Voters group hosts forum
By Monica Jimenez
Thu Jul 31, 2008, 03:41 PM EDT

Acton, Mass. -

At an open meeting of the newly formed Acton Voters Group last week, it appeared that support is growing for a plan to return some reserve money to residents — at least among the people in the room.

The group made a presentation to an audience of about 43, including two selectmen and two members of the School Committee, on July 23 outlining why voters should use $2.4 million of reserves to offset a predicted property tax increase of about 4 percent in fiscal 2010.

Allen Nitschelm, a former member of the Finance Committee, pointed out the idea of returning reserves to voters is not new. A year ago, $600,000 of surplus money was returned to taxpayers, he said, causing taxes to rise only 1.1 percent instead of the projected 2.5 percent.

"Acton is blessed with a large surplus that it can afford to give back to taxpayers — which is where it came from," said Nitschelm. "The town isn’t spending money; it’s returning it. There’s a big difference."

Charlie Kadlec, an Acton resident who frequents town meetings, added that reserves are best used not for operational spending, but for one-time expenditures, such as purchasing land — or disbursing funds to a voting public that is much in need of them.

The extra $2.4 million dates back to Acton’s membership in the Northeast Solid Waste Consortium, a group of towns that joined forces to incinerate their trash in a North Andover plant. Acton capped its landfill in the 1980s and raised $5.1 million in anticipation of environmental problems that could possibly necessitate modification of the cap.

However, the state recently approved the landfill cap, leaving the town to release the NESWC funds for other uses. As the economy’s forecast darkened, the Board of Selectmen decided to keep the funds to bolster town reserves.

The Acton Voters Group proposes returning $2.4 million of the NESWC funds to taxpayers, which would leave $2.7 million in town reserves in addition to the $2 to $3 million of reserve funds and free cash left over from the budget year that ended June 30.

Clint Seward — president of the coalition — said many advocacy groups have suggestions for how to spend the money, but it is the voters who must ultimately decide.

"Part of what we’re doing is raising a debate that’s never really been raised for," said Seward. "We want to give them a clear choice."

The group is pushing to call a special Town Meeting to give voters that choice. Two hundred signatures are officially required before the petition for the meeting can be submitted to the Board of Selectmen, who will then have 45 days to call the special Town Meeting. The group says it has already collected over 600 signatures.

"We’ve hit a real chord with voters," said Seward. "There’s been an overwhelmingly positive response."

According to Seward, of the 1,000 voters approached so far, 75 percent are in favor of being given a choice. The response has transcended partisan lines and age divisions: 26 percent Democrats, 22 percent Republicans and 52 percent unaffiliated, across young families, middle-aged residents and seniors.

Acton residents’ enthusiasm for the idea of getting money back stems partly from the hardships facing the town. Seward named some in his presentation, including increasing gas prices and inflation, decreasing housing values and uncertain credit markets.

Another reason some Acton voters support calling a special Town Meeting is dissatisfaction with the way current town meetings are run. A show of hands revealed that while a good number of those present attended all recent town meetings, few had a clear perception of what they were voting on.

Several individuals present were also unhappy about recent town spending without Town Meeting approval.

Selectmen Chairwoman Lauren Rosenzweig, who took notes throughout the meeting, said she would think about what was expressed.

"I came away with the need to better communicate out to the public in the budget process," she said. "We need to get the word out better about all the decisions we make along the way."