Mayor's Budget Address to Town Council

As best as I can reconstruct, this is what the Mayor said on the night that she delivered her proposed Budget to the Town Council:


"Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen, Town Council, Board of Finance members, and members of the press,

Tonight, we are here to start the discussion for the 2010 thru 2011 budget year for the Town of New Milford, CT. Unlike years previous, the State of Connecticut has yet to complete its budget for 2009 – 2010; we are ½ way through our present Budget year and this means that we can only guess at how and when state reimbursements and payments will be received for this year, making next years predictions even more difficult than usual.

Tonight, I am making recommendations but also I am looking for your input in maintaining and operating our Community. As usual, some will argue we are spending too much while others will lament we are spending too little. This is a balancing act we go through each year to make sure that the needs of our Community are met.

Over the next two weeks, we will invite Department Heads and Staff to help review and explain their budget requests in great detail so that we and the public know where their hard earned tax dollars are being spent. This process and time line is dictated by Charter and when the Town of New Milford next revises the Charter, I would recommend pushing the start dates out 4 – 6 weeks to allow time for more concrete information to be collected on the revenue side of the budget and I would also recommend that the Mayor be authorized to ask our Board of Education Department to take another look at their request and, if necessary, make adjustments like all other Town Departments before presenting to the Town Council and Board of Finance.

While all of the departments have diligently implemented savings wherever possible, and we all appreciate those efforts, I am recommending a reduction to both the Town requests and the Board of Education request.

I am recommending a reduction of $1,910,866 to the town side requests; and an $800,000 reduction to the BOE request, bringing forth a total of $91,764,131 as the number we start working with from this point on.

Included in that number are not only the Education and Town Department requests but all the Community debt payments in the amount of $6,709,590 for schools, roads, sewer and any bonded infrastructure improvements.

Furthermore, there are many other services included in this budget request.

There is $921,829 for the operations and maintenance of equipment for our very valuable fire departments, ambulance and our medic services.

We’ve included the Children’s Center for $79,500 and the VNA for $76,000; the Housatonic Transit Authority (Hart Bus) for $54,912 which provides public transportation options for our residents, along with a whole host of boards and commissions which help contribute to the well rounded community we enjoy here in New Milford.

Again, this year I am not recommending any money come from the undesignated account and I do expect a favorable audit outcome; however, we are still waiting for the printed version.

I look forward to working with all of your over the next few weeks in preparing the best possible Budget for the people of the Town of New Milford and if you have any questions or need more information, please do not hesitate to call. Thank you."

Weinberg Sworn In As New Member of BOE

Let me see if I can sum this up.

Wanting to run for the BOE, Democrat Rodney Weinberg tried many times to reach Democratic Party Chair John Lillis but never received a response.

Mr. Weinberg expressed his interest to the Mayor. Council Member(s) requested that his name be put on the Agenda as a nominee.

Lillis fails to come forward with a nominee even after having a Committee Meeting and knowing that its Membership supported Dr. Stillman. “Protocol” – very important to the Dems when they want it to be – calls for the Chair to give a letter to the Mayor’s Office. That didn’t happen.

Lillis is the only speaker in public participation; attendees Bob Coppola and David Lawson choose not to speak. One would think that they’d speak in support of their candidate or Lillis.

The three Council Democrats try to nominate Stillman but can’t get the votes to do so. They try to stall but fail to make a Motion to Table.

Mr. Weinberg is nominated, wins and is sworn in immediately.

What would have happened if Dr. Stillman’s name had been on the Agenda? There weren’t enough votes to elect him, Mr. Weinberg’s name would have come forward and he would have been elected.

End of story.

I take back what I wrote yesterday about Mr. Lillis. Now I know that he is speaking out of both sides of his mouth. Last night, he spoke in support of Dr. Stillman even though he was “rejected” by the voters. John, how come it’s OK to support Stillman (D) after being rejected by the voters but it’s not OK to support Joe Failla (R) for an appointment to a different board from which he was “rejected?”

BOE Weinberg Appointment Causing Controversy

“Murphy expected to recommend Weinberg for school board” is the headline for Nanci Hutson’s story in today’s News-Times. Here’s her lead: "Mayor Patricia Murphy is expected to recommend Monday night that the Town Council endorse Rodney Weinberg, a fiscally conservative Democrat, to fill the vacant seat on the school board."

Seems simple enough but this is New Milford.

Section 205 of the Charter provides that a vacancy in an elected seat is filled “by the Town Council.” The Mayor’s role is to put a name on the Council’s Agenda. Thus, Nanci is jumping to a conclusion. How does she or anyone know that the Mayor will recommend Mr. Weinberg for the seat? Maybe she will but the more interesting question is why the Democratic Town Committee failed to make a recommendation. After all, it did have a Meeting after it learned of Dr. Diamond’s resignation and could have recommended Dr. Stillman. Further, it wouldn’t surprise me a bit if Mr. Weinberg has been reaching out to the DTC for a while and has had no response because he’s “a fiscally conservative Democrat.”

But wait! Maybe the reason that the DTC didn’t bring Dr. Stillman’s name forward is because of its Chairman’s position that he’s been rejected by the voters. That was Chairman Lillis’ position with regard to Joe Failla, remember? I applaud John for his consistency and integrity.

The larger BOE Budget picture gets more interesting by the moment.

Newly elected “Republican” Member Dan Nichols was conspicuously absent from the BOE Budget vote. With four kids in the system, was this an intentional act or was he really busy that night? Did he ask Chairman Faulenbach to delay the vote until he could attend? Did the Chairman refuse to do so because the vote would have been delayed until after the February 1 effective date of Dr. Diamond’s resignation, thus putting a positive Budget vote at risk? Another possibility is that there were some machinations to ensure that “Republican” Chair Faulenbach wasn’t put in the position of having to break a tie. Wendy is probably twitching over Mr. Weinberg’s potential appointment.

Of course the Dems are whining and complaining about Mr. Weinberg, “a fiscally conservative Democrat.” This guy – a realist – has actually owned a business and had to make payroll every Friday i.e. he knows where the tires meet the road. And OMG! According to Nanci Hutson, Mr. Weinberg “recently objected to the school board’s proposed budget because he did not think it adequately reflected a concern for taxpayers who are on a fixed income or struggling financially.”

We couldn’t do better.

Superintendent’s BOE Request Equals 2.7% Tax Increase

Here’s how it works.

The request is $1,814,810 over last year’s BOE Budget.

As reported by Town Finance Director Ray Jankowski, today’s value of 1 mill is $2,997,190.

$1,814,810 (the recommended increase) divided by $2,997,190 (the value of a mill) equals .6055038

The current mill rate is 22.52

.6055038 divided by 22.52 equals .0268873 or a tax increase of 2.68873%

This calculation assumes that revenues stay flat. Of course, given the state of the economy, it is almost a certainty that revenues will be down.

There’s another way to do this calculation: The current grand list is $2,932,492,514. The total amount to be raised by taxes is $66,042,266. $66,042,266 divided by $2,932,492,514 equals .0225208643. This multiplied by 1000 equals our current mill rate of 22.52

The sum of the Superintendent’s recommended increase ($1,814,810) and the amount to be raised by taxes ($66,042,266) is $67,857,076. This divided by $2,932,492,514 (the current grand list) equals .0231397269. This multiplied by 1000 equals the new mill rate of 23.14. This minus the old mill rate of 22.52 equals a mill rate increase of .62. This divided by the current mill rate of 22.52 equals .027531 or a tax increase of 2.7531% . Note that the tax increase reached in the first method is slightly different from this result due to the number of places to which I did the arithmetic.

What’s the point of all this? The point is that BOE Members have to look very carefully at the impact of its Budget on New Milford’s taxpayers. I posted this because I don’t know if any of them have asked the question. They should. If they do, I want to make sure they get the have the right answer.

Lost Hikers Identified

Deputy Sheriff T. J. Hanlon of the Dutchess County Sheriff's Office released the names of the two New Milford hikers who got lost on the Appalachian Trail last Saturday: 17 year-0ld Suzanne Freda and 20 year-old Vincent Palmesi.

Lisa Diamond Resigns From BOE

Dr. Lisa Diamond has resigned from the Board of Education, effective February 1, 2010.

Section 205 of the Charter provides that the vacancy "shall be filled within sixty (60) days of such vacancy by appointment, by the Town Council, for the unexpired portion of the term or until the next regular Town election...whichever shall first occur."

The appointee must be a Democrat.

Downtown Race Held Without Permit

"The course will begin on Railroad Street," provides the Road and Track Sports’ Web Page about its Christmas Run for the Children yesterday that closed traffic on Railroad Street and elsewhere, including Wellsville, Wells, Aspetuck and Young's Field Roads.

Police and Fire personnel were on the scene but it appears that the event had not been approved by the Town Council as required by Town Ordinances that also require that the event holder provide a certificate of insurance and pay for Police assistance. “I have no recollection of this ever coming before us,” said Town Councilman Ray O’Brien.

"Whatever they did was illegal," says Harry Taylor, owner of H. H. Taylor & Son, Inc. on Railroad Street, clearly angered by the interference with his business. "Evidently someone doesn't care about what goes on in downtown New Milford."

A source at the New Milford Police Department says that the Department had no prior notice of the event. “There has to be approval from Town Hall, there’s a Permit Fee and a process that we go through here,” said the source. “These street closings would obviously require Police assistance and that would have to be paid for by the permittee.”

Mr. Taylor said that he called the Department twice and on both occasions was told that it had no notice of the event.

Wally Jahn, the owner of Road and Track Sports, could not be reached for comment. Mr. Jahn has sponsored many races in New Milford including those that take place on Village Fair Days.

Mr. Jahn may now have to pay for the Town services that were provided and there may be other sanctions. Retailers may also have a cause of action.

Before moving to Brookfield, Road and Track Sports was located on the Green. The store will close on December 24.

Wake Up America: SEALs Prosecution Disgraceful

Washington (CNN) -- Three U.S. Navy SEALs face criminal charges after the alleged mastermind of one of the most notorious crimes against Americans in Iraq accused them of punching him after his capture, the military said Wednesday.

Ahmed Hashim Abed -- thought to be behind the slayings and mutilation of four U.S. contractors in Falluja in 2004 and captured in summer -- made the accusations against the three servicemen, said Lt. Col. Holly Silkman, a spokeswoman for U.S. Central Command.

A civilian lawyer for one of three SEALs said his client and the other SEALs declined a nonjudicial resolution to the case, a step sometimes called a "captain's mast." The servicemen say they did not harm the detainee in any way and they want their names cleared in a court-martial so they can continue their careers in the Navy, said the attorney, Neil Puckett.

Because the charges[*] against Petty Officer 2nd Class Matthew McCabe, Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe and Petty Officer Julio Heurtas are the military equivalent of misdemeanors, they will go before a special court-martial, which is for less serious offenses than those heard in a general court-martial. If found guilty, they could be sentenced to a maximum of a year in a military prison, demotion to the lowest Navy rank, a cut in pay and a bad conduct discharge.

But if found innocent of all charges, they would be able to continue their careers with no record of the case in their personnel files.

The three SEALs are with their unit in Norfolk, Virginia. They will make an initial appearance before a military judge on December 7. The court-martial is scheduled to begin in January.

The attorney said he expects the SEALs will not waive their constitutional right to confront the accuser in court, which could cause a logistical challenge. Abed is believed to be in a U.S. military detention center overseas, and it is unclear if the military would want him brought to the United States for the court-martial.

The four contractors, one of whom was a former Navy SEAL, were working for the Blackwater company when they were attacked in Falluja in 2004. After they were killed with hand grenades and rifles, their bodies were set on fire and dragged through the streets. The bodies of two of them were hung from a bridge in Falluja, an image that was broadcast around the world.

Four days after the attack, the U.S. Marines launched a major offensive inside Falluja, in part to help find the killers.

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*The Charges:

Matthew McCabe, a Special Operations Petty Officer Second Class (SO-2), is facing three charges: dereliction of performance of duty for willfully failing to safeguard a detainee, making a false official statement, and assault.

Petty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2, is facing charges of dereliction of performance of duty and making a false official statement.

Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1, faces those same charges and an additional charge of impediment of an investigation.

Brookfield Bypass Open!

As I wrote on November 4, the Brookfield Bypass opened mid-day today.

Now we'll see if it creates a huge bottleneck at the Bridge.

What's Ahead For the NMDTC?

It was not a good election year for the Town’s Democrats. The losses by incumbent John Lillis of his Town Council seat, incumbent Shelly Pruss’ loss of his Board of Finance seat, incumbent Janice Vance’s loss of her Zoning seat and Larry Stillman’s loss of his bid for a Board of Ed seat have far-ranging implications for the Town’s Democratic Party. Lillis, also the DTC Chair, got more votes than the other Democratic Council candidates on the Dem line but lost because others got votes on the New Milford First line and these were added to their final counts.

Pruss, a devoted Dem and former Mayoral candidate, has served the Town for many years in various capacities including the Town Council and his name was on the NMF ballot. Stillman, also a former Democratic Mayoral candidate, is a retired foot doctor whose business was in Town, has served on the Board of Ed and his name was also on the NMF ballot. Despite this history, he failed to get more votes than two newcomers. Vance was also on the NMF ballot.

Say what you may about candidates running on more than one party line – I think it is wrong – it is clear that despite New Milford First’s utter failure to get one of its people elected and that being on its line was the kiss of death for others, the Party may now be able to achieve an unintended goal: the takeover of the Town’s Democratic Party.

Think about it.

Who are the DTC’s two major players? John Lillis and former Mayor Liba Furhman. Furhman is not on my list of favorites but I credit her for arguably knowing more about how to play the political game than anyone else in Town. With Furhman distracted by employment that requires her to stay away from politics and Lillis being discouraged by his recent loss and without meaningful support, who of the real Dems is left to waive the Party’s flag? Certainly not Councilmen Mullen or Lundgren who really aren’t participating Members and whose distaste for the “old guard” was palpably visible at the Council Meetings. Pruss and Wargo can’t do it alone and appear to have lost their enthusiasm for Party politics. So what will happen? Who will fill the void? My guess is that it will be filled with the likes of New Milford First’s Gerry Monaghan who used Bob Kostes’ money to finance the only negativity heard throughout the campaign season. I predict that New Milford First will close its shop if its Members successfully step into the DTC.

The message for the DTC is simple. Don’t allow the NMF malcontents into your tent. If you want to continue to lose, continue to allow your candidates’ names to appear on its ballot; you can’t run as a team if your team players are on another team. If you allow this, you will be relegated to mediocrity for years to come.

It is important to remember in 2011 that New Milford First’s only mission in 2009 was to try to confuse New Milford voters but that the voters saw right through it. Remember not only the ploy in 2011 but the names of the players, no matter what their political affiliation.