Here's what she wrote:
Ann Marie Noyes tried to get council to set guidelines for the tax
rate increase as well as increases to water and sewer rates, but
her motions were defeated. In the meantime, the town
administration's mouthpiece/blogger has already let the cat out
of the bag: the budget for 2009 will be $15 million. Part of the
reason given for the defeat of Noyes's motion was that it was
premature, yet someone in town hall has revealed what the
budget will be before it is even discussed.
"Budget discussions will begin very soon and council
needed to set dates it will meet to deliberate on how to
spend nearly $15 million."
Mike Cloutier
Cloutier assailed Councillor Noyes for reporting that she
cannot be in attendance at certain budget meetings because of
a family trip to Disney World. As if there's something wrong
with that. At least the taxpayers aren't paying for it - like the
Dubai Debacle.
Did I say nearly $15 million, I meant over $15 million. And that was a rough estimate based on my memory of the 2008 budget deliberations. In actuality it's over $16 million -- $16.3 million to be more exact is projected for 2009. That figure is from Appendix A to Administrative Report CS-34-08, submitted to council on Oct. 20. I suppose since Frau Popinfresh doesn't know something, it's some kind of big secret.
I'm so good, the Deluded Deleter thinks I have "inside" information. She might think that all I do is pick my nose, scratch my ass, contort myself like I have "some Biblical disease", eat my happy meals (actually it used to be Bacon Cheeseburgers), dream about my next frosty cold delicious beer and wish for a Deep Throat to find me. In fact, I pay attention to council proceedings.
What's wrong with Ann-Marie Noyes' plans for a Disney World holiday? Those two weeks, combined with Martha Lockwood's absence the week following U.S. Thanksgiving means budget deliberations are pushed back three weeks. So instead of budget meetings ending in February -- give or take a couple of weeks for what might lay ahead -- they'll end in mid-March offering very little to no opportunity for reconsideration.
On top of that, councillors will have to wrap their heads around new accounting procedures called Tangible Asset Valuation beginning in 2009. The quaint term "infrastructure gap" that Noyes and others have used will now be shown on a balance sheet and it will likely show an unbalanced or deficit position, the same as every other municipality in Ontario. I can hear the raving now.
Meanwhile, Noyes will be soaking up sun in Florida instead of wrestling a budget that is associated with the single biggest change in the way municipalities manage their finances in the 25 years I've been covering municipal councils here and elsewhere. That's what's wrong.
If the rest of council behaved the way Sharon Bowers and Ann-Marie Noyes like to say they do, they would have said, "You're not going to be here: too bad." And they should have.
Excuse me now, I have a will-not to exorcise.
2 comments:
I've invited the "faux newsman" to write directly to this blog, that's why you see his name credited after the post. It's better than copy and pasting a comment.
Bravo!
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