Gold9472
03-06-2007, 05:53 PM
Town Meeting Day — early roundup
http://www.vermontguardian.com/local/032007/TownMeetingRoundup.shtml
By Shay Totten & Christian Avard | Vermont Guardian
Posted March 6, 2007
Updated at 4:50 PM (check back for updates throughout the evening and into tomorrow)
Send us an e-mail with a report on your town meeting. Click here
WINOOSKI — Voters around Vermont have been heading to their local school or town hall for the annual rites of democracy — town meeting.
So far, no remarkable trends are emerging as the main theme for voters.
Resolutions calling for the immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and urging the state’s congressional delegation to pursue impeachment of Pres. George W. Bush, are being approved by mixed margins.
In all eight towns have adopted the measure so far, out of 23.
In Westminster, the impeachment resolution passed 107-29.
In Rochester, the impeachment resolution passed 57 to 53.
In Hardwick, a troop withdrawal resolution passed 59-51. An impeachment resolution did not make it to a floor vote, as it was ruled by the moderator to be inappropriately worded.
In Jericho, home of Democratic House Speaker Gaye Symington, who is not supportive of the impeachment measure, voters approved the impeachment resolution 88-67, as well as the troop withdrawal measure.
Other towns that approved the impeachment resolution were Bristol, Guilford, Middlebury, Richmond, and Vershire.
Plymouth, Newfane, and Guilford also passed troop withdrawal measures.
Several towns that had anticipated bringing up the measure failed to have the vote recognized from the floor.
In Dorset, voters rejected a troop withdrawal motion, and backers of the impeachment resolution then opted not to introduce the subsequent measure.
In Stamford, a proposal was made that both articles be tabled. An Australian ballot/closed vote followed and the tally was 50-20 in favor of tabling the articles.
Helen Fields, a co-organizer of the Stamford effort to get the resolutions on the warning, was disappointed, but hopes to bring the issue up again in the near future.
In Rupert, backers of both measures had the required signatures to get them on the ballot, but town officials denied the request. At Monday night’s meeting, there was no spot for “other business” to be raised.
Both Burlington and Lincoln voters are being asked to call on Congress to empanel a new investigation of the 9/11 attacks. The measure passed in Lincoln by a 38-17 tally. Burlington voters will decide on the measure via secret ballot today.
The first Green Party official in the state will likely be elected in Burlington today. Hillary Weeks is running unopposed for a three-year term as an inspector of elections in the city’s Ward 3.
While many lawmakers, and other interested parties, are paying close attention to whether school budgets are passed, others are watching whether communities choose what is known as Australian balloting over traditional floor discussion and votes.
In Middlesex, voters later today will choose whether to move away from a floor vote and discussion to all-day, secret balloting.
Susan Clark, co-author of All Those in Favor — an overview of town meeting in Vermont — along with Frank Bryan, said several towns are taking up the issue of ballots versus floor votes this year.
Tinmouth, which voted in November by one vote to move to secret balloting, took up the issue again last night and voters opted to end the practice of voting budgets from the floor.
However, in Shoreham, voters rejected a move to vote their town budget in secret by a 86-6 tally and also agreed to vote next year’s school budget from the floor, 24-15. Shoreham had been voting on its school budgets via secret ballots for more than 20 years.
Rep. Will Stevens, D-Shoreham, the town’s moderator, said the discussion was lively during the town meeting, and one woman carried that over into the school meeting. “She basically didn’t think it was fair that the town votes on one budget one way, and then the school budget another,” he said.
“The message was to me was as moderator that people want the discussion and access to the information when the vote, and possibly get to amend items,” said Stevens. “This will mean my job will be more challenging next year, but it may also be more rewarding.”
Clark, who is a strong advocate for floor votes, said the Shoreham vote may be unique.
“That might be a first,” said Clark, who lives in Middlesex and is looking forward to a heated debate on the issue in her town meeting.
In fact, the issue has been such a hot topic that both sides have been mailing information directly to voters and even putting up lawn signs.
School budget defeats are being measured by some as a barometer of whether people are dissatisfied with the current education funding system.
One observer isn’t sure that budget defeats tell the whole story this week, when lawmakers are home on break.
“It’s not just about today, but all week. This is a pretty important week in terms of engaging people about what’s happening in the Legislature — people talking with their legislators so they know what they are thinking,” said John Nelson, executive director of the Vermont School Boards Association.
Steve Jeffrey, the executive director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, is not expecting widespread defeats of school budgets, and said there were no major issues facing towns this year.
“I’m interested to see what happens with school funding, but so far it doesn’t seem like a lot of budgets are going down to defeat,” said Jeffrey. “If everyone is complaining about the property tax and budgets are being passed I don’t know what that means.”
The league has voiced its support for a measure that would levy a 1.5 percent income tax on all Vermonters, and reduce the statewide residential property tax rate to 25 cents per $100 of assessed value, down from its current $1.09.
http://www.vermontguardian.com/local/032007/TownMeetingRoundup.shtml
By Shay Totten & Christian Avard | Vermont Guardian
Posted March 6, 2007
Updated at 4:50 PM (check back for updates throughout the evening and into tomorrow)
Send us an e-mail with a report on your town meeting. Click here
WINOOSKI — Voters around Vermont have been heading to their local school or town hall for the annual rites of democracy — town meeting.
So far, no remarkable trends are emerging as the main theme for voters.
Resolutions calling for the immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and urging the state’s congressional delegation to pursue impeachment of Pres. George W. Bush, are being approved by mixed margins.
In all eight towns have adopted the measure so far, out of 23.
In Westminster, the impeachment resolution passed 107-29.
In Rochester, the impeachment resolution passed 57 to 53.
In Hardwick, a troop withdrawal resolution passed 59-51. An impeachment resolution did not make it to a floor vote, as it was ruled by the moderator to be inappropriately worded.
In Jericho, home of Democratic House Speaker Gaye Symington, who is not supportive of the impeachment measure, voters approved the impeachment resolution 88-67, as well as the troop withdrawal measure.
Other towns that approved the impeachment resolution were Bristol, Guilford, Middlebury, Richmond, and Vershire.
Plymouth, Newfane, and Guilford also passed troop withdrawal measures.
Several towns that had anticipated bringing up the measure failed to have the vote recognized from the floor.
In Dorset, voters rejected a troop withdrawal motion, and backers of the impeachment resolution then opted not to introduce the subsequent measure.
In Stamford, a proposal was made that both articles be tabled. An Australian ballot/closed vote followed and the tally was 50-20 in favor of tabling the articles.
Helen Fields, a co-organizer of the Stamford effort to get the resolutions on the warning, was disappointed, but hopes to bring the issue up again in the near future.
In Rupert, backers of both measures had the required signatures to get them on the ballot, but town officials denied the request. At Monday night’s meeting, there was no spot for “other business” to be raised.
Both Burlington and Lincoln voters are being asked to call on Congress to empanel a new investigation of the 9/11 attacks. The measure passed in Lincoln by a 38-17 tally. Burlington voters will decide on the measure via secret ballot today.
The first Green Party official in the state will likely be elected in Burlington today. Hillary Weeks is running unopposed for a three-year term as an inspector of elections in the city’s Ward 3.
While many lawmakers, and other interested parties, are paying close attention to whether school budgets are passed, others are watching whether communities choose what is known as Australian balloting over traditional floor discussion and votes.
In Middlesex, voters later today will choose whether to move away from a floor vote and discussion to all-day, secret balloting.
Susan Clark, co-author of All Those in Favor — an overview of town meeting in Vermont — along with Frank Bryan, said several towns are taking up the issue of ballots versus floor votes this year.
Tinmouth, which voted in November by one vote to move to secret balloting, took up the issue again last night and voters opted to end the practice of voting budgets from the floor.
However, in Shoreham, voters rejected a move to vote their town budget in secret by a 86-6 tally and also agreed to vote next year’s school budget from the floor, 24-15. Shoreham had been voting on its school budgets via secret ballots for more than 20 years.
Rep. Will Stevens, D-Shoreham, the town’s moderator, said the discussion was lively during the town meeting, and one woman carried that over into the school meeting. “She basically didn’t think it was fair that the town votes on one budget one way, and then the school budget another,” he said.
“The message was to me was as moderator that people want the discussion and access to the information when the vote, and possibly get to amend items,” said Stevens. “This will mean my job will be more challenging next year, but it may also be more rewarding.”
Clark, who is a strong advocate for floor votes, said the Shoreham vote may be unique.
“That might be a first,” said Clark, who lives in Middlesex and is looking forward to a heated debate on the issue in her town meeting.
In fact, the issue has been such a hot topic that both sides have been mailing information directly to voters and even putting up lawn signs.
School budget defeats are being measured by some as a barometer of whether people are dissatisfied with the current education funding system.
One observer isn’t sure that budget defeats tell the whole story this week, when lawmakers are home on break.
“It’s not just about today, but all week. This is a pretty important week in terms of engaging people about what’s happening in the Legislature — people talking with their legislators so they know what they are thinking,” said John Nelson, executive director of the Vermont School Boards Association.
Steve Jeffrey, the executive director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, is not expecting widespread defeats of school budgets, and said there were no major issues facing towns this year.
“I’m interested to see what happens with school funding, but so far it doesn’t seem like a lot of budgets are going down to defeat,” said Jeffrey. “If everyone is complaining about the property tax and budgets are being passed I don’t know what that means.”
The league has voiced its support for a measure that would levy a 1.5 percent income tax on all Vermonters, and reduce the statewide residential property tax rate to 25 cents per $100 of assessed value, down from its current $1.09.