By Vincent Paul Migliore
It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which we retain our liberty is eternal vigilance; which condition if we break, servitude is at once the consequence.
Little did John Curran know when he spoke these (slightly paraphrased) words he spoke of a warning to registered voters of the Newfound Area School District — Alexandria, Bridgewater, Bristol, Danbury, Groton, Hebron and New Hampton. But for one or two, energized on occasion or when a hot issue surfaces that more find time to attend as a crowd (more on that below) a School Board meeting … held at your high school on the 2nd Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. — for the most part, no one appears (read: shows-up) to argue for the taxpaying citizenry in the public forum provided to do so. Well, technically — Mr. Archie Auger of Bristol’s been present at numerous meetings to watch what’s been going on. He’s spoken up and both praised and critiqued with severe chastisement at times — actions of the School Board. He comes with a broad breadth of extensive hands-on expertise as a long-term educator, district employee, school administrator, a fine purveyor of detailed knowledge in state law, as well as public servant and as a competent past School Budget Committee Chairman.
Mr. Archie Auger attends every Deliberative (first) Session of the Newfound Area School District and votes in every election held, (the second session of the same meeting a month later when we vote at the polls). We will someday need a nominee to take the reins from him, from his commitment to eternal vigilance to be that local beacon to inform those who serve us they’re being watched carefully. With that nomination may come the application of an elixir to soothe any pain we may feel as excess taxation, which feeling this year has been particularly justified. It stems simply from those in our administration who fall back on the legal profession you employ on their behalf just recently saying “… our lawyer said she is 60% certain she could defend our recommended action to the Board in court.” Why not make a more simple choice in the taxpayers’ favor instead of hoping and gambling you might be more right legally than simply wrong in principal?
A simple analysis reveals from the district’s own publicly available information that the average unexpended fund balance for each of the past seven (7) years (read: the amount of money left over in late spring from our school budget that it turns out we didn’t need to tax you for during the prior year) has averaged roughly $952,000. This past year, we reported very late in the school year when we were finally done with scheduled and budgeted spending, a roughly $1,500,000 unexpended fund balance — (again, read: the amount of money left over from our school budget that it turns out in late spring we didn’t need to tax you for during the prior year, but did so). The highest I can ever recall. This past year, consistent with several of the past recent years, our student enrollment declined, and while it varies it’s always in negative double-digit numbers and yet this net loss includes having those who tuition in to NASD from Hill, NH. Yet, somehow, we always seem to need build a budget that barely comes in “just under the tax cap” (that only allows a 2% increase on monies raised from taxes during the prior year — now do you understand why you get over-taxed each year? It allows us to come in “just under” a HIGHER budget that we haven’t needed to the tune of $952,000 per year, for the last seven). How about we stop that practice and build a budget at this year’s Deliberative Session on February 2nd — with your help in attending — that simply doesn’t overtax you almost a $1,000,000 more each year than has actually been needed for the past seven (7) years, based on our own data? Isn’t that proof we haven’t had to “come in just under the tax cap” in a continually declining statewide and local enrollment situation? Why continue to grant so many more requests for funding each year, providing a savory menu from which leftover taxpayer funds can be selectively spent prior at the end of the fiscal year in June? And be told in the newspaper the prior autumn the list was “hard to cut” … how can something be cut from something that doesn’t exist yet? Aren’t those just items we’d like to have, but would simply put us over our tax cap? Instead of focusing on all our building improvements again this year, why not consider giving our worthy support staff a modest raise to help with an increase in a cost of living? Our professional staff is poised for one. Doesn’t it take an entire village to raise a child?
You have a way to take back some modest control with a petitioned warrant article option — at least one this year, that advises your School Board with omnipotent control over spending tax money YOU choose to appropriate, to implement a policy that allows YOU, as voters to decide whether capital improvements should be completed or not — by a vote of the public annually, not just by them. Please consider supporting it. It’s your money that gets taxed — so, shouldn’t YOU decide? To do this, plan to accompany Archie Auger — your eternally vigilant public guardian of the public trust — to the district-wide School Meeting. “Nominations” so to speak, to add others to such public trust resources exemplified by him, are Saturday morning, February 2, 2019 at 10:00 a.m., — it’s the Deliberation Session meeting folks — where you vote on matters put before you, decide what the voters will see on a physical ballot a month later in March when many more will visit the polls to cast their choice on what YOU (or your neighbor? Or only your School Board?) will decide what they see on that final ballot. This is where you will be further educated on how to take up this mantle to get control of the most significant local taxation you control each year. Remember, while our Congress may very well be beyond our reach, your local government is not … at least, yet. That’s why we supposedly like local control in NH. Now prove it. See you at the high school the one time each year you have some say at 10:00 a.m. Saturday morning, February 2, 2019. (The inclement weather date is two days later, on Monday).
“It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which we retain our liberty is eternal vigilance; which condition if we break, servitude is at once the consequence.”
Vincent Paul Migliore
198 Whittemore Point Rd So
Bridgewater