Budget Process - Working Together for a Common Goal

I would like to disclose that Fran Newton and Ingrid Heidenreich are members of the Budget Committee and the Coalition for Action.

The discussions on the budget have already been contentious, even though no budget cuts have been discussed. Some have felt that the budget committee is probing too deeply, some have felt that there are personal or political agendas behind the process, and some have felt personally attacked. Money is a point of contention in families, businesses, and governments. Those families, businesses, and governments that are successful find a way to work together to achieve common goals.

After attending many of the budget committee sessions, I would like to make the following suggestions. The first is that we should look at the big picture and see how that applies to more specific areas of the budget. Ashland's taxes are high, in the upper 25% of towns in New Hampshire. We have very little money in capital reserve to deal with large, long-term capital expenses such as equipment, roads, and buildings. The town has put off many large expenses over the years, but over the next five years we will not be able to put off those expenses any longer. If we do not reduce costs and put away money to meet these expenses, we will have to borrow money to pay for them. This will add to our current debt, which is already high, and it will raise our taxes. If we approve the proposed money Warrant articles, our taxes will increase $1 per thousand. While, these warrant articles begin to address some of our long term problems, they are a patch and not part of a comprehensive plan to restore the town to financial health.

Second, we recommend that our overall goal should be to develop a comprehensive long term plan that involves reducing costs and placing those savings into capital reserve funds. We should focus on reducing costs areas that are much higher than the average spent by similar towns: parks and recreation, police, education, and debt service. In terms of capital reserve, we need to develop a long-term capital reserve plan that prioritizes needs over the next 10 years so that we can begin to address the most critical areas while holding the line on spending.

Finally, we will need to address economic development so that we can increase revenues in a way that helps us to preserve and enhance the character of the town. We need to bring in sustainable businesses, develop the mill area, and develop the transfer station. All of these things require that we work together as a town to make difficult cuts in spending while investing in our future.