Vote Today (but not for prez!)
May 6, 2008 on 11:44 am | In Local, Main |No, this is not Indiana or North Carolina, where presidential primaries are taking place as I write this. But this is also the day we can all vote of the proposed budget for the Region One School District, which serves six NWC towns and features a regional high school.
Click here to download a relatively recent copy of that document (PDF- Adobe Reader required), then get over to your town hall, where the polls opened about half an hour ago and where they’ll close at 8 p.m.
Here are the thumbnails:
Budget Referendum
Tuesday, May 6
| Budget component |
Proposed spending |
Increase over last year |
| HVRHS | $8,182,612 |
5.31% |
| Pupil Services |
$4,809,383 |
5.51% |
| Superintendent’s Office |
$880,968 |
3.41% |
| NET TOTAL |
$13,872,963 |
5.25% |
Polls open at noon at local town halls and remain open until 8 p.m.
Hey, if you were one of almost 600 people motivated to go to Friday’s town meeting in Salisbury to weigh in on spending $2 million for a piece of property for a new transfer station, then you owe it to yourself to vote up or down on a budget of close to $14 million.
And Marshall is right. I’m not sure I agree with Peter Halle, who said in an earlier comment that low turnout is a sign of “contentment.” A yes vote would be such a sign. Staying away from the polls shows an unwillingness to participate. Sounds more like “disengagement” to me.
I will post the referendum results in this space shortly after the polls close tonight — not that very many people will care about spending $14 million …
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Not sure what you mean by disengagement (take a look at dictionary.com for some curious defs). Contentment doesn’t rise to an active Yes vote. It’s more an acceptance that the budget (or whatever the issue) is what it is — a passive OK.
Comment by Peter Halle — May 6, 2008 #
Peter — I totally see your POV now. And I would have to say that I agree with you. Especially since the Reg. 1 budget has had problems passing in the past. I think the current record is 7 referendums. Of course, I do believe that this was during the John O’Brien regime, and he was probably one of the least-liked superintendents in Reg. 1 history. Am I correct in any of this, Mr. Cowgill?
Comment by Amy — May 6, 2008 #
Ok, Peter, I guess it boils down to semantics. There’s still something about “a passive OK” that bothers me. Besides, a passive OK borders on apathy, no?
Amy,
My recollection is the Reg 1 budget failed 2 or 3 times in 2001, so I think you are correct and, yes, John O’Brien was an unpopular supt, even with the BOE itself, which voted not to renew his contract.
Disclosure: O’Brien can’t stand me and has complained about my coverage in the past.
Comment by Terry — May 6, 2008 #