tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1994253008427414465.post6845952250066737118..comments2024-03-07T08:45:37.370-05:00Comments on Longmeadow Buzz: No to the 5 year plan approachUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1994253008427414465.post-92022154119960724412008-05-02T17:58:00.000-04:002008-05-02T17:58:00.000-04:00Another problem with 5-year plans for taxes is tha...Another problem with 5-year plans for taxes is that our political representatives do not have terms in office that corresponds to the time frames of the plans.<BR/><BR/>This sentence should read "correspond" not "corresponds". Pardon me.<BR/><BR/>Perhaps this is the heart of the problem in Longmeadow. Our political leaders do not all stand for election at the same time. <BR/><BR/>We have an arrangement somewhat similar to the U.S. Senate, where 1/3 of the membership is up for election every two years. This was designed to prevent a large scale turnover of the Senate. All of the House is up for election every two years.<BR/><BR/>How do we develop accountability, if only a few of the members have to face the voters each year. <BR/><BR/>Perhaps the Charter needs to be changed.John J. Fitzgeraldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18074950065731163990noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1994253008427414465.post-69191729828521049922008-05-01T21:06:00.000-04:002008-05-01T21:06:00.000-04:00Looking ahead at future annual operating expenses ...Looking ahead at future annual operating expenses as well as new capital investments (DPW facility + high school + .... ) and developing a longer range plan (3 -5 years) (or road map) is a fiscally responsible activity for the Town of Longmeadow. <BR/><BR/>In past years we have ignored much of the town's need to maintain its buildings and other infrastructure including sewer and storm drainage systems so in the next few years we will probably be paying for it. In contrast to its maintenance philosophy I applaud the town's management of spending capital dollars through the efforts of the Capital Planning Committee where our limited tax money is spent only after needs are identified and prioritized.<BR/><BR/>Business does long range planning all the time and I have listened to the arguments by you, Mr. Duquette and others that the public sector is different from the private sector because it involves a political process. I understand and agree that it is different and maybe more difficult to manage but I don't think that it allows us to dismiss the need to look and plan ahead.<BR/> <BR/>I do not agree that you cannot make reasonable forecasts for most budget items. Businesses develop long range plans and many of them end up off target because of changing circumstances and wrong assumptions so they are periodically revised and updated. A 5 year plan is usually updated 6 -12 months or as often as necessary to provide a useful management tool.<BR/><BR/>In my earlier posting I attempted to calculate the impact on taxes that building a new high school and DPW facility would have on property taxes- not a pretty picture but many town residents need to have a better understanding of our future taxes for their own financial planning purposes.<BR/><BR/>The Finance Committee took the initiative this year to continue the thinking process started last year and look at the impact of FY09 spending on the town's ability to fund the FY10 budget. With the town negotiating new collective bargaining contracts for all employees next year our budget will grow significantly and represent a major hurdle to fund many of our needed projects. Looking ahead with solid financial planning is a much better idea than ignoring the future.Jim Moran, LongmeadowBizhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09975994064068466177noreply@blogger.com