered. All people are tired of crappy roads. Money could also come from left over tax money, ie: free cash. You, the tax payer control that; if you wish it to go to a certain thing, say so, and you can choose to vote no if free cash is presented to be spent on other things, that is your real power, power of the purse. Taxpayers have to decide what they want. In the near future, no one else is gonna make this happen except you

Residents want roads fixed but do not wish to pay for it?

HUBBARDSTON — Voters turned out but were not supportive of a plan to tackle road repairs through an override that required election approval.

A ballot question seeking a tax increase of up to $350,000 to fund the municipal road repair and maintenance fund, created at the June 3 Town Meeting, failed, with 190 voters in favor and 219 against.

The override article won approval by required two-thirds at Town Meeting, but it also required a majority votes in support of the tax measure at the election in order for the plan to move forward.

Voters also filled many town board seats, but several are still open after no one ran.

With 418 voters casting ballots during the June 11 election, the decisions were made by 12.6 percent of the 3,327 registered voters in town, according to Town Clerk Joyce Green.

Voters returned incumbent members to the Board of Selectmen, with Daniel Galante winning 278 votes and Kris Pareago tallying 259.

In a race for an open Planning Board seat for five years, Francois Steiger out-polled Thomas Robinson 242 to 151.

Incumbent Alice Livdahl won a one-year seat on the Planning Board with 327 votes.

Two positions were on the ballot for three-year terms on the Board of Health, with incumbent Catherine Hansgate winning one with 331 votes; the second seat remains unfilled.

A Board of Health seat for two years garnered four write-in votes, with a winner pending acceptance.

Quabbin School Committee incumbent Mark Wigler was returned to the committee with 329 votes.

John Prentiss was returned to the Board of Assessors, with 333 votes; Moderator Rene Lafayette won re-election with 342 votes.

Two three-year seats on the Finance Committee were filled by incumbents Joshua Lerner, 288, and Susan Rayne, 296.

A two-year seat on the Finance Committee was filled by incumbent David Conaghan, 315 votes, while a one-year term was won by incumbent Charles Reed with 312 votes.

Paul Sweeney garnered 329 votes in being returned to the Cemetery Commission.

Incumbents Johanna Henning and Morgan Brinker were re-elected as Trustees of the Public Library with votes of 299 and 270, respectively.

Incumbent Parks Commissioners Jason Guertin, 311 votes, and Brian Matheson, 291 votes, were re-elected.

Seats on the Housing Authority were hard to fill, with a write-in for a one-year term potentially filled, but no one elected to fill two-year, three-year and four-year terms.

Positions still open could be filled by the Board of Selectmen in joint meetings with the committee to which the appointment is to be made. The person elected would then have to run for election next year to retain the seat for the remainder of the full term.

More Taxes on the Way??

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JUNE 7, 2019.....Taxes and benefits are front of mind over the next week. Lawmakers on Wednesday plan to take a critical vote to advance a constitutional amendment designed to raise $2 billion in new taxes from the state's wealthiest residents. The expected vote during a Constitutional Convention coincides with an effort to delay for three months the state's new paid family and medical leave program, which entails about $1 billion in new taxes and benefits. Business and labor groups, in a rare alliance, urged Beacon Hill on May 20 to pass a delay bill, which they say will facilitate a smoother rollout. Their request has received serious consideration but Gov. Charlie Baker and Democratic legislative leaders have so far been unable to agree on what to do, although Baker hoped for a final decision this week due to the logistics involved with implementing a law that affects so many workers and employers.

Baker has gone along with the leave program's new payroll tax and also hopes his proposed taxes on vaping products and opioid manufacturers will be adopted by the conference committee that formally began work this week on a state budget that's due by July 1. But Baker remains the only one among those deciding the fate of the income surtax or millionaires tax who has not staked out a position on the important matter. Two days before the joint meeting of the House and Senate, Baker is scheduled to speak Monday at the annual meeting of the Massachusetts High Technology Council, which is leading the charge against the proposed tax and would surely like to see Baker join the many other elected Republicans in their corner. An amendment to the measure filed by Rep. Alice Peisch would permit the legislature to establish a progressive income tax structure under which tax rates would increase along with income.

While Baker has supported tax increases, he's also portrayed himself as someone who wants to hold the line against tax hikes and who believes the state should be able to get by on its existing revenues. That's a line of thinking that's holding up in fiscal 2019. May tax collections of about $2 billion kept the state on pace for a revenue surplus of about $950 million. With just one month left in the fiscal year, tax receipts are running 7.6 percent over the same 11-month period in fiscal 2018, far surpassing the growth rate that lawmakers and Baker used to build this year's state budget. That budget has needed padding throughout the year and a time-sensitive supplemental budget (H 3819) that was approved by the House on May 29 and remains pending before the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Baker this week signed a $1.9 billion transportation bond bill that included $200 million for local road repairs. Other loose ends on the hill include reaching agreement on a final bill limiting drivers to using only hands-free devices while behind the wheel and a Senate decision on how it plans to address Sen. Mike Brady's drunk driving case plea agreement.

Phillipston Elementary School Survey 

Since the override failed in Templeton, it seems very likely that the Narragansett Regional School District (NRSD) will empty the Phillipston Memorial Elementary School (PMES) and transfer the students to the new Templeton Center Elementary School this fall. At some point in the future the district might convert it to a pre-k / kindergarten school for district wide and school choice students.

The Phillipston Selectboard wants to learn your thoughts about the options available to Phillipston. Please complete the survey below and return it to the Selectboard Office by June 5, 2019. 

First, please answer these questions. 

1. Do you have children in the Narragansett Regional School District? Yes No a.
If yes, how many children and what grades? _________________________________

Now please read each scenario below and answer the question after each scenario. 

2. Since Phillipston voted to approve the override the town could take the position to have the NRSD school committee not open the new Templeton School this year for "lack of funds" and distribute Templeton's elementary school students between PMES and the High School/Middle School until such funds are available to open the new Templeton Center elementary school and not empty PMES.
  Choose the option that is closest to how you feel:

 Yes, I agree.
 No, I disagree

3. If the NRSD district moves the PMES children to Templeton Center, what should the Town of Phillipston do?
Choose the option that is closest to how you feel:

 Do nothing. Let NRSD empty the school or convert it to a district-wide pre-k /kindergarten school.
  The Town needs to take action to try to stop this change.

4. Some people feel if NRSD moves the children from PMES to Templeton Center, the Town should take steps to keep the children at PMES. Listed below are some potential options available to Phillipston.
Choose the option that is closest to how you feel: 

 Withdraw the PMES elementary school only from the NRSD district. Seek another town or district as a partner.
 Withdraw the PMES elementary school only from the NRSD district. Operate the PMES elementary school ourselves the way Petersham does. (Note: Petersham operates its own elementary school and is part of Mahar Regional School District for grades 7 - 12)
 Withdraw completely (K-12) from the NRSD district. Seek another district as partner.
 School choice Phillipston elementary students to another school district.
 Stay with Narragansett Regional School District. Let the NRSD district send PMES elementary school children to Templeton Center School.

5. If Phillipston’s elementary students go to Templeton Center, the NRSD District or Town of Templeton or the State may require that the Town of Phillipston contribute to the cost of the new Templeton Center School building. This could be $3 - 4 million, requiring Phillipston to undertake long- term borrowing and a property tax increase.

How do you feel about this?
Choose the option that is closest to how you feel:
 That’s okay with me.
 I’m against that.
 It might be okay if we got something back in return, like the NRSD district paying for upgrades to PMES.

6. For the last year, a Phillipston town committee has been evaluating the condition of the PMES school and what updates are needed. An architect identified several issues to address: a new roof, a sprinkler system and some ADA improvements to meet code, moving the kitchen out of the basement, etc. The estimated cost for these upgrades and improvements is $2.25 million dollars, some of which may be covered by grants.

The Town of Phillipston has a history of investing in the PMES elementary school, upgrading the heating system, adding a gymnasium and an elevator, etc., even when it requires borrowing money or raising taxes to pay for it.

Do you think the Town of Phillipston should make these improvements to PMES?
Choose the option that is closest to how you feel:
 Yes, because we need to upgrade the PMES school to keep it up to date.
 Not if the PMES students are sent to Templeton Center.
 Not if the school becomes a NRSD district-wide pre-k / kindergarten.
 Only if the NRSD district shares in the cost because they make it a district-wide pre-k / kindergarten school.
 No, not under any circumstances

7. If the PMES children are moved to Templeton Center and PMES is emptied then we should:
 Choose the option that is closest to how you feel: 
 Take the building back and turn it into a municipal use, such as town offices, senior housing, community center, etc.
 Upgrade it so it can be used by the NRSD district as a school.
 Upgrade it so the Town of Phillipston can use it as a school.
 Don’t spend any more money on it. Maybe we should sell it.

8. If PMES becomes a regional pre-k / kindergarten then who should pay for the required upgrades?
Choose the option that is closest to how you feel: 
 The NRSD district should pay the improvement costs, with Phillipston and Templeton sharing the costs.
 Pay for the upgrades ourselves.

9. We may need to renegotiate the regional agreement. Currently we have 3 seats out of 8 on the NRSD school committee. Templeton has suggested it should be changed to match our proportion of the student population (14% +/-). That would leave us with 1 seat out of 8.
Do you agree with this change? Choose the option that is closest to how you feel: 
 Yes
 No

10. Any other comments?

RETURN TO: Phillipston Selectboard, 50 the Common, Phillipston, MA 01331 by June 5, 2019

The below is shown as presented at Town Meeting. I do not feel it can be presented one way and then try to say, well, it includes this or we did not include debt when we stated 2.5%. It is all included in one article with one dollar amount, same as last year and it shows almost a one million dollar increase in costs.

ARTICLE 26 FY 2019 GENERAL FUND OPERATING (OPEX) BUDGET

Submitted by the Board of Selectmen Majority Vote Required

I move to appropriate the sum of Nine Million Six Hundred Ninety Thousand Two Hundred Seventy Four Dollars and no cents ($9,690,274.00) for the operations of General Government for Fiscal Year 2020, and to meet said appropriation with a transfer of Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars and No Cents ($250,000.00) from the Ambulance receipts reserved for appropriation, anticipated receipts, and the balance from taxation.

Dept                   Code Name                                             FY 20 Budget

120                     Selectmen (1)                                         $    358,250

130                     Advisory Committee (2)                          $      49,395

 135                    Town Accountant                                     $   193,470

141                     Assessor                                                 $      92,000

147                     Treasurer/Collector                                 $    133,750

155                     IT & Communications                             $    100,000

161                     Town Clerk                                              $    107,250

200                     Police & Dispatch                                   $ 1,340,500

220                     Fire & EMS                                             $    732,750

230                     Emergency Management                        $       1,750

250                     Development Services                            $   162,000

400                     Highway                                                  $    605,001

410                     Building & Grounds                                 $   305,000

420                     Snow & Ice (2)                                         $   147,500

500                     Veterans Service                                      $   104,122

 600                    Senior Services                                        $   152,999

610                     Library                                                      $     79,640

620                     Recreation & Culture                                $       9,750

700                     Debt Service                                             $ 2,590,147

 900                    Insurance & Benefits                                $ 2,425,000

$ 9,690,274

(1) Contains Reserve Transferable by Select Board for CBAs and Merit & Equity Raises

 for Non-Union Personnel

(2) Contains MGL Ch. 40 §6 Reserve Transferable by Advisory Committee for

 "…emergency or unforeseen expenditures..."

Templeton has more than 5,000 registered voters. Templeton needs more than 200 voters to show up for Town Meeting.
No matter what any selectmen stated at Town Meeting, there was more than a 2.5% increase in general government funding for fiscal year 2020.

Article 26 - Annual Town Meeting May 15, 16, 2019:
$9,690,274.00.

Article 21 - Annual Town Meeting May 19, 2018:
$8,220,298.00 + override article 24 of $470,246.00
= $8,690,544.00. If you do the math, it shows it in simple terms, what was stated by a Templeton selectmen at Town Meeting on May 16, 2019 was incorrect.

In closing, remember, you voted for this without many questions. Town government cost increased by nearly one million dollars and school followed; Town Meeting should use their power and vote no on such town increases, if you truly do not want them. Last year, people wanted an override, this year they did not, I only wish they would have said no at Town Meeting!

Just so you are aware;
Swim program for FY 2020:
What was presented in the budget for Recreation & Culture, page 209 - swim director at $1,400.00 per year and swimming assistant x2 at $1,000.00 ($500.00 each) so that is $2,400.00 plus an additional $100.00 under rec / culture supplies / swimming program.

Okay, Templeton Fish & Game club may allow use of it's beach area free for swim program, but there is a cost to the program. Question for all; do you wish to use tax dollars (your money) to teach kids to swim and be comfortable in the water or do you wish it to be fee based, where if you wish to enroll your child in swim program, you pay a fee. What happens to a kid who's family cannot afford the fee? At the end of the day, do you, as a resident / taxpayer, wish to spend some of your money to get kids into the water and know how to swim?