Welcome to TIVERTON 1st!

Tiverton 1st is a grassroots community organization open to all who support preserving our quality of life in Tiverton by maintaining both our community and school services in a fiscally-responsible way, and promoting cooperation, compromise and community pride.
Membership is open to all Tiverton residents who are at least 18 years old & support Tiverton 1st's principles & goals (non-residents or those under 18 years old are welcome to join as non-voting members). There's no membership fee.Just email your name, address, phone # and email address to: Tiverton1st@cox.net.
You can also request to become a "Tiverton 1st Friend"& join our confidential email list.

Saturday, May 16, 2015

BUDGET 2 WINS FTR VOTE

Obviously, tonight's FTR results are a big disappointment. So, too, was the turnout, just around 20%, when over 60% turned out for the November election. It's a sad commentary on the level of voter participation when a 20% turnout is reported as a "large turnout".

The bottom line is that all voters could have voted on the town budget, and of those who did, the majority chose Budget 2. While every elected body and professional feels this is a mistake, that's the way elections work. 


Tiverton 1st will continue to work to inform and motivate community-minded people to get involved, run for office, and above all, to vote. Results like tonight's are frustrating, but we care too much about out town and schools and the people of Tiverton to give up.


Thank you to all who played a part in support of Budget 1, and to all who did take the time to vote. Let's take some time to determine the best path forward, and then get back to work in support of our community.


Brian Medeiros
Tiverton, RI

Friday, May 15, 2015

SATURDAY IS THE FINAL DAY TO VOTE ON TOWN & SCHOOL BUDGET / 7am-8pm at THS

Tomorrow (Saturday) is the final day for voting on the Town and School Budget at the annual FTR (Financial Town Referendum). All registered voters are eligible to vote at the High School from 7am - 8pm. Remember to bring your photo ID. Please take time from your busy schedule to help determine your town's future, and your own.

Tiverton 1st encourages every voter to get the facts and vote to approve Budget 1, the Budget Committee proposal that was put together by all three elected bodies and the professionals we pay to manage our town and school finances. It balances maintaining vital services while containing costs, and will cost the owner of a $200K home just $1.50 more per week than Budget 2, without all the negative consequences of Budget 2. 

As a community group, we rely on people who share our love for Tiverton to vote, and encourage their friends and neighbors to do the same. If everyone does their part, together we can protect Tiverton's financial stability and its future.

The backers of Budget 2 have an extreme political agenda they've been unable to enact through the regular election process. So they've hijacked this budget vote to exploit the understandable financial concerns of many residents. But as has been demonstrated, Budget 2 will not only be destructive to the town's financial stability, by raiding the town's savings and underfunding vital services, but it will ultimately cost every taxpayer more. It's a potential self-inflicted wound that will benefit no one but those spending thousands to promote it.

Town finances can be complicated. At the end of the day, the question to ask is: who do you trust? Is it the people you elected to represent you, and the financial professionals they hired to manage town finances? Or a fringe political group with a self-serving agenda?

We are all taxpayers, and demand our town government balance services and costs in a responsible way. Budget 2 backers like to tell people to "control your taxes". That's what town government has been doing for the past five years. Since the large tax increase in 2010 necessitated by inadequate savings to meet a crisis, spending and tax increases have been stable, and at historic lows. Progress has been made, and long-term plans enacted. Budget 2 will reverse this progress and bring back instability and lurching from crisis to crisis, with higher taxes and new fees as a result.

This is your chance to directly decide what kind of town you want Tiverton to be. Every vote counts, and every non-vote benefits those looking to return us to financial instability. We're better than that, and we deserve better. Please get out and vote to support Budget 1 on Saturday. Five minutes doing so can prevent years of financial crises and higher costs to all of us.

Brian Medeiros
Tiverton, RI


LETTER: TOWN COUNCILOR BRETT PELLETIER

This Saturday, May 16th marks a new FTR arrangement in the town of Tiverton. We’re ALL voting at the High School. It’s just one way the Town has found to save taxpayers money. The past 2 years have been particularly difficult to budget: massive snow storms, increasing electricity and healthcare costs, and a $600,000 budget deficit. But we made it work. We will always make it work. That is our job. It’s not a victory when we prevent bad things from happening; it’s what we have sworn to do on your behalf. It might not seem like it from national headlines, but public service is a humble endeavor. I take my responsibility to be a good steward very seriously. The only way cooperative governance works is if we trust one another.
I try not to ask much from the voters of Tiverton. Today, I simply ask for your trust. Many of you trusted me enough to elect me three times to the Town Council. I now ask that you trust that I’m working for your own best interests and the best interests of your children, grandchildren, neighbors, and even those yet to come. Our new Town Administrator has a passion for public service, and coupled with our revised budget and capital planning, we are starting to find more than one year’s solutions to multi-year problems. This planning will address what we can do today to make the next 10 years progressive, not regressive. That work is reflected in our Budget #1. Some would have you believe that we’re all stupid, fatuous, and irresponsible. I can tell you there is nothing further from the truth and I would suggest that those willing to stand up and work for you and take such name-calling and hostility do so out of a willingness to help their fellow citizens.
I’m prone to quoting Churchill so here goes... “Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried… No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried.…” I know it’s not perfect, but it’s the system we’ve all agreed on; don’t take the legs out halfway through. I ask that you all vote for Budget #1 on Saturday. I spent a lot of time and energy, along with a lot of other public servants, in thinking about it, analyzing it, and presenting it. It works, it’s responsible, and it serves the best interests of the residents of the town of Tiverton and it lets your public servants do just that…serve the public.
Thank you.
Brett N. Pelletier

VOTING ON THE BUDGET CONTINUES TODAY AT TOWN HALL FROM 7am - 8pm. PLEASE TAKE FIVE MINUTES TO VOTE FOR BUDGET 1

Every vote counts in this FTR Budget vote to save our town's financial stability and vital services. Please take five minutes to do your part, and encourage everyone you know to do the same. Every voter who fails to vote plays into the hands of those spending big bucks to push Budget 2's fiscal irresponsibility and political agenda. We're better than that as a community, and together we can keep Tiverton moving forward.

APPROVE BUDGET 1 / THE BUDGET COMMITTEE PROPOSAL
Preserve vital town and school services without raiding the town's savings

Thursday, May 14, 2015

LETTER: TDTC CHAIR MIKE BURK

On May 16th, I urge Tiverton voters to support Budget #1.  This budget, prepared by dozens of elected and appointed town officials under public in many public meetings is a fair and reasonable budget that balances the needs of our community with our ability to support those needs.
The alternate Elector Petitioner’s budget, the Katz Budget, was prepared by six people behind closed doors.  By his own words, Mr. Katz never held a public meeting, never sought input from any town officials and fails to account for the differences between Tiverton and other towns when he tries to compare us to those towns.
Mr. Katz shares a picture of tax rates of surrounding communities but fails to share the significant differences in property values and the fact that Massachusetts’ tax and revenue system is vastly different than Rhode Island’s.  He fails to note that most of those Massachusetts communities have a commercial tax rate that is nearly twice as high as their residential rate – which helps to cushion the burden on residents.  He fails to share that of the Rhode Island communities noted, only Tiverton and Little Compton exempt the first $6,000 of a vehicle from the vehicle tax – a huge difference.  He fails to share that Little Compton has both a higher aggregate overall property value than Tiverton and also has few town services, and no high school.
Mr. Katz supposedly is a proponent of transparency in government but it is okay for him to present a budget written behind closed doors.  While Budget #1 clearly shows how the town plans to spend our tax dollars, the Katz budget does not.  Limited space does not allow me to show you all of the fallacies of the Katz budget.  Please support Budget #1 on May 16th.
Sincerely,
Mike Burk
Chairman, Tiverton Democratic Town Committee

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

VOTING ON TOWN BUDGET (FTR) BEGINS TODAY (THURS MAY 14)

Voting for those who may not be able to vote in Saturday's Financial Town Referendum (FTR) to determine the town and school budgets is available at Town Hall today (Thurs) and Friday from 7am-8pm. All registered voters who may not be able to vote Saturday can take advantage of this opportunity.

Those pushing Budget 2 were unable to enact their self-serving agenda at November's General Election, and are now spending thousands to get it through at this FTR vote. They are counting on a low turnout, like last year's 18% turnout, to slip this past the majority who understand the self-destructive nature of using the town's savings to fund the budget. The negative consequences of Budget 2 will be long-term and wide-ranging, and all of us will be dealing with them for years to come.


To prevent that outcome, each of us needs to to get out and vote for Budget 1, and encourage friends, family and neighbors to do the same. It takes all of us to preserve the community we live in. Every vote counts, so do your part for a sane and stable financial future.

TOWN TREASURER DENISE SAURETTE: BUDGET 2 WILL COMPROMISE GOAL OF CAPITAL PLANNING


"Insanity: Doing the Same Thing Over and Over Again and Expecting Different Results"


This infamous maxim certainly applies to Tiverton’s recent practice of dipping into savings to stabilize taxes.
In the not too distant past, Tiverton had a history of using the unreserved general fund to offset taxes. Once stripped to the minimum, this practice ultimately resulted in unusually large tax increases and a reserve that dipped below the charter requirement. Apparently there are some folks who have not learned from that mistake, and continue to propose unsubstantiated changes to the budget committee budget AND take from the reserve.
Now many are blasting Tiverton for having a net surplus each year, but at the same time criticizing the lack of capital improvement and long term plans. The fact is these two issues go hand in hand, realizing a surplus at the end of any budget season, allows management the ability to plan.
Each time a petition withdraws from the unreserved general fund, our goal of capital planning is compromised. This practice whittles away at any opportunity to use those funds for the good of the entire town – a paving program or perhaps replacing heavy equipment without having to finance the purchase? A “Band-Aid” approach does not work here. We need long term planning and long term goals.
The recent elector petition compares Tiverton’s tax rate with our neighboring communities. It is disingenuous to compare solely based on the RE tax rate. There are a number of factors that contribute to the final calculation of the RE tax rate: Population, housing units, Real Property levy & rate, Commercial Property levy & rate, and the percent of State Aid received. Furthermore, each of these communities offers a different degree and level of service – contributing to a significantly different quality of life!
Portsmouth has a lower tax rate, and their proposed budget includes not only a $250K appropriation to fund their goal of a 16% Fund Balance but a $1M for road improvements. Interesting, it appears that allowing Town Management to do its job - build reserves and plan for the future - may actually result in a lower tax rate.
Stop harping on past mistakes, embrace the new administration, look to the future and “Let them do their Job!”
Denise Saurette
Tiverton Treasurer 

TOWN TREASURER: BUDGET OPTION 1 IS RIGHT FOR THE TOWN


“Millions” of dollars in reserves and annual surpluses in the “six” figures –
Yes the Town has $2.524 million in the unreserved fund balance at the end of FY2014 – and yes the town has had “six-figure” annual surpluses at the end of the last few fiscal years – but let’s put that into perspective.
· That fund balance does not reflect the $600K reserve withdrawal for FY2015
· While our charter requires a minimum unreserved fund balance of 3%, our actual unreserved fund balance figures at a modest 5.07%.
· Based on the most recent quarterly report to the Office of Municipal Affairs, our projected unreserved fund balance will drop to $1.8 million, just .85% above the minimum requirement
What follows is a review and analysis of each of the “Six-Figure” surpluses that the town realized in the last three fiscal years.
In FY2014, we had 3 significant UNANTICIPATEDitems – Pension Aid from the State ($74,510), we realized interest from a few very old Surety Bonds ($53,281) and Savings from Refinancing the TIF Bond ($95,828). These 3 items totaled $223,619 or 91.3% of the $245,038 Actual Surplus in FY2014.
In FY2013,we had 4 significant UNANTICIPATEDitems – The Sale of Ranger & Nonquit schools ($101,700), an increase in Ambulance billing ($75,000), an increase in State Aid ($39,534) and a reconcilation of outstanding items ($111,868). These 4 items totaled $328,102 – more than the $300,164 Actual Surplus for FY2013.
In FY2012, we had 4 significant UNANTICIPATEDitems – Revenue from Debt Service Reserve Fund ($12,055), Recycling Revenue ($38,017), an increase in tax interest ($60,791), Savings in Fire Dept. personnel & overtime ($84,751) and Savings from Police Dept. Deputy Chief ($34,859). These 4 items totaled $230,473 – more than the $218,006 Actual Surplus for FY2012.
If you take a moment and review the Actual Surplus for each year and the relatedUNANTICIPATEDitems for that year, you will note that HAD THOSE ITEMS NOToccurred – the bottom line would have been much different – this is “Balanced Budgeting At Its’ Best.” Each year, the surplus was less than 1% of the entire budget, a significantly difficult task, considering the size & complexity of our budget.
I believe that a budget for our Town, vetted by all the Department Heads, the Town Administrator, the Town Clerk, the Town Council and the Budget Committee deserves your support and your vote. Budget Option #1 is what is right for the Town!
Denise Saurette
Tiverton Treasurer

SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEMBER JAMES ARRUDA: "VOTE BUDGET #1 FOR FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY"

On May 16th please consider voting for budget #1 for fiscal sustainability. The petitioner budget has conveniently left out some information while comparing Tiverton to its neighboring communities. Thus far the focus has been on the tax rates of those communities and how Tiverton is much higher, and the answer is to offset the tax increases with taking money out of our general fund. Here is a short list of what other communities have in their respective general fund/reserve account:
Portsmouth – 9% (8% is the town policy but in their Financial Report, dated June 23, 2014, suggests to increase their reserve funds up to 16% as recommended by the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). See link for reference: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url…)
Little Compton – 12% (A per their policies as reported by their budget committee report to for the Financial Town Meeting. As from the report: targets an unrestricted general fund balance equivalent to 12% of annual budgeted expenses (a level which we believe is appropriate to preserve our Town’s creditworthiness). I will note that this was from May of 2013 for the FY2014 budget and still followed.)
Westport – 3% (I wasn't going to compare a Massachusetts town, but since the petitioner did, so will I. Here is an excerpt from a report done by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue from their Division of Local Services: The board initiated the request because the town’s past practice of
using non-recurring revenues to support ongoing operating expenses is not fiscally sustainable. As a
result, Westport has had significant structural deficits. The date of this report is October 2014) Link: https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url…
Tiverton – 3% (currently by charter, but a policy was put in place by David Nelson and Rob Coulter to increase the general fund balance by 0.5% per year up to 5.0%)
I included the Westport findings to show the path we are being put on, which is a path of Non-Fiscal Sustainability. We do not want to get in the practice of having to go to bond or to borrow for capital expenditures. So I urge voters to please consider the ramifications of these budgets we will be voting on this Saturday. Our Town Administrator said it best “Don't take from the college fund to by a happy meal so that you can be a hero today, at the cost of sacrificing the future.”
Lastly, as a newly appointed member of the school committee, I also want to point out that All-Day Kindergarten HAS TO BE FUNDED in order to receive the increase in state aid. It is NOT, and I repeat, IS NOT a one time expense. The program has to be budgeted every year in order to receive the additional funds from the state to offset the costs. Saying the school department can just use its reserve funds to fund a re-occurring expense is NOT FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE, especially when there are buildings that need extensive repairs.
James Arruda
Tiverton School Committee

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

LETTER: TOWN COUNCIL PRESIDENT DENISE deMEDEIROS

I am writing this letter to ask that voters approve Budget #1 at the financial town referendum on Saturday. I think it is important that people realize what is at stake here is a lot more than one year's budget.

We have to remember that we live in a small town. We have to try to be respectful of each other even when we get upset over an issue. I think we also have to keep in mind that saving money and being responsible means thinking about the long term.


Over the past several months, the School Committee, Town Council andBudget Committee spent many hours debating the budget. We took a lot of votes in public meetings. We thought about all the trade offs. There were many discussions about keeping the balance between what the taxpayers of the Town can support and what the Town as a whole will need not just for this year but for coming years.


I was offended when, at the financial town hearing, the spokesman for the alternative budget could not answer any questions about how he arrived at his numbers. If I answered every single question I was asked about an important issue with "I don't know" or "I did not ask anybody about that" Idon't think the voters who put me into office would keep me there. So why would anyone vote for a budget, the most important thing we do all year, if there is no research or thinking behind the  
numbers? 

I think when someone promises you everything you want but cannot tell you how those promises will be kept - you should be worried! Budget #1 is supported by a lot of professional effort and people who are passionate about this Town, and it is not fair or correct to dismiss all of our work. If we fail, throw us out
of office. Don't elect us to do the work and then let the people who lost the election write your budget.

I hope people realize that many of the cuts suggested by the supporters of the petitioner's budget are simply impossible to make. We have contracts in place with employees. You can't just show up one day and tell someone their pay has been cut when they have a binding contract. The petitioner's budget cuts the money the tax collector uses to send out bills. Everyone

knows we have to send out the bills.

The secret some people won't tell you about is that cutting essential items is a trick. What some people want is for the Council to cut popular, nonessential things like recreation and the Senior Center in order to meet a bottom line figure that is totally unrealistic. They hid their cuts because they want to win this budget - not because they have the best interest of the Town in mind. This is all about politics, and I think that is terrible. It certainly is no way to run a Town.

Please vote for Budget #1, and defend the basic respect, trust and accountability we need to have to keep a balanced, well informed approach to our budget.


Sincerely,
Denise M. deMedeiros
Tiverton Town Council President

LETTER: SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEMBER JERRY LARKIN


It is unfortunate but the charter allows it. With 50 or more signatures, Justin Katz can submit a budget which puts aside the hard work of your elected officials: the School Committee, the Budget Committee and the Town Council have worked for months to establish a budget which is fair to taxpayers, preserves the vital services of the town and continues to support the schools. But without a lot of answers to specific questions, without engaging the people who do the work, without really much thought and with no responsibility for the consequences, he has done it again.
What he has demonstrated is a lot of imagination with numbers. However, one place where Mr. Katz's imagination fails him is in telling us where the school department is to come up with the $127,000.00 he cuts from the schools. He did suggest funding programs out of the reserve fund. This would create a structural deficit in the budget and fly in the face of the fiscal prudence for which the school department was universally praised at the recent Financial Town Hearing. You don't pay your mortgage with a credit card. The amount is suspiciously close to the cost of implementing full day kindergarden. No doubt he isn't bold enough to go so far as to make this explicit. This innovation is the most important and cost effective investment we can make in our children's future. But it's too much for Mr. Katz.
While the charter allows an alternative budget, a crucial part of his strategy is voter apathy. A low turnout favors the extremists. Please come to vote at Tiverton High School on May 16th to support the schools, the town and all of your fellow citizens by voting for Budget #1.
Jerry Larkin
Tiverton School Committee

THREE NUMBERS FTR BUDGET 2 BACKERS DON’T WANT VOTERS TO KNOW

While the backers of Budget 2 in Tiverton’s Financial Town Referendum have used many misleading figures to promote their self-serving proposal, there are three numbers they don’t want voters to know about.

The first number is $1.50. That’s the weekly amount Budget 2 will save the owner of a $200,000 home over Budget 1 (If you own a $300,000 home, the number is $2.25/week). Budget 1 was created with input from our elected and professional officials and the public; Budget 2 was created solely by members a small political group (previously TCC or Clean-Up Tiverton, now Tiverton Taxpayers Association). Budget 1 maintains vital community and school services, and funds All-Day Kindergarten, while preserving the town’s rainy-day funds. Budget 2 spends town savings to fund the budget, while intentionally underfunding many key items, and jeopardizing All-Day Kindergarten. Is it worth the financial chaos of Budget 2 to save $1.50/week in taxes?

The second number is 7.5%. That’s the tax-levy increase voters had to approve in 2010 to fund a budget that simply maintained services. The reason is simple: the town had been using money from the General Fund, our savings, to fund the budget and lower the tax increase. This practice left the town incapable of handling a crisis, like a $1.4 million funding deficit when the State withheld promised vehicle-tax funds. Voters faced the awful choice of a large tax increase or devastating cuts in services. A lesson was learned and the practice stopped. Budget 2 backers ignore this lesson, and want you to return the town to financial and tax instability, with higher costs via new fees. Is $1.50/week worth  cuts to services, instability, and higher taxes in coming years?

The third number is $25,000. That’s the amount of money Budget 2 petitioner Justin Katz and some of his supporters have cost taxpayers defending against their current lawsuit against the town over that 2010 vote. They believe voters shouldn’t have the final say. They now propose to cut the town’s litigation budget, used to defend taxpayers against costly lawsuits…like theirs. Ask yourself: does this benefit anyone other than those behind Budget 2?

Budget 2 will benefit a small political group at your expense; Budget 1 balances the needs of all in Tiverton. Be a part of strengthening our community and improving our financial stability. Vote to approve Budget 1 at the May 16 FTR, or at early voting May 14 and 15. Every vote counts in deciding Tiverton’s future. Don’t let someone with a personal agenda make that decision for you.


Brian Medeiros
Tiverton, RI

Friday, May 8, 2015

VIDEO: TV SHOW PROVIDES VOTER INFO FOR MAY 16 FTR CHOICE


"Tiverton Financial Town Referendum Preview" is a 30-minute TV show providing information on the May 16 FTR and the choices facing voters. It features Town Council President Denise deMedeiros, School Committee President Sally Black, Budget Committee Vice-Chair Laura Epke, Budget Committee member Cecil Leonard, Town Administrator Matt Wojcik, School Superintendent Bill Rearick, and School Finance Director Doug Fiore. It can be be viewed here in its entirety. 

It can also be seen on Cox channel 18 this weekend: FRI @ 7:30pm, SAT @ 11:30am & 7pm, & SUN @ 11am. 

Thursday, May 7, 2015

LETTER: BUDGET #2 STRIPS FUNDS FOR ALL-DAY KINDERGARTEN

Working closely with our elected budget committee, the school committee identified one major priority for next year – instituting all-day kindergarten. The School Committee is requesting only a 1% increase to help fund all-day K. This increase is one of the lowest in almost two decades.

Petitioner’s Budget #2 strips the funding we need to institute all-day K. Unfortunately, the petitioner did not attend any school committee meetings, including those 
during which we discussed our budget.

Thirty of the 36 public school districts in Rhode Island have all-day kindergarten. Tiverton is one of only six that do not. As neighboring Massachusetts is focusing on providing universal pre-K, here in Tiverton we are still playing catchup with kindergarten. This puts our youngest kids at a disadvantage from day one. This important step will significantly improve our children’s academic achievement and lower the costs of helping struggling students who need extra support in grades 1-4.

Tiverton schools also won a $40,000 grant from the state to provide all-day K training and to purchase additional furniture, smart boards, and software at no cost to taxpayers. These grant funds are contingent upon the town funding all-day K.

Careful use of our reserves to cover budget overruns and capital purchases and partnering to purchase shared services (such as transportation, food service, utilities and special education) have allowed us to provide strong schools at a reasonable cost. Our schools have been recognized with Leading, Commended, and even Blue Ribbon status by RIDE and the U.S. Department of Education. We have had teachers recognized by RIDE and by the General Assembly.

We should all be proud of our schools for the tremendous asset it is to our community. Good schools also contribute to higher property values and they are often one of the reasons families and businesses want to move to Tiverton. If the current budget debate were only about what is good for our kids and for our community, this minimal funding increase wouldn’t even be in question.

Vote yes on Budget #1 on May 14 and May 15 at Town Hall or on May 16 at Tiverton High School. Vote from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. It only takes 5 minutes to stand up for all-day K.


Deb Pallasch
Carol Herrmann
Members, Tiverton School Committee

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

TIVERTON 1st STRONGLY ENDORSES BUDGET 1 AT MAY 16 FTR

Tiverton 1st strongly endorses Budget Option 1, the Budget Committee proposal, at the May 16 Financial Town Referendum (FTR). Every registered voter is encouraged to take ten minutes, on that day at THS or at early voting May 14 and 15 at Town Hall, to support our community and school services, and our town’s financial stability, against the destructive effects of Budget Option 2. The contrast is clear:
Budget 1 / Budget Committee proposal:
1) Created over months of public meetings by the town’s elected officials and professionals.
2) Balances the desire to limit taxes with the desire to maintain the services the people of Tiverton rely on, including funding all-day kindergarten.
3) Maintains the town’s savings at a responsible level.
4) Supported by all three elected bodies (Town Council, School Committee, Budget Committee).
5) Balances the budget without new fees or gimmicks.
Budget 2 / Petitioner proposal:
1) Created by a political group, previously operating as TCC or Clean Up Tiverton, now as Tiverton Taxpayers Association.
2) Created without input or vetting from the public or most elected and professional officials.
3) Deliberately underfunds vital town services, and jeopardizes all-day kindergarten.
4) Will require new and increased fees, like the proposed recreation fee, to fund basic services.
5) Raids the town’s savings to make its tax increase appear smaller, a practice stopped in 2010 after a nearly 10% tax increase was required just to maintain services when the state withheld promised funds and the town had inadequate savings.
Budget 2 is personal political agenda disguised as “tax relief.” For example, it proposes cuts to the town’s litigation budget, used to defend the town and its taxpayers against lawsuits. The “Petitioner” pushing Budget 2, Justin Katz, and several of his allies are currently suing the town, seeking money from all of us because they oppose voters having the final say on town finances. They’ve already cost taxpayers over $25,000, and this is an obvious and self-serving attempt to weaken the town’s ability to fight their lawsuit.
Mr. Katz’s claim that the $600,000 his budget took from Tiverton’s savings last year to fund the budget had no negative effects is false. Standard and Poor’s, the bond-rating agency, commented negatively about the town using this practice. And this year’s budget began over half a million dollars in the hole. He wants you to believe that cuts can be made without consequences, and funding shortfalls can be corrected by magical thinking.
We urge all voters to stand together against repeating past mistakes and sacrificing long-term stability for short-term political gain and phony “tax relief” that will actually cost all of us more. Vote for Budget 1, and encourage others to do the same. Ten minutes voting can spare all of us years of service cuts, new fees, and higher taxes to repair the damage of Budget 2. Budget 2 will serve the needs of a small group at the expense of everyone else; Budget 1 will serve all of Tiverton.
For more info, visit Tiverton 1st on Facebook or atTiverton1st.blogspot.com
Brian Medeiros
Co-Coordinator, Tiverton 1st

Saturday, May 2, 2015

FTR PUBLIC HEARING ON COX CABLE 18: SAT @ 7p, SUN @ 6am & 11am, MON @ 7pm, TUE @ 11am

Thursday night's Financial Town Referendum (FTR) Public Hearing demonstrated the absolute irresponsibility and destructive nature of the Katz budget option # 2, how fully unvetted it is, designed only to push a political agenda. 

By striking contrast, the Budget Committee Budget # 1 was created over months of public hearings with input from all elected and professional town officials. It balances the needs of all in Tiverton, preserving services in a fiscally-responsible way. And unlike the Katz plan, it doesn't raid the town's savings to offset taxes, a practice stopped after 2010 when it caused the need for a nearly 10% tax increase to maintain services, because the town faced an unexpected loss of state funds and had no savings to cover it. Nor will it deliberately underfund services, as Katz admits his plan does, increasing the need for new & increased fees. 

Watch the meeting yourself and see how obvious the choice is to reject Katz' phony "tax relief" plan and support the budget designed to serve all in Tiverton: 


VOTE BUDGET 1 / BUDGET COMMITTEE PROPOSAL AT THE ANNUAL FINANCIAL TOWN REFERENDUM (FTR): MAY 14, 15, 16


Brian Medeiros
Tiverton, RI

VOTE FOR BUDGET 1 -- DON'T DISENFRANCHISE YOURSELF


I am supporting Budget 1, the proposal that our elected representatives on Budget Committee, School Committee [which voluntarily made significant cuts and was supported in a 9 to 1 vote,] and Town Council agreed upon after months of input, extensive public analysis, and compromise. 

Tiverton, despite having in the range of 600 small businesses, has the majority of its workforce commuting to work out of town. It is virtually impossible to understand a town one only comes home to sleep in, especially when news summaries are fragmented among so many sources.

I had the luxury of attending 1 to 4 meetings a week since January this year. I heard very different individuals, all elected representatives--many of whom have families and day jobs--examine all sides of each budget line, in many cases calling department heads back several times, before agreeing on difficult decisions that were mostly unanimous. Every department had its request cut. When snow, ice, or scheduling prevented, I watched the video online. Unfortunately, the sound quality was so poor, that it was frequently unreliable. Not all meetings were taped. 

This FY 2016 budget, on which we vote in May, has spending decisions that address directly the impact the decision by voters last May to pass an un-vetted alternate budget cutting $600,000 from the General Fund, rather than approving the small increase recommended by the elected Budget Committee. 

It comes down to whom we trust:
We have hired an administrator with experience in management, finance, and economic development. He worked with every department and public entity in town to develop the budget. He explained both short and long term strategies to
·      help solve some of our most expensive challenges in management and personnel, 
·      provide alternatives to heavy reliance on property tax, 
·      make the Recreation Department become more solvent, 
·      address the ongoing [statewide] costs of Fire Department overtime without compromising public safety, 
·      avoid costly early closure of the landfill, 
·      provide solid planning in anticipation of economic development, 
·      avoid breaches in personnel contracts. 
·      ensure adequate funding for litigation that cannot be avoided.
He has worked with officials we elected who have agreed on a budget to do this.

The alternative budget only varies slightly from the official Budget. Attractive as its additions to funding for the Library and Senior Center are, these increases are offset by cuts to both the Municipal and School budgets, and—for the second year--cuts to the General Fund. It does not help us move forward, avoid crisis, or protect our most vulnerable residents. 

The alternate budget is not required to undergo a public process, only provide explanation. There is no compromise. There is no change. There are no qualifications in finance, economics, or policy required in its development. Its only requirement to be placed on the ballot is that there be 50 signatures. [Changing this would require an amendment to the Town Charter.] 

After having attended so many meetings, listened to presentations, and read reports, I am convinced that Budget 1 is the better option for the Town. 

Kathryn E. Ryan
Tiverton taxpayer