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Showing posts with label Citizen Letters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Citizen Letters. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 28, 2018
CENSORSHIP IN LISBON
Monday, August 27, 2018
TAX BILLS
From the chatter this weekend on Lisbon Maine Community Information website, residents of Lisbon received their new tax bills. I found it amusing that residents were shocked their taxes had increased so much. The Lisbon Reporter and LisbonMaine.net have been warning residents for several months prior to the Town Council approval of the budget.
Wednesday, August 22, 2018
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Friday, August 17, 2018
DIG DEEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WHO’S IN CHARGE????
I just
reviewed the latest Town Council video and was amazed. The video reflects that the Town Manager, Diane Barnes,
ONLY feeds the Town Council information she wants them to know instead of
presenting ALL the facts. The
Town Council can never reach a sound decision unless they have all the
information available on any subject matter.
I will explain:
2018-152
Asset Forfeiture Funds – This item
was on the agenda because during the budget prepared by Diane Barnes; she
conned the Town Council into using taxpayer dollars from the Unassigned Fund
Balance instead of using Asset Forfeiture funds available in the Police
Department. According to the
Recommendations, prepared by the Town Manager, Diane Bares, it says and I
quote: “Staff did not recommend the use of forfeiture funds since there is
uncertainty in replenishing these funds now and in the future. These assets have been used for matching
grant funds for law enforcement equipment.”
The last time I
checked, the people elected members of the Town Council to represent them when
it comes to spending their money, not Diane Barnes or her staff.
The option of using the forfeiture funds should have been presented, at
the time of the budget discuss, for the Town Council to decide which way they
wanted to go but instead this information was withheld from the Town
Council. There is $6,786.04 in Federal
funds and $13,972.30 in State funds available to be used for the purchase of
the firearms at $7,800.00. The Town Council reversed their decision
and is now using the forfeiture funds instead of the Unassigned Fund
Balance. This is the right choice, as
far as I am concerned.
This is a prime example
of how the Town Manager, Diane Barnes, manipulates information she presents to
the Town Council to get her way. At first, I blamed the
Town Council for making, what I considered poor decisions, but when I started
looking into it, I realized they were not getting ALL the information and
therefore they could not make a logical and right decision. This has happened a lot and really needs to
stop.
I thank the Town Council and
especially Councilor Allen Ward, for getting this on the agenda and correcting
this situation. Taxpayers are paying much more in taxes than
they should and the Town Council must start looking for ways to cut spending.
Thank you Councilor Ward.
Larry FillmoreSaturday, August 11, 2018
WAKE UP MAINERS - PART 2
As Mainers, we have a
responsibility to support our President until he does something against the
law. Mainers elect their representatives
to speak for them in Congress. One of
those individuals is Senator Angus King.
I have downloaded the last four months of his voting record and it is
below for everyone to see.
July 11 Nonbinding motion
calling for congressional approval of national security tariffs (88-11) Voted -
Yes
June 20 Rescinding previously
approved but unspent funding (48-50) Voted - No
May 23 Expanding private care
options for veterans (92-5) Voted - Yes
May 17 Nomination of Gina
Haspel to be director of the CIA (54-45) Voted - No
May 16 Reinstating net
neutrality rules (52-47) Voted - Yes
April 26 Nomination of Mike
Pompeo to be secretary of state (57-42) Voted – Yes
April 18 Repeal of guidance
to protect borrowers from discriminatory markups on auto loans Voted – No
Britt Grant to 11th
Circuit Court
Ryan Wesley to 9th
Circuit Court
Andrew Oldham to 5th
Circuit Court
Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme
Court
Mick Mulvaney to Director of
the Office of Management and Budget
Steven Mnuchin to Secretary
of the Treasury
Jeff Session to Attorney
General
Betsy DeVos to Secretary of
Education
Larry Fillmore
Concerned Mainer
Monday, August 6, 2018
LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY
HOW TO LEGALLY SCREW REIDENTS OF LISBON
Mrs. Colston
This is a FOAA request.
I am looking for the money taken out of the
Undesignated Fund the last four years. Can you provide this information by years?
Thank you
2016: $10,293.47 was taken from unassigned fund balance to cover charter requirements for maintaining a reserve funded by animal control fees
2017: N/A nothing was designated
or spent from fund balance.
2018: The following amounts were designated and
spent from fund balance:
$50,000 for computer server
upgrade. $30,663 has been spent to date.
$20,000 has been designated for
Generator pad and infrastructure
$30,000 was designated for Town
clerk storage. $26,547 was spent an
the remainder put back into fund balance
$40,000 was designated and spent
for Police radio upgrades
$35,000 was designated and
spent for a Police cruiser
$75,000 was designated for the
Fire Department Capital Improvements
$300,000 was designated for
public works trucks. $275,445 was spent
and the remainder put back into fund balance
$20,000 was designated and
spent for Recreation Department
playground
$25,000 was designated for new
flooring in various town buildings. The
money was not required and was put back into
fund balance.
2019: The following amounts have been designated for
use during the upcoming year:
$26,125 for an error in 2018
Technology budget
$50,000 to establish an accrued
leave payout reserve
$10,000 for Book restorations
in the clerks office
$7,800 for Police Department
firearms upgrades
$50,000 for the Fire Department
various equipment upgrades
$8,000 for carpeting in the
Library
$323,274 to pay off outstanding
debt service.
WHY ARE WE PAYING SUCH HIGH TAXES?
The
taxpayers in Lisbon have had their taxes raised for the last four years and
will probably experience an increase in taxes every year from here on out. This
trend must stop if the taxpayers of Lisbon are going to stay out of bankruptcy. We have been over taxed for the last four years and I will
explain it to you.
Take a look
at the carry forward for this year and it is the same for the last four years:
I did not
total all of the funds here but as you can see it is a large amount of your tax dollars. So where did all this money come from and why
is it being carried forward? Was this money
left over from previous year budget; if so, someone needs to explain why our
taxes were raised if the town did not need our money? Personally, I
would have been happy to keep my own money.
Now, let’s
take a look at the Undesignated Fund expenditures for the last four years:
As you can see, the town spent a lot of money from the Undesignated Fund. Look at it by years:
2016 $10,293.47
2017 None
(Which I do not believe)
2018
$595,000.00
2019
$475,199.00
Well, how did the town get so much
money in the Undesignated Fund? Apparently, the tooth fairy blessed Lisbon. I have a
better answer and that is the Town Manager, Diane Barnes has been padding her
budget without the knowledge of the Town Council. The Town Council has been supporting the Town Manager instead
of supporting us, the taxpayers.
This is really ridiculous to have so much money left over every year and
have so much money in the Undesignated Fund.
This is our tax dollars at work.
This
explains the high taxes and where our tax dollars are going. We need to tell the Town Manager, Diane
Barnes, that we will not put up with this from now on. The
Town Council has to start making the Town Manager accountable for her actions. I realize that she works for the Town Council
and not the citizens of Lisbon; so it is the Town Council responsibility to see
that this never happens again. Having over a
half million dollars every year is ripping the taxpayers off every year.
It is time to hold both the Town
Council and the Town Manager accountable for the way they spend our tax
dollars.
Larry Fillmore
Tuesday, July 31, 2018
WAKE UP MAINERS - PART 1
June 14 Targeting imports of opioids through the international mail system (353-52) Voted – Yes
June 7 Rescinding previously approved but unspent funding (210-206) Voted – No
As you can see, Representative Pingree has voted “NO” the majority of the time. In fact, Representative Pingree has only voted 17.2% of the time to support the President’s agenda. I believe that this definitely reflects that Representative Pingree votes along party lines instead of what the Mainers she represents feels.
Concerned Mainer
Monday, July 9, 2018
GIVING CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE
remark that placing a solar
light at the School Street/Route 196 Garden
might prevent vehicles from
driving into the garden, and hopefully
stopping the annual
destruction of the garden and Worumbo Mill Wheels.
the perimeter of the
garden.
called the PW director and
left a message, thanking him.
the solar lights, and, with the help of his son, put the them around
the perimeter of the
garden.
lesson for his son.
unselfish act.
He is my hero!
Dorothy Fitzgerald
Concerned Citizen
AS MAINE GOES, SO GOES THE NATION
Bruce Poliquin – Republican
Angus King – Independent
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
VANDALS STRIKE TOWN GARDEN
Route 196 Town Public
Flower Garden.
perimeter of the garden,
hopefully to prevent vehicles from crashing through it,
damaging shrubs, flowers,
and the Worumbo Mill Wheels, again.
Street side, from the last
time someone drove into the garden. A beautiful, large
bush was driven into, torn
from it's roots and had to be removed, and the wheels
were damaged,
again.
long time State of Maine
Representative in Augusta. Someone ploughed into the
garden with enough force to almost uproot the
tree.
Sadly the tree did not make
it.
They were an attractive
addition to the Town Garden during the day,
and were beautiful at
night. At least on Monday night, until vandals decided
different.
with only 3 or 4 still in
the perimeter, the rest, missing.
because someone misses the
curve and ploughs into the garden?
beyond repair?
as a reminder of
the our heritage.
and leave them at the
police station so they can be put back in the
garden,
to be enjoyed by all.
Dorothy B.
Fitzgerald
A Concerned
Lisbon Citizen
CONTROL OF THE MOXIE FESTIVAL
To bring together the resources of Business people, local
Government and Citizens, partnering together in a positive environment, to
improve the image of our community. Through the efforts of a group of highly
motivated individuals guided by a clear vision of our future, we aim to build
on the favorable attributes of our Town and make Lisbon a more attractive place
to live, recreate and to conduct business.
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