‘An Important Message for Parents’ from Matt Knickerbocker

Knickerbocker: “It is difficult to come to any other conclusion concerning this “platform” other than it is reckless, irresponsible, and simply panders to voter’s concern over taxes … “

Report by Paula Antolini
November 2, 2015 6:44AM EDT

Message from incumbent First Selectman Matt Knickerbocker:

Matt & Rich 2015

“An Important Message for Parents” from Matt Knickerbocker

My opponent in this year’s race for First Selectman has centered his campaign on “smaller government” and “lowering taxes”. He has focused his attention primarily on the mil rate, which he promises to lower. We have discussed many times in this forum why it is not actually possible to do this, but let’s look at the numbers on his ideas, anyway. How much would we have to take out of the town budget in order to meet his goal of lower mil rates?

Here are the facts.  In round numbers, our current mil rate is 32. The value of one mil in our current combined school and town budget is $1.847 million. This means that in order to reduce the mil rate by just one point from 32 to 31, we would need to REDUCE the next budget by $1.847 million. Since most costs are contractual, the only way to reach a cut this deep is through layoffs. A reduction of only one mil would potentially require layoffs of some combination of at least 26 teachers, highway workers, town office staff, library staff or police officers (this figure includes wage and benefits). That figure could be higher if there were significant cost increases beyond our control in other areas.

But this gets worse. A reduction of 2 mils from 32 to 30 would require a budget cut of $3.7 million and would result in layoffs of at least 53 school and town employees combined.

It gets worse yet.  My opponent has thrown out the idea that the mil rate should be somewhere in the “high twenties.” Taking the mil rate all the way down to 28 would reduce the town budget by $7.4 million. A combination of 106 school and town employees would have to go. If allocated in proportion to the two budget groups, this would mean 32 town employees and 74 school employees would be targeted. This would be impossible, however. The “town side” literally does not have enough employees cut that deeply and still maintain necessary services.  The majority of cuts this deep would come from the schools.

It is difficult to come to any other conclusion concerning this “platform” other than it is reckless, irresponsible, and simply panders to voter’s concern over taxes without offering any realistic solutions. Even if the Board of Finance rejected these ideas, his goals take us backwards to the days of bitter infighting between school supporters and their town government, unnecessary conflict that our community worked hard to leave behind.

Rich Straiton and I pledge to you we will not do this to our town or to our schools. Our record proves we have consistently supported budgets that maintain excellence in our schools and all current town services. We can, and will, work to maintain them, without layoffs and within our current budgets. The mil rate will correct itself automatically with the next property revaluation as values continue to recover. We ask for your support this Tuesday, not only for us, but for the incumbent Board of Finance members who have also worked hard for your schools and town: Eileen Freebairn, Pat Smithwick and Claudia Stephen. Please cast your vote for the team that pledges to protect your schools and keep our town moving forward.

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Approved by Knickerbocker & Straiton. Paid for by BDTC, David Olson, Treasurer.