Finance Committee Meeting Minutes 4/22/21
Finance Committee Meeting Minutes – 4-22-21 @ 12 noon
Agenda
Agenda items to be discussed:
Agenda
Approve letter to mail to residents
Approve minutes
Present – Rebecca Wolin, Jon Silbert. Michele Miller
We approved the minutes from prior meetings which will be sent to the town clerk
We discussed the letter that the finance committee would be mailing out to residents (see below)
We reworded some lines with input from the committee and the following letter was approved to be mailed to the residents of Monterey.
Support Your Independent Monterey Finance Committee April 22, 2021
Dear Monterey Voters,
Town meeting this year takes place on Saturday, May 1, at 9:30 am, at the Firehouse pavilion. Please attend the meeting and make your voice heard.
On the warrant, there is an article proposing to amend our town bylaw, Article II, Section 3, which states:
Section 3. Finance Committee
A Finance Committee consisting of three members shall be established under provisions of Section 16 of Chapter 39, Section 6 of Chapter 40 and Section 13 of Chapter 44 of the General Laws and section 6 of Chapter 798 of the Acts of 1951, with all the powers and duties thereof for a term of three years duly elected at Annual Town Meeting.
Article 23 on this year’s warrant proposes to amend this bylaw; it reads as follows:
Article 23. To see if the Town will vote to approve amending by-law Article II, Section 3. Finance Committee by the addition of the following language: The Select Board shall work cooperatively with the Finance Committee in the budgetary process, but the Select Board shall be responsible for the preparation and submission of the budget to the town meeting in the warrant. Any differences between the Select Board's and the Finance Committee's recommendations to the town meeting shall be noted on the warrant.
The Finance Committee believes the Select Board should not propose this amendment and we urge them to withdraw it from consideration. The role of the Finance Committee is laid out in the Massachusetts GL Sections cited above and there is no reason for this proposed bylaw amendment to usurp that role.
(over)
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It is not in the best interests of our voters, our larger community of residents and taxpayers, our town, and our financial health, to have all powers of local government—administration, day-to-day operations, policy and finance—concentrated in one board.
The reason for this is straightforward. According to the Finance Committee Handbook: “Without finance committee independent review, the town meeting would be at a severe handicap in voting on financial matters when all of the recommendations are coming from one source. Separation of powers was designed by our founding fathers for a reason—Defend It.”
You deserve independent citizen representation on all financial matters coming before the town, and we should leave well enough alone.
Once again, the decision about the role of the Finance Committee—like all decisions pertaining to town governance—will be made by voters at town meeting on Saturday, May 1, at 9:30am. Please attend and vote your conscience. Be heard. Be effective. Be self-determined. It’s up to you.
Sincerely,
Monterey Finance Committee
Rebecca Wolin, Chair
Jonathan Sylbert
Michele Miller