Why can't we just have a bake sale?

I've attended 2 budget committee meetings this week and I have a few thoughts to share:

• Someone needs to explain the preschool program at the Elementary School to Russ Simon. And not just the preschool program at the school, but preschool in general. It's been a long time since some of the Budget Committee members have had kids in Pre-K, and my guess is that maybe things have changed a little. I really wanted to raise my hand and explain how it works. For the record, we've attended both a private Pre-K and utilized the Pre-K at the elementary school due to my son having an IEP, so I think I have a pretty well-rounded perspective. Just the hint that the Pre-K at the elementary school might need to be "looked at" because revenue is down, shows that the Budget Committee members don't understand the program. 

• It's no secret that the majority of the budget is salaries - 81% according to Dr. Hayes. Last night Roseanne Kwaks complained that "the kids are only getting 20 cents on the dollar." Does she not realize that teachers teach kids?

• There's been a lot of talk about needs vs. wants. A little at the Budget Committee meeting, but also quite a lot on Facebook. Is only meeting the minimum standards where we want to be? What does this say about our priorities? Hiding behind fiscal responsibility and suggesting that anything above the bare minimum is the Taj Mahal is a disgrace. I expect more from our elected officials. 

• Dr. Hayes needs to do a better job explaining his plans for technology in our schools. I don't know what back-up data the Budget Committee has or doesn't have, but it was clear that they didn't understand the request for the iPads and how it fits into the bigger picture for the district. Not to mention, as a parent I think that it's exciting to hear about those plans for the schools and it makes me feel like we're headed in the right direction.

The Budget Committee will meet again on January 7th and 8th. At those meetings, the Budget Committee will ask any further questions of both the Town and the School and also discuss the proposed warrant articles. There will be time for public input at a hearing scheduled for January 14th. 

Mark your calendars.

Powerless

Yes, I believe this is about guns. 

Here are some of the issues taken up during the last legislative session in New Hampshire as reported by Granite State Progress:

• whether to allow someone who was denied a handgun license to petition directly to the Superior court and skip the local process.
• whether to allow guns on college campuses and dorms, in athletic stadiums and public parks and beaches.
• whether to exempt firearms, fire arm accessories, and ammunition manufactured in New Hampshire from federal law and regulation. A yes vote on this bill additionally made a state or federal official, who enforced a lawful federal regulation, guilty of a misdemeanor or felony.
• whether to eliminate licensing requirements for N.H. residents to own and carry firearms such as pistols and revolvers, "whether openly or concealed, loaded or unloaded."
• whether to overturn established law that prohibited carrying loaded rifles and shotguns in vehicles.
• whether to allow any person, meeting certain statutory requirements, to carry a firearm, openly or concealed, loaded or unloaded, on or about their person or upon or in a vehicle, whether or not such person possesses a license, permit, or other authorization to carry a firearm. This bill also removed the requirement that non-residents obtain a license to possess a firearm while in New Hampshire.
• whether to allow the use of firearms and fireworks in crowded, heavily populated cities and towns.

The President said that now is the time for action. Then he read the names of 20 children murdered on Friday. They were 1st graders.

I have a 1st grader who is happy to have a snow day today and looking forward to Christmas next week. He is excited about learning Math and reading new books. He is sweet and competitive and stubborn and innocent and I will not stand to hear an elected official justify compromising his safety by hiding behind the 2nd Amendment.

We have a voice and we can use it. I don't want to struggle again with the decision of whether or not to tell my 7 & 9 year old about another mass shooting in a school or a mall or a movie theater. I'm using my voice to talk about this and I beg you to use yours.

Find your elected representatives here: http://votesmart.org/. Write to your state reps, your Governor, your Congressmen and your Senators.  

As the President asked last night-"What choice do we have?"

Kool-Aid

Newmarket recently received its permit from the EPA, which gave us a discharge limit of 3 mil of nitrogen per liter for our wastewater treatment plant. (I'm pretty sure that we currently discharge about 30 mil/l, so we have our work cut out for us.) Newmarket has been involved in a coalition of Seacoast towns fighting the EPA guidelines, but it was reported yesterday that we will comply with the new limits. From reading the article in the Exeter Newsletter, it sounds as though this buys us both a little time and a little good will. Not to mention, it allows us to avoid a costly legal battle AND most importantly, do our part to protect Great Bay.

Now we are faced with building a multi-million dollar water treatment facility. 

So much of this has been under wraps because of legal concerns, but now I hope that we will work closely with neighboring towns to try and share this burden. 

When Don Jutton said that Newmarket couldn't go it alone, he wasn't only talking about the school, right? 

Right??

Town Council Recap

From last night's Town Council meeting:

"We need a different form of government."-John Bentley. 
I get the weirdest vibe when they talk about this. It generally starts to come up when the school is being talked about and in reference to giving the "Town" more power. There's always been tension between the "Town" and the "School" but it seems to be at an all-time high right now. 

The chatter at Town Council meetings about our form of government in Newmarket has been building for a while. Last night the Council approved a resolution to put the question to voters to establish a Charter Commission. 

I'm looking forward to the discussion about this at the public hearing.

"We have zero authority over the school. I'm not saying it's right, I'm saying it's what it is."-Phil Nazzaro. 
See? 

"It's a judgement call of the Council." -Steve Fournier
In reference to the request of the school to use impact fees designated for the school to buy out the lease on the modulars at the Elementary School. After the last TC meeting, Mr. Fournier requested more legal opinions and ended up back where he started. 

"It really depends on the Council and what they consider permanent." -Christine Blouin. 
Ms. Blouin did a great job explaining the need and making the case for the permanence of the modulars.

"It's a classroom. I have no problem with this." Dan Wright. 
Enough said. 

"Motion passes 5-1."
Thank you. 

Feedback

Since starting this blog, I've received emails and phone calls from various Town Councilors and others. Sometimes it's to add information about a subject that I didn't know, give me history on a particular topic, ask me to write about something or just to generally "set me straight."

While I've never asked people to contact me, I expect some response to the things I write. This is my blog, we live in a small town and I don't hide behind any kind of fake identity. Heck, my picture is right on the page. 

It's generally been a positive experience (even if the feedback hasn't always been.)

That's why I was surprised when Mike LaBranche suggested on Facebook that I should talk to him and Al Zink "prior to expressing your opinions." He went on to ask if I had sat down with "Adam or Josh to discuss your concerns with their voting record. I am sure there are reasons for everything that they did that you did not agree with." And then followed it up with "I guess shoot first, ask questions later is followed by more people than I thought." 

Seriously?

While I do my best to present factual information, I don't pretend to be a reporter and I've never suggested that this is anything other than my opinion - an opinion that I have tried to express in a balanced way. This is a blog, remember. 

I know that criticism can be hard hear, but since when is it not OK to question our elected officials? 

How they respond is up to them.