Listening to officials at the tri-board meeting scrutinize the budget and the revenue shortfall, the same old questions come to mind:
- Why should fixed-income seniors be forced to pay potentially 25 percent of their income in real estate taxes to stay in Harvard?
- Why, even with repetitive overrides, do we spend less per child today on regular education in our schools than in 1993?
The FinCom scrutinized the proposed budget and agrees that the majority, if not all, of the budget and override delivers value and is needed. The imagined cuts based on allegations of waste or misuse appear few and far between.
How can we punch our way out of this paper bag?
Harvard and many other communities do not receive a fair shake under the state’s education law, known as Chapter 70. We’ve heard this before and many of us have responded with e-mails, calls, and letters. As a result, our aid per child has increased from about $850 to $1,400 over the past three years.
In Acton-Boxborough, however, the Chapter 70 aid increased even more, from about $850 to $2,330 per child, twice Harvard’s increase. That difference is larger than the budget deficit we face, and for Acton, overrides have been avoided. Why the disparity?
The difference is the failure of our town officials to get actively engaged on this issue. Acton officials, selectmen, FinCom, and School Committee members organized their community and went to the State House. Acton made a proposal two years ago that Jamie Eldridge noted last week was instrumental in the reforms leading to the substantial increase in Ch. 70 aid for Acton-Boxborough.
Our legislators and governor support us, but do not see the dire need because they have not heard that this really matters from our selectmen, our School Committee members (other than Stu Sklar), and perhaps even more importantly, our FinCom members, who truly understand the numbers.
Budget season at the State House is now. We need our leaders to step up, get personally involved, and help get this fixed, by meeting with the governor’s staff and the Legislature, and encouraging residents to get engaged in the process. They need to work with other towns and build support.
We have got to stop fighting over scraps at the table and find a way to reduce the punishing effect of regressive property taxes on our community. Residents should continue to call and write our legislators and the governor. Opinions can also be registered at www.devalpatrick.com/myissues, under the “Chapter 70 Coalition” postings.
Bruce Leicher
Warren Avenue
