What Is Gained By Cutting The Budget?

To the Editor:

Our town budget vote is this Tuesday. We are, as Jim Gaston said in his Bee commentary on April 11, facing a “Perfect Storm.” The economy is still uncertain. Our town is growing. And, the reval is shifting the tax burden among property owners. The question is: how much damage will it do?

So far, we have seen our library and road improvement funding cut. We’ve also seen less money placed in accounts potentially used for open space acquisition. School staffing and property maintenance have been reduced. If we fail to support the budget, as proposed by the Board of Finance and approved by the Legislative Counsel, we’re likely to see damage from the storm that will be difficult to recover from.

Discretionary spending, like more of the open space and library funding, could be further cut if the town budget is yet again reduced. As for the schools, Mr Gaston’s commentary included a list of prospective cuts. The list, presented by Superintendent Pitkoff at the request of the Board of Finance, identifies the potential loss of fourth grade orchestra, and schoolwide athletics and activities. Resurrecting these programs once they are lost will be difficult. In addition, our current students will have lost opportunities for growth in the fine arts and in the community afforded by these programs.

What each of us needs to decide is whether or not what we gain by cutting the budget even more helps to compensate for the damage done. According to the numbers presented by the Board of Finance, the average homeowner, whose house is assessed at about $261,000, gains $50 in tax savings (pretax) for every $500,000 cut in the budget. Is one dollar a week going to make a difference? The budget doesn’t offer much more that can be cut.

Yes, a “Perfect Storm” is brewing (and we’re between a rock and a hard place). We must stand fast during this storm and prepare for the next. We need to get out and vote Yes for the budget. Every one of us who owns property in Newtown can do so. Yes, we need to get out but we must not stop there. We need to improve our current tax relief programs for our elderly and our community volunteers. As Jim Gaston mentioned at the end of his commentary, the Board of Finance stands at the ready to revisit the program, if asked. When they do, we should be there supporting them and our fellow members of the Newtown community.

Deborra Zukowski

4 Cornfield Ridge Road, Newtown                               April 15, 2003