Templeton residents easily approve $505,000 override

Templeton residents easily approve $505,000 override

Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

TEMPLETON — Voters at Saturday’s Special Town Meeting answered with a resounding “yes” when asked if they would support a $505,000 Proposition 2 1/2 override —  sending the question to the town’s election ballot in May.

After a recount was requested, the final tally stood at 224 to 49 in favor of the override. All four members of the Board of Selectmen also raised their hands in support of the override.

Interim Town Administrator Bob Markel gave a short presentation before the vote to update residents on the current financial situation — revealing that the town’s free cash number certified by the state Department of Revenue was actually in the negative.

“The town not only doesn’t have a positive free cash balance, we have a deficit of $26,000,” said Mr. Markel.


According to a letter received by Mr. Markel from the state, Templeton has a deficit of $26,899 in their general fund and no free cash for appropriation — a situation Mr. Markel described as “very rare”.

The news made the warrant article pertaining to the use of free cash to close the budget shortfall irrelevant, as there was none in the general fund.

Estimates provided by Mr. Markel had the $505,000 override raising the tax rate by about $0.94. This year’s rate — after the override last summer — was estimated at about $15.26 per $1000 of property value. That rate would increase to around $16.20 for Fiscal Year 2015 with the new override.

During discussion on the motion, it was brought up that the $505,000 shortfall had supposedly shrunk after a recently visit from Deb Wagner of the state revenue department. Mr. Markel said that while the numbers were initially in the town’s favor, upon further review, what Ms. Wagner told them turned out to not be the case and the deficit was still $505,000.

There was a briefly entertained motion to delay the meeting, but both Mr. Markel and Selectman Kenn Robinson explained that the state has given the town a firm deadline of March 31 to have a plan in place to address the deficit and should the meeting be pushed off further, the revenue department could take control of the Templeton’s finances.

Mr. Robinson said both delaying the meeting and voting against the override would be “devastating” to the town, although he sympathized with residents who were still seeking answers he was unable to provide.

“The majority of the people that can answer those questions are no longer responsible to the town,” he said. “Since this deficit was discovered, the Town Coordinator is no longer with the town, the Town Treasurer is no longer with the town, the Town Accountant is no longer with the town and the Chairman of the Board of Selectmen is no longer on the board.”

Mr. Robinson said that towns dealing with similar-sized deficits, when taken over by the state, would generally see funding of all “cultural” activities eliminated — which includes closing the library, shutting down the Council on Aging and stopping all maintenance of town parks and recreational areas.

Although the override passed, the town is not out of danger yet — as it still needs to be approved at the May 5 Town Election. If it fails at the ballot, the community could be in serious fiscal trouble and the state could still pursue special legislation allowing for Templeton to operate in a deficit and for the office to take over the town’s finances.