Taking On Water

Maria Geryk, Sean Mangano, Mike Morris at last night's Finance Committee meeting

Amherst school officials gave the Finance Committee a sneak peak at their fiscal 2017 Elementary and Regional School budgets, both of which are described as "level services," and both of which require sizable cuts simply to attain that treading water status quo:

$428,897 from the elementary schools and  $280,823 from the Region.

 Charter Schools cost as much as employee Step/COLA and projected raises next year on Elementary budget Control Accounts

And in both cases the number one cause of budget strain comes from the competitive drain of students by Charter Schools, mainly Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School in Hadley, which is now a full service grades 1-12 enterprise.

 PVCIC recently added $10 million building addition

For the Region (grades 7-12) this year that includes 90 students and at the elementary level another 86 -- all of them at the high average cost per student, where Amherst is in the top 10% statewide.

 Charter School impact on Amherst elementary schools

If a student leaves Amherst via Choice it only costs us $5,000 but if they go to a Charter School or Vocational School it costs us $18,000.

And to make matters worse the state is considering lifting the cap on Charter Schools while reducing dramatically the reimbursement formula to public schools who lose students to Charters.

All in all a lose/lose proposition for an already ailing public school system once the proud flagship of education in the Happy Valley.

PVCIC recently added a $10 million addition to their nearby facility while Amherst is gambling on a two-for-one mega school that could very well be turned down by the voters because of expense, adding significant costs to Amherst's already sky high property tax burden.

School  Library supporters crashed the FinCom meeting

About a half-dozen disgruntled citizens showed up to the Finance Committee meeting last night to complain about the 3 library paraprofessionals facing the budget ax, but Chair Kay Moran told them the Finance Committee has no line item authority and simply votes the bottom line provided by School Administration.

$40,000 was recently shifted from the elementary schools operating budget to capital (paid by the town) so that alone will cover half the cost of the three library paras if approved by Town Meeting.

And the town did recently renew the lousy 3.5 year "Strategic Partnership" with UMass that provided $60,000 this current year and $120,000 next year in reimbursement money for the 56 students in our expensive public schools coming from tax exempt family housing at UMass.

School Committee candidate Vince O'Connor will be filing a "citizens petition" for Town Meeting calling for greater Payment In Lieu Of Taxes from all three institutes of higher education who dominate day-to-day existence in our little "college town."

 Comparison of local public schools losses to Charter Schools (Amherst second from lowest)

No Laughing Matter

Highest elected officials in town are paid $300 annually

Saying that when she mentions their annual $300 stipend most people laugh, Select Board member Connie Kruger told the Finance Committee this morning the Select Board compensation issue, although awkward for her to talk about because of obvious self-interest, boils down to "respect of the office."

Select Board members are reimbursed for some out-of-pocket expenses, but the issue really is their time. Lots of it.  This past Fiscal Year they met 33 times, with each meeting lasting around three hours.   Not to mention all the prep time preparing for each meeting. 

And the simply fact that their stipend (and that of the Moderator) has not increased since the mid-1970s, so inflation alone calls for quadrupling the current amount.

 Finance Committee this morning.  Chair Kay Moran 2nd from right

Most Finance Committee members were sympathetic to the issue with member Bernie Kubiak agreeing strongly:  "It should be increased considering the importance and amount of time ... I think $300 is a joke”

But newly reelected Chair Kay Moran thought it was a "policy issue" that should first be fleshed out with an exact amount by either the Select Board or a committee they appoint, and then come back to the Finance Committee like any financial article.

Member Steve Braun had to leave early before a vote was taken but told the committee on his way out, "I'm in favor of raising it."

Vice Chair Marylou Theilman made a motion to "Refer the question of compensation/stipend back to the Select Board as a policy issue."  That motion passed unanimously 6-0.

Connie Kruger said she was happy with that, as the Select Board may now feel more comfortable discussing the issue.

In other financial matters the Finance Committee voted unanimously to transfer $251,176 from their "Reserve Fund" to last year's DPW budget to cover cost overruns on "snow and ice removal."

The original $280,000 DPW budget was overrun by almost twice the amount, coming in at $531,000.

Area compensations.  Described as "all over the map."

Gang of 4 hears good news

Amherst confluence of four committees

Finance Director Sandy Pooler crunched the numbers for next year's (FY12) operating budget tonight at a joint meeting of the Finance Committee, School Committee, Select Board, and Library Trustees (affectionately known as "The gang of four"), and--in spite of the sputtering economy--the outlook was rosy as long as the spending increases keep to 2.8%, enough to provide level services.

The town finished the year with a $1.1 million surplus, which reverted to Free Cash. Total reserves (Free Cash and Stabilization) now stand at $5.6 million--not counting the cushion (around $1 million) in the Amherst Regional School's "Excess and Deficiency" savings account.

While the state is usually portrayed as the skunk in the room, an extra supplemental appropriation of $514,000 coming in for FY12 spruced up their bad guy image among town officials. The local option hotel/motel and meals tax tallied a handsome $495,000 in FY11, up $150,000 from the previous year--and with the historic Lord Jeffrey Inn coming back on line soon, that amount should go up even higher in FY12.

The property tax is of course far and away the town's main revenue source, contributing 63%, with state aid a distant second at 20%. And within that property tax, the disparity between commercial and residential continues to be an embarrassment.

In the current fiscal year residential taxpayers contribute 91% of the tax base compared to commercial/industrial at a pathetic 9%. In 2002 it was 89% residential to an anemic 11% commercial/industrial.

Half of Amherst is owned by tax exempt entities: Amherst College and UMass coming in at #1 and #2 respectively, with the town itself #3 (mostly conservation land) and Hampshire College #4. UMass makes annual Payments In Lieu Of Taxes of $325,000 for Fire and Ambulance protection, Hampshire College does not. Amherst College kicks in $100,000 every now and then.

Town Meeting will vote next month on a couple of warrant articles that could help turn around that dismal commercial/residential ratio by stimulating commercial smart growth development. A $40,000 appropriation for a townwide housing marketing study but with particular emphasis on the Gateway Corridor area for a proposed commercial mixed use project, and Form Based Zoning in the North Amherst and Atkins Corner Village Centers.

Of course Town Meeting is also one of the main factors in stonewalling development of any kind as the BANANAs (Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything) can usually muster the 34% minority vote required to kill a business friendly zoning change.

There they go again

This time it's the staid Finance Committee disingenuously spinning figures to aid town officials in their faltering battle to raise taxes.

According to their unanimously approved manifesto, the FinCom lays the blame on Prop 2.5, which Amherst overwhelmingly voted against 30 years ago: "Even with careful management, costs for local communities to provide education, libraries,public safety and other community services increase at an inflation rate greater than 2.5 percent."

But our supposed watchdog financial consultants are conveniently forgetting "new growth" allowed by Prop 2.5. The Facilitation of Community Choices Committee recognized that in their financial report two years ago by clearly pointing out:

"Prop 2.5 allows for an annual increase in property taxes of 2.5% plus any new growth in taxable property such as new construction or additions.

Amherst has averaged 1.5% per year during the last ten years for a total average increase of 4% in the tax base."

And last I looked, inflation was below 4% over the past ten years--and in 2009 almost 0%.

Particularly troubling, rookie Finance Committee Chair Andy Steinberg (also a long-time Town Meeting member) was a member of the FCCC and present on the day the discussion of "new growth" took place.