Road to an Override?

So as of this morning both papers have covered the new three-year teacher contract for the Amherst Schools, the second largest employer in Amherst (behind that juggernaut Umass) and both articles do the complicated math, providing average salaries for all 400 teachers or the 14 at the top step but nobody does the simple math:

What is the total dollar amount of increase over last year’s 1% increase for salary/wages due to this blanket 2.5% raise and did the Superintendent factor that dollar amount into his budgets presented to the School Committees and coming before Town Meeting next month?

The combined school budgets are 49 million and colloquial wisdom is that employees account for 85% of that, or around $40 million. So a 2.5% raise comes to an extra $1 million (Hey a million here and a million there…).

My concern of course is NEXT year when it jumps another 3.5% from the NEW higher number, or $1.3 million.

I emailed Superintendent Hochman and longtime Finance Committee member Alice Carlozzi early Monday morning to ask what the dollar amount is and neither of them knew. Not a good sign.

UPDATE: April 11. So I heard back yesterday from Superintendent Hochman and the figures are: $294,701 for last year when the raises were only 1% and this coming year FY09 694,947 and next year at the 3.5% will top $1 million.

Freedom isn't free

Protestors climbed the Golden Gate Bridge to put up a “Free Tibet” banner. Now since San Francisco is the Mother of All refuge cities for illegal immigrants you gotta wonder if the perps were legal. And if one of them fell while performing the act of civil disobedience, could they suit the city?

Let’s hope His Lordship doesn’t get any ideas about Amherst’s downtown banner.

Breaking News! (Ho Hum)

Well I guess my slight boo boo on predicting the April Fool’s Day election is now vindicated. Long live His Lordship! But his Court will certainly be less regal calling the other four by their first names. But I like that rearranged seating. What’s that cliché about deck chairs on the Titanic?
Springfield Republican

Safe Bet!

Tonight’s Select Board “reorganization” will see Gerry Weiss retain his exalted title, actually both of them: ‘Chair of the Board’ and ‘His Lordship.’

What controversy?

The Regional School Committee tomorrow night will take up the discussion of “Controversial Issues In School” policy for possible revisions (after the way the Committee handled things in the past I’m surprised to learn they have a playbook).

I only have two suggestions:
Don’t ever cancel ‘West Side Story’ (no matter how many kids sign a petition) and don’t ever allow the school to sanction ‘The Vagina Monologues’ again.

Colors of Spring

So Betsy Gage, who lives nearby and inherited the “job” from another neighbor, every year about now loads this big green bucket located on the South Amherst Town Common with brightly colored flowers (in late summer she may replace them with mums). She doesn’t get paid to do it, and she herself finances the flowers purchased from a very local farm.

Yeah, even the People’s Republic has people who genuinely care (thank God!)
Click photo to enlarge.

His Lordship: "Not Ready" For Prime Time

Since Amherst Select Board Chair Gerry Weiss just released this update about his anti-immigration law folly on an ABD (all but dead) website, I thought I would give it the wider circulation it deserves.

No agent, officer or employee of the Town of Amherst, in the performance of official duties, shall assist or cooperate with the Immigration and Naturalization Service of the United States in the investigation or arrest of any persons for civil or criminal violations of the immigration and nationality laws of the United States.

“I've decided to pull the article from the warrant. In my mind, it is not ready to go, and I'm not interested in using Town Meeting time fighting over a document that is not ready. This is too important to allow that to happen. I've been in touch with lawyers from ACLU as well as immigration lawyers who will help craft this into something that will be ready for Fall Town Meeting; or not at all.”

Notice he declares "I've decided". Hmmm. Last I looked it took a majority of the Select board (3 of 5) to place an article on the warrant or call for an Override. Now you know why his nickname is "His Lordship.".

And if we take up this "Welcome Aliens" legislation this Fall perhaps Mr. Weiss will put some money in the budget so we can construct a UFO landing pad on the Town Common.