BDN: LePage claims school funding is unconstitutional

By Amy Fried                         

 

Gov. LePage has, you might say, some unusual views about the Maine Constitution.
In July 2015 the governor neglected to veto a whole slew of bills he wanted to veto.  

After the Maine Supreme Judicial Court received arguments (including a brief by three Maine citizens who claimed the Legislature and Attorney General Mills were traitors), it ruled unanimously that the governor was wrong about the veto and adjournment provisions.

TO READ MORE: http://pollways.bangordailynews.com/2015/10/26/maine-politics/lepage-claims-school-funding-is-unconstitutional/

CHAIRMAN PECSE AND HIS FOUR MINIONS PLAYED THE TAXPAYERS!

Chairman Pesce, Councilors Metivier, Bickford, Crafts and Brunelle have forced the taxpayers to come up with additional tax dollars.  These five Councilors had a perfect opportunity to reduce our taxes by $334,372 or roughly $.60 in our milrate.  These numbers were provided to me by Chairman Pesce and Town Manager Barnes via email back on May 12, 2015.

If you couple this with the School Department coming in flat, the taxpayers would have received a reduction in taxes this year.  However, Chairman Pesce and his four minions could not live with that so they started a war with the School Department.  Now, these Councilors are going to begin the process of committing the tax process so that no further action can be taken by the VOTERS to approve a School Department Budget. 

This action will force the School Department to have to live with the $14.88 million dollar budget.  In order to operate this coming year, the School Department will have to reduce the staff or cut some or all of the sports programs.  Either way the School Department has to go, our students will have to suffer the loss. 

These five councilors created this situation and should be held totally responsible.  I have discussed this situation with some of these councilors and they are passing the buck by placing the blame on Superintendent Green for not meeting their demands.  In other words, it was the Councils way or the highway.  The real loser here is the Town of Lisbon because our educational level is going to suffer in order to meet these Councilors demand; all because the people approved a Gym instead of a Public Works garage.

Keep in mind these Councilors name:  Pesce; Metivier; Bickford; Crafts and Brunelle and every time you see them you can thank them.  I personally will never vote for any of these individuals again.  Chairman Pesce is up for re-election this November but he is not in my District.

I believe a Special Town meeting is in order to overturn the Town Councils amendment to the School budget.  However, Chairman Pesce will never allow this to happen.

Larry Fillmore 

Editor's Note:  What this means is that the taxpayer's REALLY have no say in how their money is spent.  

BUSINESS AS USUAL!!!!! 

Voting Results For 2nd School Budget August 11, 2015, Once Again The People Have Spoken

Town of Lisbon School Budget Validation Referendum
August 11, 2015
School Referendum Results
		Ward 1		Ward 2		Total
QUESTION 1: Adopt Lisbon School Budget
Yes		48		93		141
No		211		262		473
Blanks						0
QUESTION 2:  If you voted No, was it because the budget is:
Too Low		194		219		413
Too High		16		40		56
Blanks		1		3		4
Ballots Cast:		259		355		614
Registered Voters:		3161		3286		6447

Jody Durisko, Deputy Town Clerk

From the office of:

Twila Lycette

Lisbon Town Clerk

Remember On June's Vote the People overwhelmingly Voted NO TOO LOW. And the Town Council Responded by making it even LOWER!

Reminder 2ND School Budget Vote This Tuesday 08/11/2015

PLEASE COME OUT AND VOTE

AUGUST 11, 2015

TUESDAY

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 11. Residents of Ward 1 vote at the Superintendent's Central Office Building Gym and residents of Ward 2 at the MTM Community Center Gymnasium.

V O T E

SUPPORT THE SCHOOL DEPARTMENT

MY VOTE IS GOING TO BE

NO!  TOO LOW

TUESDAY, JULY 23, 2015 WORKSHOP

TUESDAY, JULY 23, 2015 WORKSHOP

 Lisbon  Councilor Chris Brunelle

Lisbon Councilor Dale J. Crafts

I do not know how many of you know it but latest Thursday, July 23, 2015 the Town Council held a workshop.  I am going out on a limb and say there could NOT have been many citizens in attendance since there was no notification. 

Of course, Chairman Pesce is going to say that it was posted on the town web site and he would be correct.  Below is a copy of the Agenda.  Please note that the day and the date do not match.  This is another example of transparency in Lisbon.

 (click on above to print)

It would have been nice to have heard the discussion on the Mill Street Dam and the Water Department Tower.  Once again that ship has sailed.  We all will have to wait for minutes of the workshop to come out.  Of course, the minutes do not reflect everything that was discussed in the workshop.

It would appear that Chairman Pesce and a few of the Councilors are so wrapped up in their vendetta with the School Department that they are not paying attention to their responsibilities.  It is the Chairman’s responsibility, in coordination with the Town Manager to ensure the Agenda is posted in a timely manner and that it is accurate.  That did not happen!

Chairman Pesce and Town Manager Barnes need to stop thinking of ways to justify their position on the School Budget and start doing what is right for the community.  That is what we are paying them for!

Wouldn’t it be nice to have transparency in this town; so that the citizens are kept informed as to what is going on in our town?

Larry Fillmore

P.S. There is a workshop, Tuesday July 28, 2015 7:00 P.M. at the Town Office.  On the Agenda is Trail Parking; Trail Signage; Fireworks Ordinance and Cameras – Fuel Pumps.  The original agenda was dated Thursday, July 28, 2015 but it is actually Tuesday.

BETRAYAL of TRUST

By Peter Reuter Special to the Lisbon Reporter

The foundation of ANY relationship, be it friendships, marriage, mechanics, public servants, Priests, Police, or pets, is TRUST.  If for any reason that is broken a vast array of events occur that lead to nothing more easily verbalized as BETRAYAL.  Here are the words as defined by just about any dictionary standards.

BETRAYAL    

verb (used with object)

1.

to deliver or expose to an enemy by treachery or disloyalty:

Benedict Arnold betrayed his country.

2.

to be unfaithful in guarding, maintaining, or fulfilling:

to betray a trust.

3.

to disappoint the hopes or expectations of; be disloyal to:

to betray one's friends.

4.

to reveal or disclose in violation of confidence:

to betray a secret.

5.

to reveal unconsciously (something one would preferably conceal):

Her nervousness betrays her insecurity.

6.

to show or exhibit; reveal; disclose:

an unfeeling remark that betrays his lack of concern.

7.

to deceive, misguide, or corrupt:

a young lawyer betrayed by political ambitions into irreparable folly.

TRUST    

noun

1.

reliance on the integrity, strength, ability, surety, etc., of a person or thing; confidence.

2.

confident expectation of something; hope.

3.

confidence in the certainty of future payment for property or goods received; credit:

to sell merchandise on trust.

4.

a person on whom or thing on which one relies:

God is my trust.

5.

the condition of one to whom something has been entrusted.

6.

the obligation or responsibility imposed on a person in whom confidence or authority is placed:

a position of trust.

7.

charge, custody, or care:

to leave valuables in someone's trust.

History has proof of this occurring multiple times in Lisbon.  To zero in on target let us not forget the public display of insubordination by Lisbon's Chief of Police, David T. Brooks at the Town Council meeting of February 17, 2009.  A complete staged verbal display of inaccurate facts, LIES.  Now more recently the reassessment process that has turned into a complete display of non-performance of a contract which was orchestrated by Lisbon's previous Town Manager, Stephen G. Eldridge.  And the entourage that not only hired him but protected him from the tasks that he was entrusted to handle.  Yet we have learned of significant discrepancies in his ability to present complete budgets to the Town Councilors and Citizens to approve.

Now we Lisbon residents find ourselves in another type of quandary dealing with the School Budget and Municipal Budgets.  Betrayal of Trust has already occurred when the citizens were asked, via the voting process, if they wanted to vote on the Municipal Budget much like they do already on the School Budget.  Except the Town Councilors at that moment in time betrayed the trust of the people by not proceeding with the wishes of the voters.  It was unanimous that people did in fact want to vote on the Municipal Budget.  But Councilors have played "pin the tail on the voters" and have broken the trust with the rules of the game.

The importance of this second "go around" of School Budget discussions is very significant and needs not to be taken lightly by the voters.  The power is still in the voters hands when it comes time to vote.  In the mean time we ALL must be informed of the facts and voice our concerns.  It is the last bit of Democracy this town has.

For the discussion process at Lisbon Community School, people need to first attend then speak up  about concerns no matter what they are.  The future of Lisbon lies in the youth of the community and the adults that have to pay taxes to provide a proper educational environment.  We all know there can be significant cuts in an already grossly over-financed Police budget that could ease the burden on taxpayers and save a lot of cuts that will occur if the School is forced to cut their budget.  Mr. Green and staff have done a remarkable job preparing and informing the citizens already.  It is time to hold the Town Councilors accountable to their "sworn duties" and principles that they were voted into office on.

Why do we need to have our own Communications Center?

Why do we need such a lavishly funded Police Department?

Lisbon is "a great place to live and do business."  And it could be so much better if TRUST could be regained for the people by their Public Servants.  Until then the voter's only control is on the vote for the School Budget.  If you don't like it vote it down again.

At least attend this Round 2 Public Hearing and learn first hand about the facts.

God Bless and Good Luck!