RSU 73 voters head to polls for third time Tuesday
JAY - Residents of the RSU 73 towns will return to their local polling place Tuesday, in a third attempt to validate a school budget for the current fiscal year.
On Aug. 14, roughly 60 residents passed the $18.59 million budget recommended by the administration and school board. On Tuesday, Aug. 21, voters will answer a single question, whether they approved of the action taken at the budget meeting. A 'yes' vote approves the budget. A 'no' vote would restart the process, resulting in a fourth round of board workshops, budget meetings and validation votes.
The $18.59 million budget incorporates three rounds of cuts: voter-initiated reductions at the first budget meeting in June, then two rounds of board-approved cuts after the first two failed validation votes. In all, $428,748 has been cut from the $19 million budget originally proposed by the school board. According to the administration, $9,000 has been spent on running the additional validation referendums.
The budget as currently proposed is up $185,122 from the previous fiscal year, which ended in June. That would represent a 1 percent increase to the budget, down from 3 percent at the beginning of the budget process. If approved at referendum, the budget would represent a $574,000 increase in the Jay local tax assessment, compared to the previous fiscal year. However, that $8.74 million local assessment would be $384,000 less than the 2010-11 fiscal year's assessment. Livermore and Livermore Falls would see small decreases in their local tax assessments, $7,000 and $19,000 decreases, respectively.
The administration and school board has argued that the impact of the school district on local taxes has decreased since the 2003-04 fiscal year. According to a presentation made by Superintendent Robert Wall before the Aug. 14 budget meeting, the school budget's impact on Jay taxes had decreased by more than $2 million from between 2003-04 fiscal year's budget to the current 2012-13 budget.
Relatively low voter turnout has characterized previous budget meetings and validation votes. On June 12, 1,376 votes were cast at the referendum validation vote. On July 24, 561 fewer voters turned out to reject the second budget validation.
Polls open at 8 a.m. Tuesday morning and remain open until 8 p.m. Livermore and Livermore Falls residents votes at their respective town offices, Jay residents casts ballots at the Jay Community Building.
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If you live within the towns of RSU 73 please Find a few minutes in your day to vote on this third attempt at a budget. Also, please do not think this is a plead for "yes" votes. Although that would make a lot of lives easier if it passes you need to vote for what is in your financial best interest.
Again, please find some time to vote the way you want to. I, and many on the board want a higher voter turn out this time around.
Thank you,
Michael Morrell
RSU 73 Board Member
The presentation tried to show a decrease in jay taxes but in reality the taxes went up. The formalar that the school uses shows the taxes as going down. The town of jay assessor says that the school department is wrong. The school taxes in jay did go up the last several years. If you don't believe it go see the jay tax assessor as I did. His figures don't lie.
Good civics lesson for students, democracy is hard. Decisions are made by those who care to show up.
Al,
You've been at the meetings. You've been talking with the assessors and citing Dr. Wall's numbers as inaccurate at best, as lies at worst.
Could you please publish here what you believe to be the accurate numbers broken out so we can compare the two?
It would be appreciated.
The school is costing you less than it has before, but your taxes are going up, because of the cost. Both pieces of the sentence, can be said to be true.
It reminds me of an old movie, " The rain man ", with the endearing confidence man.
Around a .5 million $ grant to help teachers help students, but not mentioned in the previous budget discussion or in the paper till after this last budget vote.
If we were the state we would have used that to keep our taxes from going up. We already have a 9.5 +- school budget, that is supposed to be for helping the students learn and be ready to enter society in a good position to succeed in whatever they choose to work towards.
Acceptance:
Only so much can be done with this behemoth of socialized education at a time.
A good number of taxpaying voters in RSU 73 don't trust the administration.
The peoples distrust of the administration will have to be addressed.
The budget debate has reduced this years requested budget, from the original amount.
Ideas and concerns have been brought out in the open.
Everyone has shown they want the best for the students, without going in the poor house.
Some will say oh it's only so much per $1000 extra per your property value. Well add the county, sayng the same thing, the feds increasing taxes, etc, etc.
Has your pay gone up to pay for all the extra others want from you? I know our home is costing us money, not making us money, yet we are taxed as if it was making money.
Whatever the case may be, in this democratic republic, the people have made the arguments, and it is time to set the revised budget in motion so the students can be at peace, knowing they are loved and that we want them to have the best education possible, that can be afforded.
I am going to vote yes this time, because it is time to let go and move forward for now, so the students know that this coming years budget is resolved.
PS:
There are a number of folks that lose their property each year, from not being able to pay their property taxes. That is reality. Their needs to be a balance of considerations when dealing with any budget.
Dan,
Give me your email and i will send you the report from the jay tax assessor.
oops, a $18.5+- budget