Two events to put on your calendar: an October 13 chat with Massachusetts House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Murphy on the state of the State's budget. Then set aside the evening of October 27 for an important Community Dialog on the future direction of the public schools.
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budget
Upcoming events: Community Dialog and state budget talk
Progress on P.I.L.O.Ts Monday Evening
The Board of Selectmen will hear a proposal from the Board of Assessors tomorrow night (Sept. 14) at 7:45pm regarding the Town's tentative plans to seek Payment in lieu of Taxes (P.I.L.O.T) agreements from the many, large non profits that are located in Belmont.
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Comparing stimulus plans: Great Depression vs. Great Recession
$38 million in federal stimulus funds for Belmont? You betcha! That was the value, in today's dollars, of a town plan, approved by the federal government, to rapidly modernize Belmont after World War II.
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Proposed MBTA service cuts could hit Belmont
Courtesy of Rep. Will Brownsberger's Web site: The MBTA's 72 and 78 bus routes could be discontinued and weekday and weekend service cut in half on remaining routes to help the agency balance its books. The T will hold public hearings to discuss possible service cuts in the coming weeks.
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Proposed cuts from House, Senate would hit education hard
Proposed cuts to local aid and a variety of programs supporting public education programs could hit Belmont, and other towns, hard.
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School Committee meeting Tuesday is opportunity to speak out against cuts
Federal stimulus money may not avert staffing cuts. The School Committee meeting at Chenery Middle School Tuesday at 7:30 PM may be your best opportunity to speak out against cuts to teaching and support staff in Belmont's Public Schools.
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State’s fiscal freefall could jeopardize local aid
A precipitous drop in State revenues could jeopardize local aid payments and eviscerate funding for social services and education. Suddenly "Read my lips: No new taxes!" doesn't sound so cool.
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Crazy Idea bubbles up at Town Meeting
One that caught my eye in the Warrant for the meeting, however, harkened back to one of the crazy ideas that B2 floated in 2008, namely: a PILOT agreement with the Belmont Hill School.
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Fed $ means no Prop 2 1/2 override this year
An estimated $1.3m in stimulus money will help stave off cuts to staffing and materials on the school side and, coupled with some savings from attrition, let the town squeak by for one more year without needing to raise property taxes.
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Federal aid could direct $1.36m to schools
It's intended to provide an economic stimulus, but the end result of emergency federal funding in Belmont may be to get the town's schools back to level funding, according to a story in today's Belmont Citizen Herald.
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