Selectmen endorse $2.9 M override after lengthy debate
Published on March 31st, 2004
STONEHAM, MA - As mounting tensions between the town's municipal and school sectors erupted over the limited supply of FY05 budget funds, the Board of Selectmen voted unanimously last Wednesday in favor of a $2.9 million override.
According to Selectmen Chairwoman Mary Pecoraro, although she would have personally suggested a $3.1 million override, she felt comfortable with the $2.9 million figure as it addresses what she perceived as a citizen demand for a reasonable amount of municipal department cuts.
"We worked on this budget and I think this has been a long process. This was the only way we could have done it. And it's not pretty. These cuts are real. I think people think, 'oh we're going to find some magic money and it's all going to go away.' But that's not going to happen," Pecoraro remarked.
"But I think people in this town don't want business as usual. They don't want to hear that it's going to cost $4.3 million more and no cuts are going to be made," the Selectmen chairwoman added.
While Selectman Charlie Smith briefly advocated for a $4.3 million override as was desired by Grant Street resident and citizen override committee organizer Lori Gordon-Sack, both Pecoraro and Finance and Advisory Board member Richard Gregorio felt that such a large amount wouldn't be marketable to the townspeople.
"Because personally, I don't think the people in this town will vote for a full override. And I think they expect us as the elected officials of the town to make some cuts," answered Pecoraro to Smith's full-override request.
"I think the board needs to decide on the override amount regardless on the usage of that amount. You got to look at the marketability of the number," added Gregorio.
Throwing in yet another argument against a full-override, Selectman Tony Kennedy, who proposed the $2.9 million override amount, commented that he couldn't possibly advocate for such a large increase on his constituents tax bills.
"When you do the math and you realize the entire tax levy is $30 million, a $4.3 million override would amount to 14.3 percent increase, not even counting the normal 2.5 percent increase that's normally added to people's tax bills," explained Kennedy.
"So now you're almost up to an almost 17 percent increase on people's tax bills. I can't go to my neighbors and say, 'I'm the Selectman that voted to raise your tax bills 17 percent.' It's just not appropriate," Kennedy asserted.
Although Finance and Advisory Board Chairman John Warren requested that the Selectmen hold off on an override motion until his board and the school committee could digest the impacts of the $4.3 million in cuts implemented to balance the FY05 budget, Selectman Tony Kennedy felt the town had delayed voting on the measure long enough.
"I happen to disagree with you," responded Kennedy to Warren's belief that the three boards needed to meet. "I think the Board of Selectmen has deliberated and the time has come where the board needs to make a decision."
"You're a third party board and you analyze what we've done and come back and tell us what you think. Another month has gone by and a decision hasn't been made. I won't wait any longer. How can you wait any longer?" added Kennedy.
However, before the Selectmen could vote on the measure, former school committee member David Sheils, questioned what he considered an unfair split of the stabilization account between the town and the schools.
"One of the things I noted earlier is that there's $600,000 coming out of the stabilization and of that $250,000 is on the schoolside and $350,00 is on the townside. I was just wondering why there wasn't an even split there," asked Sheils.
"For the same reason why there isn't a split from the rental incomes for the North and East Schools," responded Smith.
Igniting a brief back and forth exchange where the Selectmen and Sheils sparred over the division of various revenue sources, Sheils then launched an all out attack on the Selectmen for revisiting the deficit amount over a month ago and for conducting what he termed "fiscal gymnastics".
"We're in a position now where the budget was supposed to be submitted in February and here we are in the third week of March and people are saying, '[the deficit's] four point what?' The Finance Board told us last year in May that it's going to be four point something million. And guess what, as it turns out, it's four something million," criticized Sheils.
"And here we are three weeks before the last meeting before Town Meeting and you're just getting around to a number. And you wonder why people don't want to support an override. It's because of all these fiscal gymnastics last minute that really don't solve the basic problem," further charged the school committee candidate. Evoking an angry response from several board members, Selectman Cosmo Ciccarello disputed Sheils contention that a perceived citizen reluctance to support an override stemmed from the Selectmen's budget process.
"Let me answer to that Madam Chair, because I'm a little peeved. You want to know why the people don't want to support an override? Let me tell you. It's because the teachers got a 6.75 percent raise over three years amounting to $2.5 million. The department heads got a 2.5 percent raise as of January 1. The nurses got raises. Everybody's getting raises, that's why people don't support an override -- I'll tell you right now. It would have saved $500,000 this year alone if nobody got raises in Stoneham, a half a million dollars," the seven-term Selectman retorted.
Refusing to back down, Sheils stumbled into yet another contentious stop and go debate with Ciccarello over the merits of raises, with Ciccarello arguing the town couldn't afford to shoulder such expenses with residents out of work and Sheils countering that without the raises, Stoneham's employee unions would have gone on strike.
While Pecoraro attempted to steer the board back into discussions relating to Kennedy's override motion, the Selectmen Chairwoman took one last stab at defending the board's budget process, resulting in round three of Sheils vs. the Selectmen.
"Before we get too far off track, with the $4.3 million deficit, we've been talking about that number all winter long. That hasn't been a mystery number, that hasn't been a secret number. The school committee has been working with that figure along with the town all along," said Pecoraro.
"Again, my real issue is that we're down to the next to last week in March when we knew these things all along. And I think the townspeople feel shortchanged where these discussions have been deliberate. To move this process along more deliberately would have given a lot more time for consideration for an override," shot back Sheils.
Agreeing with Sheils, Gordon-Sack and Middlesex Road resident David Gardner blasted the Selectmen for creating division between the school and townside of the budget and for eating away at valuable time that could be spent gathering citizen support for an override.
"Right now, we don't have the time to organize the way we should be able to organize to get people involved in working for an override...If we lose another two weeks, we can't get people. You're asking us to do in two or three weeks things that are far more difficult than balancing the budget in my opinion," argued Gardner.
The Town Administrator's Override Budget
Although the town's Board of Selectmen plan to meet this Wednesday night to implement their own version of an override budget, Town Administrator David Berry has already developed his own version of a $ 2.9 million override budget.
Following the Selectmen's lead, Berry would first restore services to public safety -- the police, fire, DPW, and traffic directors. Although Berry also would like to see money returned to the stabilization account, he will debate the action with the Selectmen at their next meeting.
Subscribe and get Home Delivery of The Independent
Save 36% off the newstand price — that's like 18 FREE issues!