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Budgets and Tumbleweeds?
Georgetown Selectman Lonnie Brennan

This time of year our focus tends to shift to family, friends, dream shopping at the mall, school concerts, football and snowflakes. As we transition into the winter weather, thoughts of town budgets, school committees, zoning changes and such get shuffled to the backburner, struck out of memory. But not for all.

December marks the beginning of budget planning sessions. Last year wasn’t pretty. For months, most folks didn’t pay attention. Budgets? Boring. The school department held countless meetings and forums. You could hear the crickets chirping, the tumbleweeds blowing. With the exception of a few regulars, the meetings were sparsely populated.

In January, the schools handed their finished “education-based” budget to the Finance Committee. It sat for a bit of time, then the schools eventually got their response when the snow melted in the spring: we like your budget, it looks nice and pretty, we trust your numbers, but cut it! In response, the schools ended up asking voters for a $381,167 supplemental budget (tax override) in May that went down in flames (failed). Later, the schools discovered they had a $143K budget windfall (end of year surplus), and then they received a state bonus of $77K in increased Chapter 70 money, leaving them just $160K short of their initial request moving into the school year. Fast forward to today. The town now finds another $508K in “free cash,” money that is extra, surplus, and will most likely sit until the spring before any of it is touched. A lot of angst, a lot of kids left with changes that could have or might have been made, but were not made. A lot of arguments over money and shortages. All along, the money was there.

So what will make this budget season different? What will prevent pitting neighbor against neighbor, asking for overrides then finding the money? A few things will help: a revised universal budget process is in the works, the renewed request to restore the position of finance director in town to manage the millions we raise, invest, and spend, a dedicated Finance Committee with two members now tasked to act as liaisons to the schools, monthly school budget reporting, and most importantly, good people like you taking time away from Christmas shopping and helping out right now, early in the budget process. I urge you to attend any of the school hearings and Finance Committee meetings and become informed. Don’t wait until the spring when it’s too late.

One of the biggest gifts you can give the town budget process is to firmly and repeatedly express and support the need to have a priority list for any extra funds which might surface. Without a priority list, salaries get paid and equipment gets purchased, but when extra money is made available, somehow it gets spent and the newspapers get filled with conflict on how that money is spent. What we need is a list that tells us exactly where the “vintage 1979 textbooks” are being used in our schools, and exactly where on the priority list that set of books sits for getting replaced. Such a list doesn’t exist and needs to come out of this budget process. The entire town needs to be able to see not only where every dollar is going to be spent today, but what the short-term and long-term financial needs will be moving forward, and how they will be addressed. A priorities list will solve that problem. A re-energized capital improvement planning process will also help, but that’s a subject for another column.

The Largest, Brightest Santa Parade

But it’s December, and so let’s shift to one of the best-run programs in town: the Fire Department’s Toys for Tots campaign, held in conjunction with the United States Marine Corps. Reserve. This year, as in every year, very loud and cheerfully adorned fire trucks and equipment will wind through the streets of Georgetown with Santa and his helpers. December 10th is the date. Every street, every path. And children of all ages will come forth and donate new, unwrapped gifts and toys for Santa to give to needy families. For details on the Santa Tour, contact Santa Tour Co-coordinator Rusty Ricker at RRicker@georgetownma.gov.

Karen Reddy, Mitt Romney, Ray Flynn

What does Georgetown resident Karen Reddy have in common with Governor Mitt Romney and former Boston Mayor Ray Flynn? Answer: A deep conviction in democracy and participation in government.

Ms. Reddy took center stage on the State House steps in November, stepping in front of the big microphones, the TV cameras and a CNN crew, and calmly, confidently addressed a 5,000+ crowd gathered at a State House constitutional rally. (And a small 200+, but obnoxious crowd of detractors whowouldn’t even stop shouting insults during the Pledge of Allegiance!)

In a very deliberate, straightforward manner, Ms. Reddy laid out the history of her involvement in a citizen petition process regarding marriage, and how that process has been stomped on by approximately half of the legislators who are determined to put their own personal feelings and agendas ahead of our constitution and the law. Putting aside how one feels about homosexual marriage, many of the speakers at the event focused on the illegal actions of the legislators to break any law they desire to break to forward their own personal agendas and feelings.

“No one was fooled by their blatant disregard of the people’s petition,” Ms. Reddy told the audience. “What more do we, as law-abiding citizens, need to do in order for our voice to be heard? I am concerned about the future for the ability of regular people like us to participate in government. Our constitution grants us the right to petition government and yet our legislature has flat-out denied our rights,” she said. “Just remember we are expected to abide by the law. Doesn’t it make sense that our lawmakers be expected to abide by the law as well?”

I’m sure Ms. Reddy realizes that most of the legislators who are determined to break the law have been rewarded for their action: sharing in campaign contributions from the homosexual lobby who are determined to keep Massachusetts as the only gay-marriage state in the nation. As Massachusetts Family Institute Chairman Kris Mineau noted, the homosexual lobby poured more than $1 million into the November 7 election for one key reason, according to their own gay and lesbian newspaper, Bay Windows: “So lawmakers would be indebted to them and return the favor by killing the marriage amendment by any means possible.” Money talks.

Prayers for Richie Clough and Family

As of this writing, Selectman Chairman Richie Clough has been re-admitted to the hospital, following the amputation of his leg from complications of diabetes. Please keep Richie and his family in your prayers this Christmas Season. In an effort to show our appreciation to Richie and the Clough family (a proud, stubborn bunch like myself, I might add), we’ll be organizing some potluck dinners and such. Please contact me at Lonnie@lonniebrenann.com if you would like to get on the schedule. The thought is simply to have families or individuals take turns, once or more each week and show their appreciation to the Clough family with a small gift of dinner or appreciation. Anything to show our appreciation and that we care.

Lawrence “Lonnie” Brennan is a selectman in the town of Georgetown and active in district politics. You can e-mail him at Lonnie@lonniebrennan.com or call him at 978-352-5449.

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The December, 2006 Edition of the Valley Patriot
The Valley Patriot is a Monthly Publication.
All Contents (C) 2006, Valley Patriot, Inc.
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