Quabbin superintendent says state should be sued for more aid to schools

Quabbin superintendent says state should be sued for more aid to schools

By James F. Russell CORRESPONDENT

BARRE — The Quabbin Regional School Committee unanimously approved a $32,342,570 budget Tuesday, but not before Superintendent Maureen M. Marshall said another lawsuit should be filed against the state education department that could force the state to pay a greater share of local aid for public schools.

While the Quabbin budget represents a 2.5 percent increase, assessments to the five towns that make up the district will increase an average of 6.3 percent should town meetings in at least four of the communities approve the spending plan.

Ms. Marshall said more education aid is needed to close the gap between the percentage by how much a school budget increases versus the assessments towns pay to underwrite it.

Light and Water Vendor Checks

Light and Water Vendor Checks 

Email correspondence between the Town Accountant and the TMLWP GM with the Treasurer stuck in the middle.

Email from John Driscoll to Treasurer

From: J Driscoll [mailto:jdriscoll@templetonlight.com]
Sent: Thursday, April 24, 2014 11:26 AM
To: townadministrator@templeton1.org; Holly Young (hyoung@templeton1.org); treasurer@templeton1.org
Cc: Dana Blais (snowfighter4@verizon.net); Gregg Edwards; Chris Stewart
Subject: Light & Water Vendor Warrant Checks





Good Morning to All,

 

April 28, 2014 BOS Meeting …and the Movie

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April 28, 2014 BOS Meeting

…and the Movie

Part 1 of the April 28, 2014 BOS Meeting

Part 2 of the April 28, 2014 BOS Meeting

Part 3 of the April 28, 2014 BOS Meeting

Town Administrator Report-

The Warrant for the Annual town Meeting is complete. The Motions are almost ready with dollar figures. There is a Joint BOS Advisory Board meeting on Wednesday in the Kiva.  There was discussion about clarity on the debt exclusion for the elementary school project. It may be possible to avoid borrowing money if that article is successful on May 5^th.  The same new growth figure -$52,000 – will be used for FY 15 as was used for FY 14.

Special Town Meeting –

The BOS voted and signed the warrant for the Special Town Meeting, which will be held within the Annual Town Meeting.

Acting Chairman Kenn Robinson issued a warning for the next agenda items. He stated there are emotional issues on the agenda and reminded people they can attack ideas but not people.

Editorial update:

Editorial update:

To post comments to this blog, you must be identified or your comments will be deleted.

To refresh your memory, here are the 7 Words You Can Never Use On TV.  Not appropriate for all audiences.

Editorial update:

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Editorial update:

To post comments to this blog, you must be identified or your comments will be deleted. See below:

AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE FINANCIAL CONDITION OF THE TOWN OF TEMPLETON.

AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE FINANCIAL CONDITION OF THE TOWN OF TEMPLETON. (Draft)

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows:

SECTION 1. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law, town charter provision or local bylaw to the contrary, the town of Templeton, with the approval of the commissioner of revenue, in this act called the commissioner, may borrow up to $600,000, as approved by the town and the commissioner, for the purpose of achieving a balanced budget for fiscal year 2014. The commissioner may limit this borrowing to an amount or amounts less than the amount or amounts approved by the town. Notwithstanding chapter 44A of the General Laws, bonds or notes issued under this act for the above purposes may be issued for a term of not more than 5 years and shall be backed by the full faith and credit of the town and the bonds and notes shall be eligible to be issued as qualified bonds or notes. Indebtedness incurred under this act shall not be included in determining the statutory limit of indebtedness of the town under section 10 of chapter 44 of the General Laws but, except as provided in this act, shall otherwise be subject to said chapter 44. Amounts raised to pay indebtedness incurred under authority of this section shall be subject to section 21C of chapter 59 of the General Laws.

Whipps Lee sets up 'Second Franklin' rematch

Whipps Lee sets up 'Second Franklin' rematch 

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

REGION — Athol Selectman Susannah Whipps Lee, a Republican, has returned her paperwork with the required signatures and will appear on the Sept. 9 primary election ballot, challenging incumbent state Rep. Denise Andrews, D-Orange, for a seat representing the Second Franklin District on Beacon Hill.

The two previously squared off in the highly contested 2012 election for the same seat, with Ms. Lee losing by only 200 votes. The selectman said that the response to her last campaign and the lack of economic leadership in Boston inspired her to campaign again.

S 623 Hearing

 S623 Hearing

On Thursday, April 24th, Rep. Andrews was present to offer testimony before the Joint Committee on the Judiciary regarding S623 - An Act relative to request an investigation by the attorney general into the following incidents in the town of Templeton. testimony was submitted by Rep. Andrews, Rep. Gobi and Senator Brewer. Residents forwarded letters on behalf of this legislation as well.

Julie Farrell, Pete Farrell and Bev Bartolomeo went to Boston to testify on behalf of this bill.

National Grid Taxes

 National Grid Taxes                                   TMLWP Pilot

Athol- FY 14                                              FY ’14 $150,000

$227,678.59 

Assessors 978-249-3880

Gardner -FY2014                                        FY’15 $0.00

Mass Electric - Real Estate assessment =  $261,500

Personal Property assessment = $9,187,768  

            Total assessment  $9,449,268. 

            Total Taxes (rate 18.87)  $178,307.72

New England Power - Real Estate Assessment = $265,500

Personal Property Assessment = $2,133,410

            Total assessment $2,398,910.

            Total Taxes (rate 18.87) $45,267.43

Assessors 978-632-4004

Hubbardston- FY 14

$40,892

978-928-1400 X 203

Meetings 4/28/14 – 5/1/14

Meetings 4/28/14 – 5/1/14

Monday 4/28/14

BOS                               690 Patriots Rd                      6:15 pm

BOS E Session              690 Patriots Rd                      8:00 pm

Wednesday 4/30/14

Adv. Board                         Kiva                                   6:30 pm

BOS                                   Kiva                                   6:30 pm

ZBA                                   690 Patriots Rd.                 6:30 pm

Thursday 5/1/14

COA                                   690 Patriots Rd                   1:30 pm

CPC                                    690 Patriots Rd                   6:00 pm

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Please support your Town

Candidate Night April 24, 2014 At Kamaloht East Templeton

Candidate Night April 24, 2014 At Kamaloht 

 

Part 1 of Candidate Night 

Part 2 of Candidate Night  

Part 3 of Candidate Night 

 

Special thanks to Tom and Luanne Royer  for generously hosting candidates night at Kamaloht

 

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Please Vote

on

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Please support your Town

 

April 22, 2014 BOS meeting … and the movie

April 22, 2014 BOS meeting

… and the movie

Part 1 of the April 22, 2014 BOS Meeting

Part 2 of the April 22, 2014 BOS Meeting

The BOS meeting began with a presentation from the Town Accountant Matt Angell. Matt Angell is in the process of rebuilding the town’s financial records. This process will take time until the “four corners” – cash reconciliations; fund balance agreement, interfund transfers are in balance; interfund receivables and payables equal each other.

On the positive side, while the general ledger is incorrect, there is no sign of fraud. Just many, many errors. As a forensic accountant, Matt Angell is looking to find signs of fraud. As of April 22, 2014 there was no evidence of fraud.

Once the accounts and general ledger is straightened out, the town will need to hire an experienced accountant in order to avoid this situation from arising again.

Andrews is seeking re-election

Andrews is seeking re-election

State representative says she still has more work to do
Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

State Rep. Denise Andrews, D-Orange, has formally begun her bid for a third term as representative for the Second Franklin District, returning the required paperwork to the Elections Office last week.

“As your State Representative I have established good relationships with leadership in Boston to insure that our district receives fair share funding and support,” Rep. Andrews stated in a press release. “I am doing my part to balance strong fiscal management and investing tax payer money into services and areas to promote growth, sustainability and vibrant communities.”

Rep. Andrews said her priorities will focus around job creation and economic growth and obtaining support and financing for state programs.

Originally from Orange, Rep. Andrews was elected to the House of Representatives in 2010 and serves on the Joint Committee on Election Laws, the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development, and the Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts, and Cultural Development. She has submitted 13 bills to committee this session and has co-sponsored numerous initiatives in both the House and Senate. 

Next Generation Identification NGI

FBI Plans to Have 52 Million Photos in its NGI Face Recognition Database by Next Year

APRIL 14, 2014 | BY JEN LYNCH

New documents released by the FBI show that the Bureau is well on its way toward its goal of a fully operational face recognition database by this summer.

EFF received these records in response to our Freedom of Information Act lawsuit for information on Next Generation Identification (NGI)—the FBI’s massive biometric database that may hold records on as much as one third of the U.S. population. The facial recognition component of this database poses real threats to privacy for all Americans.

What is NGI?

NGI builds on the FBI’s legacy fingerprint database—which already contains well over 100 million individual records—and has been designed to include multiple forms of biometric data, including palm prints and iris scans in addition to fingerprints and face recognition data. NGI combines all these forms of data in each individual’s file, linking them to personal and biographic data like name, home address, ID number, immigration status, age, race, etc. This immense database is shared with other federal agencies and with the approximately 18,000 tribal, state and local law enforcement agencies across the United States.

The records we received show that the face recognition component of NGI may include as many as 52 million face images by 2015. By 2012, NGI already contained 13.6 million images representing between 7 and 8 million individuals, and by the middle of 2013, the size of the database increased to 16 million images. The new records reveal that the database will be capable of processing 55,000 direct photo enrollments daily and of conducting tens of thousands of searches every day.

NGI Will Include Non-Criminal as well as Criminal Photos

One of our biggest concerns about NGI has been the fact that it will include non-criminal as well as criminal face images. We now know that FBI projects that by 2015, the database will include 4.3 million images taken for non-criminal purposes.

Water Fluoridation: A Critical Review of the Physiological Effects of Ingested Fluoride as a Public Health Intervention

 Water Fluoridation: A Critical Review of the Physiological Effects of Ingested Fluoride as a Public Health Intervention

The Scientific World Journal
Volume 2014 (2014), Article ID 293019, 10 pages
http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/293019
Review Article
Water Fluoridation: A Critical Review of the Physiological Effects of Ingested Fluoride as a Public Health Intervention
Stephen Peckham1,2 and Niyi Awofeso3
1Centre for Health Services Studies, University of Kent, Canterbury CT2 7NF, UK
2Department of Health Services Research and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
3e-School of Health and Environmental Studies, Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University, P.O. Box 71400, Dubai, UAE

Received 22 August 2013; Accepted 22 October 2013; Published 26 February 2014

Academic Editors: S. H. Hsu and A. Youk

Copyright © 2014 Stephen Peckham and Niyi Awofeso. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


Abstract

Fluorine is the world’s 13th most abundant element and constitutes 0.08% of the Earth crust. It has the highest electronegativity of all elements. Fluoride is widely distributed in the environment, occurring in the air, soils, rocks, and water. Although fluoride is used industrially in a fluorine compound, the manufacture of ceramics, pesticides, aerosol propellants, refrigerants, glassware, and Teflon cookware, it is a generally unwanted byproduct of aluminium, fertilizer, and iron ore manufacture. The medicinal use of fluorides for the prevention of dental caries began in January 1945 when community water supplies in Grand Rapids, United States, were fluoridated to a level of 1 ppm as a dental caries prevention measure. However, water fluoridation remains a controversial public health measure. This paper reviews the human health effects of fluoride. The authors conclude that available evidence suggests that fluoride has a potential to cause major adverse human health problems, while having only a modest dental caries prevention effect. As part of efforts to reduce hazardous fluoride ingestion, the practice of artificial water fluoridation should be reconsidered globally, while industrial safety measures need to be tightened in order to reduce unethical discharge of fluoride compounds into the environment. Public health approaches for global dental caries reduction that do not involve systemic ingestion of fluoride are urgently needed.

Proposed water system purchase fuels discord in Oxford

Proposed water system purchase fuels discord in Oxford

By Craig S. Semon TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
csemon@telegram.com
OXFORD — A town meeting article asking voters to approve an estimated $2.7 million as part of the purchase of Aquarion Water Co. continues to stir up debate.

Officials discussed the issue at a meeting of the Board of Selectmen Tuesday night.

Voters at the annual town meeting May 7 will consider spending $2.7 million toward the purchase of the water system. At the annual town meeting in 2009, voters appropriated $6.7 million to fund the purchase.

If the additional funding article fails in May, it could be brought back again in October, Town Manager Joseph M. Zeneski said Tuesday night. Mr. Zeneski said the town meeting vote in 2009 authorized the purchase.

"It seems to me the only way out is (for Aquarion Water Co.) to sell it because they're locked in with the town," Mr. Zeneski said.

Selectman Michael Voas said the town voted in 2009 to purchase a $6.7 million water system, not a $9.4 million water system. He said if the article is beaten handily at annual town meeting, it is the will of the townspeople not to buy it.

Candidates Nights planned in Templeton

Candidates Nights planned in Templeton 

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer


TEMPLETON — A pair of Candidates Night events have been scheduled for today and tomorrow ahead of the May 5 Annual Town Election, giving Templeton voters a chance to get out and meet those running for top town positions.

The first event will be held Wednesday evening at the Baldwinville American Legion Hall.

Sponsored by Templeton Auto Parts, candidates’ presentations are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m., and each candidate will be given five minutes to speak.

After their presentations, there will be an opportunity for the candidates to field questions from the audience. Both candidates and audience members will be required to keep things civil, as no character attacks will be allowed.

Lost and Found

Lost and Found

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

TEMPLETON — “Found Randy’s wedding ring in Colliers in Gardner. He married Kim back about 14 years ago, do you know them?”

When that post appeared on Tanguay Jewelers’ Facebook page Saturday, owner Brian Tanguay had no way of knowing the part he would play in an almost miraculous series of events that would reunite a Templeton widow and her husband’s wedding ring.

Almost exactly one year ago, on April 6, Kimberly Mustakangas’ husband Randy, an engineer in the Navy, died unexpectedly of a heart attack. The pair had grown up together, dating in high school before parting ways. Both married and had children with different people but reunited 17 years ago, before getting married in 2001 on the Hawaiian island of Maui.

Meetings 4/22/14 – 4/24/14

Meetings 4/22/14 – 4/24/14

Tuesday 4/22/14

Happy Earth Day

BOS                             690 Patriots Rd                      5:30 pm

Wednesday 4/23/14

TESBC                             Kiva                                   6:30 pm

BOH                            2 School St.                            7:00 pm

Thursday 4/24/14

Town Clerk                          4 Elm St                         8:00 AM

Investigation Hearing S623         State House         1:30 pm

Candidates Night               Kamaloht                       6:00 pm

Conservation                     690 Patriots Rd.              7:00 pm

Urging Templeton to vote 'Yes' on new school

Urging Templeton to vote 'Yes' on new school

To The Editor: 4/21/2014
Matthew Syring
Templeton

   
MothersDay Gift

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April 22, 2014
4/21/2014 7:26:00 AM
Urging Templeton to vote 'Yes' on new school
To The Editor: 4/21/2014
Matthew Syring
Templeton

To The Editor:

The residents of Templeton are urged to show their support and vote ‘Yes’ at the polls on May 5 to allow the town to take the next step towards a new elementary school for our community. 

During a recent open house hosted at the Baldwinville Elementary School (BES), I took the opportunity to tour the building and get a firsthand look into the current state of our ancient elementary schools. 

If I had to summarize my findings in one word — deplorable.

Templeton down to four finalists for key position

Templeton down to four finalists for key position

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer


TEMPLETON — The Board of Selectmen will soon begin interviewing the four finalists vying to become Templeton’s first full-time Town Administrator.

The three-member Town Administrator Search Committee submitted their recommendations to the board on April 9 and the names were made public the following week. The committee, which was formed in February to collect resumes and review potential candidates, whittled the 20 applicants down to five finalists, with one, Michael Coughlin, withdrawing his application.

The board spent their last meeting discussing interview questions and procedure, agreeing that there should be a standard set of questions for each candidate and each member should ask the same questions for consistency. The interviews will be taped, however, they will not be aired on the town’s public access station until all the candidates have been interviewed. The interviews are public and residents are welcome to attend and observe.

'Great Gathering' heads into 4th year

'Great Gathering' heads into 4th year

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

PHILLIPSTON—The Easter Bunny will be hopping into Phillipston Saturday morning, hiding eggs all around Red Apple Farm for their 4th annual Easter’s Great Gathering Event sponsored by the Phillipston Lions Club and benefitting the Congregational Church of Phillipston.

There will be several egg hunts for all ages held throughout the day, with a new teenager’s hunt at 12:30 p.m. and an adult event at noon where participants can compete for a chance to bring home an Apple iPad Air. Three children’s egg searches will be held at 9:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., and 11:00 a.m. with a separate area set aside for children under 5 years old. Prior to the egg hunt festivities, there will be a special brunch with the Easter Bunny. There will also be orchard hayrides, Easter basket raffles, and plenty of baby farm animals brought in by Green Acres Farm.

The event will also feature a vendor fair, with local farms selling their wares, including Baldwin Hill Farm offering homemade soy candles; Niemi’s Apiary providing local honey; Divoll’s Sugar House selling fresh maple syrup.

How Fortuitous!

How Fortuitous!

Breaking news! I received a call from Rep. Andrews today. “The Investigation”  S623 will be heard before the Joint Committee on the Judiciary on April 24, 2014.

Notwithstanding any general or special law or rule or regulation to the contrary, the citizens of the Town of Templeton hereby request an investigation by the Attorney General into the following incidents:

An investigation into the activities of the Municipal Building Committee to include all transactions regarding the purchase of the 252 Baldwinville Road property and the USDA loan application process.

An investigation into the procedures and activities to allow the settlement and return of a gift of $369,681.40 to Casella Waste Systems on November 13, 2008.

An investigation into the activities of the Templeton Board of Selectmen and the Templeton Municipal Light Department to enact Chapter 93 Acts of 2000.

An investigation into the activities and actions of legal counsel, Kopelman & Paige, regarding case 02-2424C heard before Judge Cornetta of Worcester Superior Court as well as the settlement of the Templeton Waste Water Treatment plant lawsuit and the Writs of Attachment.

Team Player ?

Team Player ?

Please read from the bottom up.

From: J Driscoll [mailto:jdriscoll@templetonlight.com]
Sent: Thursday, April 17, 2014 9:34 AM
To: Holly Young
Cc: Dana Blais (snowfighter4@verizon.net); Gregg Edwards; Chris Stewart
Subject: RE: Pilot Payment





Holly,



Yes I will be attending if nothing more than to address the problems with the Town’s ATM warrant articles #11 and #12.



I see that there is still a PILOT article even though there will not be a PILOT paid to the Town in FY15.  Perhaps this is the manner by which they allow the Town to accept any sum of money from the Light Plant towards the funding of a town project of the Selectmen’s choosing?  I have just never seen it done this way.  Nobody has responded to our letter of April 3, 2014 extending the Light Plant’s offer to fund said project, so I don’t know what their intentions are.  I do know that this town no longer has enough money to even hang onto a part-time wiring inspector so they have effectively put a moratorium on any electrical work being done legally in Templeton.  If the Light Plant were in such dire financial straits we would jump at the chance that the letter of April 3, 2014 would have given us to get more “in the black”.

Summer Jobs...sent by Rep. Andrews

Boards of Health

Boards of Health

Athol Board of Health

M W Thurs. – 8:00 – 5:00 pm Tuesday 8:00 – 8:00, Friday closed.

Ashburnham Board of Health

Monday 7:30 – 7:00 pm, Tues. – Thurs. 7:30 am – 5:00 pm, closed on Friday.

Barre Board of Health

Office hours Mondays – 2pm – 8 pm, Tuesday  9am – 5 pm, Wednesday 2 pm – 6 pm.

Please support your Town

Please Vote

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May 5, 2014

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Wastewater treatment facility study right choice

Wastewater treatment facility study right choice

To The Editor: 4/16/2014
Joan M. Gould
Gardner

To The Editor:

Three articles in the April 11, 2014 edition of The Gardner News caught my attention.

First, Mike Richard’s final five part series on the Greenwood Memorial Pool.  Kudos Mike, it brought back many childhood memories.

Second, was Kimberly Petalas article ‘Council approves $363K for Wastewater Treatment Facility study’. And I will be the first to admit, it is way overdue. 

Gardner has had a sewer capacity problem for quite a number of years.  I first heard of it and have documentation that in 2004, it was stated in a Final Environmental Impact Report on Wastewater, that the sewer appears to have adequate reserve capacity, “except in wet weather” — which means sewer covers erupt in raining weather etc. and you know what spills all over city streets.

Road Funding Update

Road Funding Update

This is good news. Templeton is eligible for a one time draw down of $50,980 for the specific purpose road and road facility repairs under the Winter Rapid  Recovery Road Repair .

It would be a shame to lose out on this money. Looks like it is use it or lose it.

Shortfall still $505K after state's visit

Shortfall still $505K after state's visit

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

TEMPLETON — Representatives for the state Department of Revenue recently met with the town’s financial management team for several hours in order to take a closer look at the town’s debt — offering officials a rare glimmer of good news.

Last week, Town Administrator Bob Markel reported that the state was concerned about the amount of the town’s budget shortfall,   stating it might be $585,000, as opposed to the $505,000 previously estimated. After reviewing information presented by Templeton’s acting accountant, DOR representative Matt Angel did not find any discrepancies and the budget gap ultimately remained unchanged.

“They were convinced and said to me at the end of the day, that they believe the shortfall this year is $505,000,” said Mr. Markel. “We don’t have to worry about another $70,000 or $80,000 tacked on to that.”

Information for May 5, 2014 Override

Information for

May 5, 2014 Override

Templeton Financial Update  video segment from STM March 29th

Historical Use of Free Cash  in Templeton

Audit Process and DOR by Bob Markel

Impact Statements on Budget Cuts by Department

Elementary School Debt Exclusion

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May 5, 2014

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Templeton Food Pantry Needs Your Help!‏

Templeton Food Pantry Needs Your Help!‏

The Templeton Food Pantry is participating in the United Way of North Central MA’s Volunteer Star Projects Competition.  Last week we held a volunteer project at the Food Pantry and now the project is eligible to win a $1,000 award. 

We need your help to win!


Follow the second link below and vote for the Templeton Food Pantry as your Favorite, 2nd favorite and 3rd favorite project.  

To Vote for Templeton COA’s Food Pantry Project:  https://volunteer.truist.com/cb/survey/?survey_id=10642833538 

Please vote and forward to everyone you know!


Thanks everyone for your help!

Bethany Loveless 
COA Director
Templeton Council on Aging
PO Box 244
135 Patriots Road
East Templeton MA, 01438
978-632-4592
coadirector@templeton1.org

April 14 2014 BOS meeting …and the movie

April 14 2014 BOS meeting

…and the movie

Part1 of the April 14, 2014 BOS Meeting

Part2 of the April 14, 2014 BOS Meeting

The meeting moved along quickly. There was no motion on an appointment..

The police chief came in to ask for a vote on No Parking signs by the new DD in Baldwinville. The post Office will still have 2 spaces in front for parking.

The Police Chief announced his retirement as of June 30, 2014. Sgt Paul Schwartz will be retiring before June 30^th. Donna Sans will be retiring on June 30^th as well. May they all have many years of a great retirement! Templeton is blessed with truly dedicated people.

Students play a huge role in new senior center

Students play a huge role in new senior center

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

TEMPLETON — Juniors and seniors from Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical High School have been hard at work, installing windows and plumbing in an effort to get Templeton’s new senior center up and running for a projected summer opening.

“The help from Monty Tech has been a blessing,” said Council on Aging Director Bethany Loveless.

The council has been working on a stringent budget of only $680,000, explained Ms. Loveless, where other surrounding communities have been given millions for their new senior centers. Using Monty Tech students has allowed them to get high-quality work done for a fraction of the cost.

Message from Town Administrator Bob Markel

The Department of Revenue has always discouraged the use of free cash to balance the budget.  Bond rating agencies do the same, and the low bond rating for the Town reflects, in part, the lavish use of free cash to fund the operating budget.  However, this is not illegal; it is simply unsound financial policy. 

The amount of free cash available changes yearly, and it is not predictable.  Free cash is considered one-time revenue, and the Department of Revenues recommends that it used to augment the Stabilization Fund (reserves) or for one-time purchases like capital items. 

Unity in the CommUNITY....Another gem from DHB FB page

Unity in the CommUNITY....Another gem from DHB FB page

Diane Haley Brooks, Selectwoman

Below was sent to me in a message by a resident a day or two ago:

Diane: Jeff Bennett posted the following on Pauly's blog yesterday. Why didn't Jeff bring all this to the Board's attention while he was there? Do you or any of the Board members have any comment?

From DHB Facebook page

Diane Haley Brooks, Selectwoman

April 12

I am reposting another question to me from resident:

Diane: Julie posted this this morning on Pauly's blog. Why is it that all of a sudden this information is coming to the surface? How did this information all of a sudden appear? why didn't someone know this BEFORE we hired these people???? Below is Julie's post:

"What is very frustrating is that in prior years when we were using every penny of free cash and Stabilization money to prop up our budget, we had auditors (Melanson & Heath) check the books. Those recap numbers were then okayed by the DOR...never questioned.

For a good time google up Saugus + Powers & Sullivan. Check out what happened in Barre. Oh wait, you can't that was covered up by the DA.

It appears there were financial irregularities going on in a few communities for a very long time. It would make an interesting case study to correlate which of those communities had Melanson & Heath as auditors. Another variable would be to see which communities had K&P as town attorneys and Melanson & Heath as auditors.

It is a bitter pill, but I think the town is better off with an override than a state control board".
 ********************************************************************************
Diane Haley Brooks, Selectwoman I am not sure sure why all this is bubbling up to the surface right now. The DOR is coming here on Monday and I will be sure to send the Town Administrator these comments and questions.

April 12 at 11:54am

April Cover: I would say that Julie and Jeff have been talking and Julie knows dam well what has gone on. I think that we should ask for her RESIGNATION! She is corrupt and has no right withholding information.

Kimberly Redman-Wojcukiewicz April Cover, that's the best idea I've heard all day! Julie needs to go!!

April 12 at 3:23pm

Thomas Couture It's time we really know what's going on !!!

April 12 at 3:11pm

*******************************************************************************

Interesting way to build UNITY in the CommUNITY! 

Here are some FACTS -

While Templeton was using Free Cash with abandon, we had an accountant who was a CPA by the name of Scott Sawyer. Templeton had annual audits performed by Melanson & Heath during the same time period. The DOR never had a problem approving the recap sheet except in 2005. Deb Wagner was and is our field rep. for the DOR. 

The BOS took a vote (3-2) to have the DOR come in and do a financial review. I voted in favor of the financial review and voted to accept the recommendations in the financial review. Unfortunately, a majority of the BOS voted to reject the DOR financial review.

BOS DOR Meeting January 10, 2010  Part 1

BOS DOR Meeting January 10, 2010 Part 2

I still hold out hope that people can educate themselves and we can come together as a commUNITY. 

I have made every effort to make information available to residents of Templeton. Go back to the beginning of this blog and read. 

View the meetings that have been posted to Youtube. 

All the information you want is there. 

Or better yet, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH! Yes, that means you, Diane Haley Brooks, and you April Cover, and you Kimberly Redman-Wojuckiewicz and you Thomas Couture. Please take the time to review all of the information that has been made available to you.

My opinions...supported by FACTS ! ! !

Julie Farrell

Please support the override 

for TEMPLETON

on May 5th