Just back from a delightful fall week in Provincetown, Cape Cod. Now back to work.
Nancy Seligson and I just finished taping a campaign interview in which Dave Fishman was the interviewer. We covered lots of topics. Look for it as part of LMC-TV's "Meet The Candidates" series.
As we head into what may be our toughest Budget Season in many years, I am more convinced than ever that I want the public to see for themselves, first hand, what "trade-offs" we have to make in order to keep our budget as tight as possible. Even more valuable than televising our bi-monthly work sessions, which I still feel is a goal worth pursuing, I think our Town Budget is something that directly affects us all, right in the pocketbook. Even though we account for only about 22% of the total tax bill, with the schools and the county accounting for the rest, it should be interesting for our citizens to see the process and, during the Public Hearing portion of which, make appropriate comments.
Ever wonder how we find and hire our Street Crossing Guards? How we decide where we need them? How much we pay them? How many hours a day do they work? What they are supposed to be doing while they are working? I'll try to get some answers and post them here.
Labels: Televising and or Web access to Town Budget Presentatations
posted by Ernie Odierna @ 8:31 PM
2 Comments:
Welcome back Ernie!
Some questions:
If the 'Town Board' really wants public input on the budget, why is the full information from budget worksheets being withheld?
If the 'Town Board' really wants public input on the budget, why aren't the budget worksessions recorded and made available to the public on LMC and the internet?
And if the 'Town Board' really values public input, at least equally to its own, why are you and David Fishman the only members who have expressed support for recording and televising all meetings of the Town Board?
The Budget Public Hearing is at the end of a lengthy process with too little information shared in a timely manner and the opportunity for effective public input is too little, too late.
The process of three separate budgets for interlocking organizations is unwieldy, inefficient and ineffective.
If we are to get anything from the current 'difficult' situation, at least it should be an open and improved process for the budgeting and management of our local municipal 'governments'. It is after all, the people's community.
Sorry, but we may face larger issues than crossing guards. Although I do wonder why the school budget is 60 percent of our taxes and the Town budget pays for the crossing guards at the schools and the Town residents pay school taxes including the cost of the pool and the Town pays the Schools so its residents can use the pool and residents pay the Town to use the pool. Somehow this must make some sense, but where?
What I'd like to hear about are some significant issues facing the Town and its budget. How will the housing settlement be accommodated? How will we most properly allocate expenses and services and how will we reduce expenses and manage resources better?
Only 22% is a whole lot to many and even more when you add in the other 78%. Hopefully our Town will get its money from residents the old fashioned way, earn it.
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