Tiverton
Somebody in town really wants a waiver of the state-imposed property tax cap, which currently limits the total property tax levy to a 4.5% increase. As I reported in a liveblog from last Monday’s Town Council meeting, the council voted to send an extra-statutory “letter of inquiry” (meaning that there’s no such thing in the…
With Tiverton’s financial town meeting (FTM) fast approaching, I’ve been having to attend multiple town meetings per week to keep an eye on the local powers who be. For anybody who’s interested, the resulting liveblogs and videos are up on the Tiverton Citizens for Change Web site. The experience has been a real education in…
Since I offered commentary on Anchor Rising against the Tiverton Budget Committee’s decision to level fund the local contribution to the school budget, it seems reasonable to note, in this space, that I’ve revised my position. As I explained here and here, I’d been misled by the language that the School Committee and administration use…
For those who are interested, I’m liveblogging from a special Tiverton Town Council meeting, which is including discussion of proposing legislation to the General Assembly that would allow cities and towns to delay final budgetary decisions for up to 90 days in order to procure more accurate information about revenue.
FYI: I’m liveblogging a very long Tiverton Town Council meeting over on the Tiverton Citizens for Change blog. It’s just about 10:00, and they’re finally getting to the controversial part of the meeting. Just goes to show how much effort even local participation can take. That’s no excuse, of course.
Over on the Tiverton Citizens for Change blog, I’ve been following the battle over the tax cap in this year’s budget war. The town’s Budget Committee has now voted to reduce all requested budgets to an amount below the state cap on property tax increases (4.5%). The School Committee is actively declaring the end of…
A certain faction in Tiverton, working with the town solicitor, is striving to make it as easy as possible for the town to exceed the 3050 statewide cap on municipal tax levies. I’ve got background and video up on the TCC Web site, and I’ll be liveblogging over there during tonight’s town council meeting, at…
I’ve posted video of the Tiverton School Committee’s hearing about closing the high school over on the TCC Web site. Two dramatically different visions for moving the town forward are emerging. One entails retrenchment, with townies overpowering childless retirees and moving forward with the usual way of doing business, including the decades-long approach to improving…