Time to Hit The Reset Button

If Sandwich was a video game, I think we have almost arrived at the point where you would hit the reset button, grab a drink, and then start over.

While everyone is certainly welcome to grab a drink, there just is no such thing as a real life "Do Over".  The best anybody can hope for is that the bad things stop and something better (or at least not as bad) starts.

There aren't enough politically active people in this Town to hold a really good bake sale -- let alone a recall election, so, its unlikely we will be getting any new 'talent" on the local boards until May.  So here's a few ideas to pass the time until then:

I would propose that:

No More Community Auditions!

The School Committee met with two Headhunters on Wednesday night to discuss the search for a new Superintendent -- The Gang of Four seems pretty determined that there will be a new Superintendent next year -- apparently, even if that does mean writing the existing Supt. a Really Big Check to pay-off her previously-approved contract!! (and writing some other pretty big ones to her lawyers, the Schools', and the Town's!).

Interestingly, Cape Cod Collaborative pulled out of the running for the headhunting assignment. Many will remember that CCC has been at odds with the Sandwich Schools since Dr. Johnson pointed out that she could save over more than $1 million over a three year period by purchasing 3-4 vans and taking over some SPED transport services which drastically reduced payments to the Collaborative, but also seriously decreased costs to Sandwich taxpayers.   (This was the issue that Linehan had her knickers in a twist about -- she is still convinced that the savings are overstated because some costs must be hidden somewhere -- maybe they're being paid from the Community School account!)

In the "Isn't it a Small World Department", Peter Cannone is one of the lead consultants at CCC and a former Sandwich Superintendent.  I never met the man, but I saw him on TV addressing the Selectmen and complaining that he was being vilified by Dr. Young, the School Committee and the State's EQA Audit which said the District  lacked consistent curriculum, professional development, etc.  Sherry Marshall has also quoted Cannone for years when arguing against change, and discussing how things "used to be" .   'Nuff said?

Not that my endorsement means a damn thing -- but I was very pleased to see the Mass.  Association of School Committees as a finalist.  MASC has been an important source of information for School Committee members for years.  Jim Hardy from MASC has been working with Sandwich for almost two years re-writing the Committee's policy manual in an effort to get it into compliance with current educational regulations, labor laws, and good management practices.  

I suspect Jim has had plenty of local "input" on the current state of affairs in Sandwich and, I'm sure, some of the past personnel fiascoes.  Unlike the last amateur search committee, the MASC should be able to ascertain some appropriately qualified candidates for the Committee to chose from.  (I can not imagine choosing the highest paid employee in Town using a group of volunteers who might as well be judging "Community Auditions" with Dave Maynard!).

How much will we be budgeting for search-related expenses in the current year?  (and where will we find the money?)

It will be interesting to see how the search contract gets worded.  We still have someone sitting in the Supt. seat -- who will be on the hook for aborted search expenses in the event the current Superintendent remains the current Superintendent?

Speaking of employment expenses, what about Minkoff?  A case was filed -- has the School Committee established a reserve fund for legal costs and/or a potential settlement or damages.  That could very likely be payable during the current fiscal year?

This would be more fun to watch -- if it wasn't threatening my Kids' educations -- or my tax bill.

With Friend Like These … (From Bob Guerin)

Wicked Local photo by David Colantuono

The Board of Selectmen met Thursday night and, in a return to a long standing Sandwich political tradition, they began to discuss school finances and school budgets without having invited a single representative of the School Committee or the Administration to attend. So much for partnering, bridge building and good communications!

Also, in keeping with this divisive and bizarre Sandwich political tradition, none of the school-related financial data or assumptions presented by Selectmen Pierce were fact checked with the School Administration in advance of the Selectmen meeting. Instead, as the numbers were presented, the Town Manager or Selectmen Pierce would sheepishly acknowledge that it might be a good idea to check the data with the Administration. Ya think? Really?

Funny, Selectmen Pierce said repeatedly that his remarks were merely questions. If so, why wouldn’t he have submitted his questions in advance and in writing to the School Committee? Why wouldn’t he have personally invited Dr. Johnson, and the School Committee Chairman to the Selectman’s meeting and apprised them of his prepared remarks? Just questions? I don’t think so.

The Board of Selectmen and Town Manager created a financial model for the coming fiscal year that projected a substantial town-wide budget deficit - literally millions in debt. The schools have always been told to assume that 60% or more of any town deficit would be borne by the school budget. Fair enough.

Tonight, magically, Selectmen Pierce delivers a message that suggests that perhaps there isn’t a town deficit at all and that the school budget would be level funded. He then wonders aloud just where the School Administration might have gotten the idea that there was a deficit. Wowza! No deficit. That’s good news!

Forget the override folks we're not in the red.

Still, a level funded school budget means, despite Selectmen Peirce’s figuring, substantial cuts – probably more than $1 million in reductions and maybe as much as $1.5 million. And, if the town does face a deficit add 60% or more of whatever that figure ends up being to the $1.5.

It’s too bad that Selectmen Pierce and the Board of Selectmen have chosen politics as usual over constructive, professional dialogue with the School Committee and School Administration. Selectmen Pierce suggested his presentation was motivated by, among other things, concern for his grandchildren and that he was a friend of the schools. That remark kinda reminds me of the old saw, with friends like these who needs enemies?

Click Here for Plan B

Enough !

THIS is Norman Rockwell

Tonight I did the same thing that Kangas and Lenihan have been doing for years (decades?) -- I skipped Town Meeting.  I stayed at work -- I've lost enough billable hours to the Town over the past few years.  I decided Democracy would survive just fine without my fat ass sitting at the High School tonight!

A few things became blatantly obvious as I watched most of the show while I worked:

1)  My client was not getting their money's worth that night (so much for marketing accounting and computer services!)

2)  Everyone who complained about the financial mess the Town is currently facing was correct. 

3)  The people who were complaining about the mess had at least an indirect hand in creating it.

4)  Some people should be fitted with shock collars that would allow the Town Moderator to immobilize them if they attempt to approach the microphone.  Barring action by the Moderator, a 2/3 majority of members present should be allowed to activate the shock collar.  You know who I'm talking about!  (hint -- if you think hiring the police chief is relevant to the condition of the roof --- ZAP!.  If you feel the urge to explain things to Town Meeting based on your prior experience in other Towns -- ZAP!;  If you think a building should be saved because you went to Kindergarten there 50 years ago -- ZAP!  If you haven't read the warrant, or a newspaper, or watched a meeting, or called a Town Official in an effort to gain an understanding of an issue BEFORE you get to the microphone -- ZAP!  ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!  -- those people annoy me the most!!) 

We are in the mess we are in because people have not faced up to the realities of maintaining our infrastructure for decades.  Once upon a time, a brilliant decision was apparently made for the Town to discourage commercial development -- except for the Big Dirty Power Plant  (BDPP).  Well, that means homeowners are going to be writing the checks.  And, since Sandwich isn't Dennis, we don't have the luxury of huge amounts of summer people who leave big tax checks and don't bother with schools, police, fire or DPW services for 9 months of the year.  Face it -- we're Milton by the sea!

This isn't ...

Several times tonight, comparisons were made with other Cape Towns -- all the things they have that Sandwich doesn't (I have 4 kids -- I hear the same argument on a regular basis!).  Every person was correct -- but we don't have those things because nobody ever figured a way to pay for them.  If you haven't got a commercial tax base (or any realistic hope of developing one), and you're already running one of the leaner local governments, there's not much alternative to asking homeowners to kick in.  And, if they say no?

That Explains it !

As many local political spectators have long suspected,
 it is possible for some people to completely detach their brains
 -- yet remain smiling pleasantly for the camera!

How Big is that Budgetary Hat ?

Let's see Bud pull THIS rabbit out of his hat !!



I questioned some earlier posts on the effect of the potential Mirant closing on local tax bills and made a note on the blog that I was looking for clarification before people started with the pitchfork and torches.  Ed Childs, our crack Assessing Guru immediately came to our aid with a more complete explanation of what would happen if Mirant was to go away.

Ed said: 

The levy ceiling of the town WOULD drop (as prop 2.5 does say you could never levy more than 2.5% of the town real estate value).   But we have never been remotely close to that figure (In FY 2010 the ceiling was 100.7 million, compared to the actual levy of 45.3 million. So our “real” tax revenue would not be effected, just the ceiling, which is currently 55 million away,

The actual levy would not change at all – it would be allowed to increase (with any voted additions of override or debt exclusion) by the normal 2.5% plus new growth. The rate would be still calculated by dividing the levy b the now reduced total value of the town. The rate would adjust upwards, and the amount that would have been collected from Mirant would be distributed to all others.

Prop 2.5 is truly NOT keyed to value – with the single exception of the levy ceiling – it is keyed to the actual levy. That is a common, and potentially dangerous misconception. Bills will react more to the change in levy as opposed to a change in value (unless you particular value dropped or increased by a certain range from the typical or average movement of all other properties.)

Again, please remember the tax rate is just a division formula of tax levy/total town value. That is why in a hot or a cold market, the average bill typically increases by 2.5% plus growth (about 4% total)

In other words, if Mirant doesn't pay their $2.4 million, we will.  No Override vote required -- everybody's tax bill just goes up automatically. 

In reality, the plant will not evaporate -- there will be some taxable value remaining --- but there's a hell of a lot of difference in the taxable value of an operating power plant and a cold, shut-down power plant that has no inventory, little functional equipment, and unknown environmental "issues".

This is probably not a topic meant for discussion during the same week the Town is looking for a $5 million debt exclusion to fix buildings they haven't been able to afford to maintain, OR when they have begun discussing another Operating Override for the Spring.

Bud has been juggling chainsaws for years, but  I can't imagine how he's going to pull this rabbit out of his hat!!

Is it funny, sad or wrong? (Guest Column by Cranky Yankee II)

Many people are just fed-up with the incompetence, stupidity, and short-sightedness that have ruled this end of the Cape for far too long. Some of these folks, however, are far too polite to actually say it out loud -- they have to deal with the idiots on a regular basis. For those folks, we offer the NotThePTA Witness Protection Program -- we know who they are and you don't!

So how does this differ from the Nancy Crossman witness protection program where she is willing to fire people but not say what she heard, or who she heard it from (until the subpoena arrives!)? Easy -- the "staff" of NotThePTA is not elected and we aren't spending YOUR tax dollars. You don't need to listen to us, we have no ability to spend your money or ruin your child's education -- although we can make damn sure that people know about it when we think somebody else is messing with your kids, or your tax dollars!

With that feeling of benevolence, we offer the following guest column:

Is it funny, sad or wrong? 

Judy Koenig, crack newspaper columnist, superlative investigative journalist and ultimate Townie writes the following in this week’s regular and cliche riddled rant against the Superintendent and our schools: .....“Yet the Superintendent still claims the department needs an annual increase of 6% just to meet contractual obligations.” “Something doesn’t gel here." 

Does ace reporter and former Selectmen Koenig really not understand that the teachers union contract obligations (steps, salary adjustments and longevity pay) grow at nearly 6% a year? I'll bet she does, but doesn't care to share those facts.

Former Selectmen and crack columnist Koenig is right about the fact that something doesn’t gel; its her columns and opinions. 

Hey Judy, where’s your criticism of the teachers union leadership and their contract demands? Where’s your criticism of the current School Committee for still not having settled these contracts? Where’s you appreciation of the Superintendent for operating the schools with 0%, 1% and 1.5% budget increases while teachers pay grew at nearly 6% a year crippling our school budget and our Town’s Finances? Where’s your criticism of the Community School Executive Council and the Community School for the years of mismanagement and illegal contract authorizations which were reported in the recent independent audit?

Maybe you could write a column about all of the commercial development that you "saved" us from while you were a member of the Board of Selectmen -- that seems to have worked out real well for everyone! Well, at least we have the Power Plant! Oh ... maybe not.

Getting it right has never been former Selectmen Koenig’s specialty; and, since the Editors of the Enterprise do not seem to let the absence of fact or truth preclude them from publishing Judy, readers of the Enterprise would be best served by skipping over “Inside Out” and going straight to Sports or the Obituaries both of which are more often based somewhat closer to reality. 

Somebody Needs to Lighten up!

Columnist Sean Gonsalves of the CCT did a follow-up column on the Mirant issue this morning and quoted extensively from an earlier NotThePTA post on that topic.

Gonsalves had a much better sense of humor (and/or thicker skin) than some of the other ink-stained wretches down there in Hyannis !!  He overlooked my comments about borrowing my copy of the CCT from the bottom of Tusk the Turtle's cage -- we also both had a good laugh as to how NotThePTA should be described in his column --- I was thinking "Paradigm of Virtue", his Editor was probably thinking "scum-sucking maggot" Gonsalves worked out an acceptable compromise.

That was in marked contrast to the prior day's email exchange with the Letter to the Editor Editor (a future employee of the Redundancy Department of Redundancy ?) where I was told that my blog posting was "infantile" and that she was not sure if they could find room for my letter in the near future.  Apparently she was having no trouble meeting the daily quota of "I Love Jeff  /I Hate Jeff" letters !

Somebody needs to lighten up!

Most Bizarre Exchange of the Meeting ?

Let's make this one a contest!

My nomination would be:

Susko questions the fact that Crossman made no disclosure during the discussion of pool costs -- despite the fact that she is a paid employee at the pool.  Crossman launches into an explanation of her discussions with State ethics --- but never acknowledged that she is still required to disclose her conflict EVERY time she takes part in a pool-related deliberation.

Here comes the bizarre part -- a few minutes later when Susko comments that she was very familiar with the service provided by the current copier technician from her days of employment at the Forestdale School -- Linnehan chimes in with nonsensical comments about Susko being the one with a conflict of interest!!

Did Linehan think Susko was sleeping with the copier technician?  What POSSIBLE conflict could remembering a copier technician from her prior job present to this discussion?  What possible economic benefit could Susko receive from this decision? 

Maybe her experience with this particular vendor should be ignored?  That would certainly be in keeping with the appparent "No Relevant Experience" platform that got several folks elected lately.

I'm surprised that Linnehan still shows no understanding of the Ethics laws -- despite the fact  her husband is a  Sandwich school employee (as was she -- very briefly).

Second thought, nothing surprises me anymore!

The Superintendent's Evaluation? Huh?

Tonight's SC agenda includes an item labelled  "Superintendent's Evaluation".

I can't bear to watch a meeting live --- I need to be able to Fast Forward !  I can't imagine what they're evaluating -- they already fired her!!!   Have they got that much free time that they can do evaluations of people they have already dismissed?

And ... even overlooking that gap in logic... why do an eval now?  She was evaluated on April 28 -- they could watch that meeting online if they truly don't  remember doing it!

Are they that desperate for another diversion ?

From Chris Bailey: Revote School Superintendent's contract!

Given the extraordinary amount of time being wasted, and the likelihood that the town will wind up spending money to somehow dismiss the Sandwich Superintendent, it seems to be an expedient move for the School Committee to reconsider it's vote on Dr. Johnson's contract.

My opinion: it's not necessary to have an informed opinion on whose fault it is that we wound up here. Let's just fix it, without costing the town more time and more money in legal fees, etc.

The attached petition is being circulated by Richard Augustine, myself, and others.


Please download a Petition Form to collect signatures.


Details of a central petition collection point and a target date for delivery to the School Committee will be announced shortly.

Click here for Petition Form




Thanks,


Chris Bailey


UPDATE -- Volunteers have been asked to bring copies of the petition to Special Town Meeting on Monday to collect signatures before and after the meeting.

Don't Look Now ...

The School Committee is once again delving into one of the great crises facing public education.  No, Silly, not the fact that payroll & benefits increases faster than tax revenue, not the fact that we are facing a $3 million school budget deficit with no plan, not the fact that any likelihood of a tax override stands a snowball's chance in hell of passage, not even the fact that the Teachers' Union has yet to realize we aren't printing money and that the public has lost all tolerance of their stall tactics, not even the fact that the Mirant Golden Goose is about to stop laying 42 million in property tax "eggs".  (As if some of them even knew what Mirant was !)

Nope -- we'll be dealing with The Big One.  Copier machine expense.  For the third or fourth meeting, our elected representatives will once again be debating the virtues of various copier/printer contracts!

This has got to be embarrassing for the professional staff who feels their Board of Directors has so little confidence in them that they are going to second-guess their choice for the office machines they use most often which compose a minor part of the very large budget for which they are held responsible.

The majority of this Committee probably doesn't even know how to operate the machines  -- let alone which one is the better mechanical choice -- forget any hope of a financial analysis of potential Lease/Buy or service contract scenarios!!

Get a grip, People!

You hired professional staff for a reason -- you do your job and let them do their jobs!  If they don't do their jobs, replace them and keep moving.  Maybe we would eventually accomplish something.

In the real world, if an employee doesn't do a good job, management fires them.  In Sandwich we give tenure to the under-performers and only fire those doing their job.  Or, if the person is really clueless, we elect them to the School Committee.

I make a motion that we need to discuss the copiers.
Again.   And again.  And again ...

Letter to the Editor

At the risk of sounding like
a broken record ...

(Submitted to The Emptyprize and CCT -- they both seem to have lost interest in the story after stirring the pot last winter!   I guess it's distracting to have some actual facts mixed in with the usual rancid rhetoric!)

A draft of the Independent Audit of the Sandwich Community School for the year ended June 30, 2009 was completed on August 27. This independent audit criticized Community School accounting and management practices as well as the lack of School Committee oversight prior to the elimination of the Executive Council last year. The audit also made clear that the Community School’s Executive Council had failed in its duties to properly supervise financial operations and may have acted illegally when authorizing certain contracts, leases and payment warrants.

Former School Committee members, including the undersigned, endured harsh public criticism for pressing for the audit and for questioning past budgetary practices. The local media, including this paper, continue to turn a blind eye to this issue, despite the audit results which make clear that the Community School was a managerial and financial reporting mess with unclear supervisory lines, insufficient internal controls, and poor accounting practices which served only to obscure both revenues and expense information.

  

There is still no definitive answer as to how much money has been diverted from the K-12 school budgets to pay for Community School operations. Based on the audit, all we know for sure is that while K-12 teachers, staff and expenses continue to be cut, the Community School continues to siphon budget dollars out of our classrooms.

  

Because the Community School provides a valuable service to residents of Sandwich and surrounding towns, it is essential that the School Committee hold itself and the Administration responsible for ensuring that the program be managed in a truly self-supporting and financially prudent manner. It is outrageous that the current Committee has yet to respond to these audit findings.

A full copy of the draft audit report is available from school committee members, or may be accessed online at http://www.notthepta.org/.

  

Robert Simmons

Robert Guerin

(Former Chairmen of the Sandwich School Committee 2008-2010)

The 800 lb Gorilla

OK, it's not the Sandwich Plant
(but aren't we all sick of THAT picture?)

I was "borrowing" some newspaper from my neighbor's recycling bin to line Tusk the Turtle's cage (I knew the CCT was good for SOMETHING!) and I noted two articles that should be of  Big Picture importance to every Sandwich taxpayer.

Fortunately, the CCT stories are also online -- so you don't need to raid your neighbor's recycling bin or my kids' turtle cage -- or (God FORBID!!) buy the damn paper.

Future of Mirant's Sandwich plant on the line

and (the one we REALLY care about):

Plant's possible demise a taxing concern for Sandwich

This is what we have been waiting for.  The power plant represents 6.5%  of the local tax base and pays in approximately $2.4 million dollars in taxes each year.  As has been discussed many times, in The Good Olde Days, the Sandwich Leaders of Yore decided that commercial development was unneeded in Town -- after all, we had a Big Dirty Power Plant (BDPP) that was going to support the town forever!  We didn't need those retail stores, or office space, or potato chip factories.

Anyway, the BDPP has been reducing its staff and selling off its oil inventory (did you notice the Big Boats seemed to be leaving lower in the water than when they arrived? ).  It's just a matter of time.

There are some happy people -- Matt Patrick, the State Rep from Falmouth who has been pushing to close the plant -- (Hey, Matt, so what's a little air pollution and over-priced electricity between neighbors?) -- and my friend, John, who is the Chairman of the Carver FinCom who has been wrestling with how the Town of Carver will be spending the $700,000 in new taxes that NStar will be paying them for the transformer station that will be yet another nail in Sandwich's fiscal coffin.

I think we could all tell John where to stick that $700K !!


FOLLOW UP:     Sean Gonsalves of  the CCT did a follow-up column on this issue this morning -- I thought he did a good job pointing out the key components of my economic feasibility study of this issue (800 lb gorillas and Fairy Dust -- not bad for 5 years of college, 2 two years with the world's largest Accounting firm, and 23 years of real estate and financial management background, huh?)

FinCom Discussion ... from that mayo jar on Funk & Wagnall's back porch...

Probably one of the more interesting relationships in local government is between the Finance Committee and the School Committee.

Under Town Charter, FinCom is charged with reviewing the entire Town/School Budget.  But, under state law, Town Meeting establishes only the total dollar value of the school budget  and the School Committee decides how those dollars are allocated between individual budget lines.  The School Comittee is also free to change those allocations at will (following a vote at a proper public meeting, of course!).

FinCom could always recommend to Town Meeting that they cut the school budget by $X -- but neither Town Meeting, nor FinCom can tell the School Committee where to make that cut.

Any effort by FinCom to question individual school programs was usually met with the sentiment that the School Committee was elected to represent the taxpayers and students and provide programs that met State and Federal programs and that the School Committee spends the entire year working on its programs.  The FinCom, on the other hand, was appointed at the sole discretion of the Town Moderator to look at the budget and spends, maybe, a week with the school budget.

This would certainly be an important function if used to help allocate dollars between all school/town functions.  However, the actual allocation of budget dollars between school and general government has already been done by the Selectmen -- AND the allocation of dollars between school programs can only be done by the School Committee. 

Because this structure effectively neuters FinCom's ability to make changes to the school budget -- short of proposing an entirely different budget separate from the one proposed by the BOS -- too often meetings between the FinCom and School Committee have served as bully pulpits for those with personal agendas.

In the past, unfounded rumors and "informal" on-camera discussions of school issues frequently occurred without school reps present.  These discussions were duly reported in the "local media" and given the appearance of valid discussion points.  The fact that many of these past discussions frequently involved a FinCom member who was also the spouse of a teachers union rep were rarely, if ever noted

Recall Elections -- Much Easier Said Than Done !!

Elected officials can be recalled for (among other things), "failure to perform the duties of the elected office; or other willful acts of omission or commission which betray the public trust."  While recalling an elected official is a necessary ability --- it is never one that should be taken lightly.

The Town Charter (sec 8.1), lists some of the requirements, but to get the full picture, you also need to review Mass Law at Chapter 408 of the Acts of 1987".  

Per the Charter, (section 8.2), "A recall petition shall be initiated by request of ten (10) qualified voters. The recall petition shall be signed by twenty-five percent (25%) of the qualified voters and returned within twenty (20) days in accordance with Chapter 408 of the Acts of 1987".

Chapter 408b then adds the requirement that 40% of those registered to vote must cast a ballot.   This means approximately 6,000 voters (out of 15,000) must show up.  Unfortunately, a 40% turn-out is a rarity on a local election.   For example, the annual Town Election in May of 2009 only produced a 19% turn-out and the 2009 Special Senatorial election in 2009 only produced a 21.5% turn-out.

Bottom line:  It's like the gift shop -- once you break it, you own it! (at least until the next election!).

I'm sure there's also an analogy to be made about the fact that if more people paid attention and voted, unqualified candidates wouldn't be elected and recalls wouldn't be needed.  But that's way too utopian!

Analogy of the day ...

An old rancher is talking about politics with a young man from the city. He compares a politician to a "post turtle." The young man doesn't understand and asks him what a post turtle is.

The old man says, "When you're driving down a country road and you see a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a post turtle. You know he didn't get up there by himself. He doesn't belong there; he can't get anything done while he's up there; he can only see in the direction he has been turned; and you just want to help the poor, dumb thing down."

'nuff said!

Comments made by Richard Augustine at SC Public Forum Oct 6, 2010

Numerous taxpayers have requested you seek a court ruling regarding Superintendent Johnson’s contract extension and your cancellation thereof, rather than place Sandwich at financial risk based solely upon non-binding opinion.

Four of you (SC members Marshall, Linehan, Crossman, & Kangas) wantonly disregarded our requests and your responsibility to protect our financial interests.  Putting Sandwich at risk for 2 year’s of salary is irresponsible, arbitrary, capricious and grossly negligent!

I have consulted an attorney who advised there is a reasonable possibility the company insuring Sandwich against law suit could deny coverage because of your willful, negligent actions.

Predicated thereon:

1.    Should Sandwich be sued and a decision be rendered requiring monetary payment to Dr. Johnson; and

2.    Should the Town’s insurer determine they have no legal obligation to make payment on the Town’s behalf;

Please be advised it is my / our intention to sue the four of you, both individually and severally, on behalf of all taxpayers and the Town, for damages plus the cost of litigation, which may exceed $300,000.

Such suits are not uncommon when employees or elected officials willfully act outside the scope, responsibilities and requirements of their positions.  In such cases, employers are not responsible for defending them or paying damages assessed against them.

Should the insurer refuse to pay, such would constitute a prima facie case of irresponsibility and arbitrary, capricious, improper conduct on your parts.

Residents are disgusted with the four of you and your disregard for our financial interests.  You all should be removed from the Committee.  Next May voters will have the chance to remove you, Madam Chair, and it’s my bet that they will.

We hope you all can afford the approximate, average $75,000 plus judgment that could be assessed against each of you.  You gambled with town funds and, ironically, it may well be that you gambled with your own money.

For future legal reference, I request this document be made a part of this meeting’s record.

Please do not regard the foregoing as a threat.  It is not.  It’s a promise

The School Budget -- Play at Home Edition

(I hate to repeat a photo -- but this is SO fitting!)

Not surprisingly, the Superintendent has upped the projected school deficit to approximately $3 million for next year.  This assumes the teachers will get their step, lane & longevity increases ($500k) but nobody gets any Cost of Living (COLA) increases.  (But, the SEA contract remains unsettled -- so God knows how that will turn out!)

What does $3 million really mean?  The FY '11 Budget is online -- so using round numbers and a dull pencil, I marked out a very rough estimate of what $3 million in cuts might look like:

$230,000      Eliminate entire athletic program

$750,000      Eliminate 50% of transportation (and/or charge fees)

$245,000      Eliminate Professional Devt, curriculum & textbook adopts

$56,000        Eliminate all librarians  

$180,000      Eliminate 50% of health services

$56,000        Eliminate extra curricular stipends  

$1,483,000   Eliminate 30 teachers

Assuming a teacher is approx $50K, this would eliminate almost 30 teaching positions.  The average teacher makes considerably more, but in the Union's finest "eat their young" tradition, I am assuming the younger, less expensive ones, get the boot first.

BUT, when you consider that many people consider athletics far more important than academics, and the fact that State law would probably prevent such deep cuts in health & transportation services, the number of teachers facing the ax will likely begin to grow considerably.

NOW, add to that the cost of covering any settlement in the Minkoff lawsuit, any settlement on the potential Johnson lawsuit, the costs of hiring a new Superintendent, and the fact that SPED costs generally only climb -- and we're probably looking at even steeper lay-offs.

THAT is why many people are getting impatient listening to the dribble that passes for "hard questions" and "accountability" at School Committee meetings.  We are looking at a $3 million hole and the dopes are discussing copier toner and exactly how big is the saving from using school-owned vans (is it $270,000 or $260,000 ?    I don't F'n care !!!!).

That is why more people prefer to watch "Dog The Bounty Hunter" on Wednesday nights instead of the School Committee!!

This Week's Red Herrings

So, I'm flicking around the cable channels during a commercial break from "Dog The Bounty Hunter" and I saw someone flapping her hands like a spastic squirrel who seemed to be asking a question -- although she didn't seem to understand her own question -- let alone the answer to it!! 

Then I recognized that voice.

It was Linehan questioning the Superintendent's judgement regarding the concept of the District being paid to utilize otherwise empty seats to educate students from other Districts.  Her thought was if the average per pupil spending was $11,000 then we could be "defeating our purpose" by bringing in extra kids at $5,000 each.  

What our little friend couldn't comprehend -- despite having it explained to her three times tonight, was that the $11K is an average cost --- adding 1-2 kids to an existing classroom costs almost nothing -- same room, same heat, same lights, same teacher, etc.  There is a minor cost for some supplies -- worksheets, perhaps some worksheets, paper towels or toilet paper  (kids already bring their own kleenex, handsoap, pens, pencils, etc.!) -- but that's it!

The funny thing is that all this was already explained to her last year when she voted to join the School Choice program!!!

I couldn't take it anymore .... I switched channels to "Mythbusters"!

But, just like staring at a bad accident on the highway, at the next commercial I found myself again flicking back to see if anything had gotten better.   The Committee was discussing the fact that the budget deficit appears to be approaching $3 million next year and after much discussion, the Administration had only found $320,000 in staffing cuts so far.

And then it happened.  Again.  The topic of discussion shifted to transportation costs. The hand flapping started up and Linnehan was again questioning the amount of money that was being saved by bringing SPED transportation services in-house.  She wanted a more detailed analysis of all the costs involved.  Apparently she thinks there is a secret budget somewhere? (or she doesn't understand the budget report she has?)  She complained that she has been asking for this info for a year but has gotten no response.  In reality, we already went through this same bullshit last year.

As Andrea Killion pointed out ---" we need to cut $3 million and you want to argue AGAIN about whether we SAVED $270,000 or $260,000 ?"

Does anybody think its a coincidence that Linehan was Sandwich's representative to the Cape Cod Collaborative -- the group that had been so grossly over-charging the District for transportation services?  She didn't seem as concerned about THEIR detailed costs!

Does anybody think it's a coincidence that she only does this crap on camera?  Members seeking to gain an understanding of a subject usually have discussions or meetings with the Superintendent and/or Business Manager prior to meetings -- very efficient and usually made the public meetings go much smoother -- but certainly not as  theatrical as just showing up to read prepared statements on-camera!!

We're now looking at a $3 million deficit next year.  The District is facing one lawsuit from the former Assistant Superintendent and will likely be facing a second lawsuit from the soon-to-be-former Superintendent.  And, the Teachers' contract remains unsettled.  And, there will be no Override.

BIG PICTURE, kids!  We need to be focussing on the Big Picture!!

Hold on to your Flux Capacitor !!!

In case anybody is wondering about the "Good Olde Days" in the Sandwich Public Schools -- here's a link to the audit report issued by the Educational Management Audit Council of the Massachusetts Office of Educational Quality and Accountability -- aka "The EQA Report" for the years 2002 - 2005.  

There were many good points -- as there should have been.  There were also many areas of great concern.  Everybody should read the report before bitching about any changes that have been made over the last few years.  Here's a few excerpts of the highlights (lowlights?):

Overall -- Curriculum & Instruction, Assessment & Program Evaluation and Human resource Management/Professional Development were all rated as "Poor".

Aligned Curricula and Effective Instruction -- During the review period, Sandwich had not developed a comprehensive standards-based curriculum in ELA, math or science and technology/engineering (STE), with measurable benchmarks and alignment with the state curriculum frameworks.  The failure to develop a curriculum and benchmarks prevented the district from being able to convey to its constituents what students will learn and achieve at each grade level and in each course of study.

Professional Development -- The district did not meet minimum funding requirements for professional development during the two years of required contribution; most professional development programs and opportunities were funded through grants. The district’s professional development program was a buffet of offerings and although these offerings were not mandated, they were self-selected by teachers most of the time.

Evaluations -- While teacher evaluations followed the form and letter of the law, they were not considered to be timely, informative, or instructive. Administrator evaluations did not hold them accountable for improving student achievement.  Administrative evaluations were not consistent with CMR 35.00, which requires a rigorous and comprehensive process of evaluation. Performance evaluation standards and practices remained unchanged despite program changes.

Special education budget -- was consistently under funded. As a result, the school budget was frozen in November in most fiscal years to cover costs on overruns.

Community School Audit -- Update.

I'd like to make a motion ...

The School Committee has removed discussion of the Community School Audit from this week's agenda.  They needed more time to review it.

Apparently the last three years wasn't long enough.

OK, I'm being mean-spirited and cynical -- but this is not rocket science.  Three basic rules:

1.  If you use it -- it is an expense

2.  Your expenses can not exceed your income

3.  The School budget is for teaching kids in K-12

So ... Now What ?

Something Stinks!

It's been over three weeks since the School Committee received the report from an independent auditor outlining  examples of financial mismanagement at the Community School.  Committee members received the report in advance of their meeting, yet seemed unable to ask the auditor a single relevant question.

It's on the agenda again this week, but I suspect the auditor will not be driving down from Burlington again -- so who are they going to discuss the issues with?   I have to assume the plan is that they will discuss them with nobody -- then they can pretend there are no issues.  Again.

I'm not sure why they couldn't have discussed the report with the auditor present.  They certainly weren't new issues -- myself and others have been complaining loudly about them for three years.  It also couldn't be from lack of knowledge since two of the members previously sat on the Community School's board for years -- before the last School Committee disbanded it.

What I think is most amusing is that the local "media" who was previously so quick to jump on every rumor and innuendo, and report it as Gospel fact -- seems unwilling to touch this story with a 10 foot pole.  The fact that the prior allegations have now been confirmed by an independent auditor is apparently just not as "interesting" as the original unfounded allegations.

(Click here for original story & copy of audit report)

We're not off to a good start ....

One of the frequent arguments over the renovation of the Town Hall was that there is little (if any) available parking.  The frequent response was always, "The Glass Museum will allow us to use their parking!"

Okay.  This is how the Glass Museum has decorated for today's festivities:

The other frequent complaint was that the Town Hall septic system has a capacity of a pair of 5 gallon drywall buckets.  Anybody want to stop by to flush the toilets this morning?

The Town Hall looks great, the contractor seems to have delivered as promised.  I am sure the Hysterical Society and the 10 people who work there will enjoy the $3 million renovation.  I am also sure the folks from NY who wander through Town will probably take an extra picture before they fill up their water bottles for free and go to the beach in Dennis, lunch in Yarmouth, and spend the night in Harwich!

Now, can we do something about the Police & Fire stations that are falling into the marsh -- and maybe the school buildings with water coming through the roofs, and wind whipping through the windows?

It's too bad we aren't Wampanoags!