Now that a Proposition 2.5 override in both Whitman and Hanson has been soundly thrashed at the ballot box, select boards, school officials and public safety officials are probably thinking what’s next – and where do we go from here?
Whitman has already begun work on a special Town Meeting at 6 p.m., Wednesday, June 11 with a brief warrant. The town’s budget working group, which includes Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter, Assistant Administrator Kathleen Keefe, Select Board members Shawn Kain and Justin Evans along with Treasurer-Collector Sharon LoPiccolo have already begun examining the town’s finances again in an effort to answer the question.
Evans noted that he spoke with Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak at Monday’s groundbreaking for the new Whitman Middle School, at which time, Szymaniak said the School Committee expects to have a certified budget number to the Select Board by June 4.
“This next step in the budget process is definitely a precarious one,” Kain said, noting the budget group has already reached out to the schools and Finance Committee chair to keep them in the loop. “I think we have to be careful about how we proceed.”
They are also mindful of the employees who might be affected by any budget cuts.
“There’s a lot riding on making sure we do things right,” Kain said.
Vice Chair Dan Salvucci said he was happy with the amount of people who turned out to vote.
While expressing his appreciation for the work Carter has done on the budget, Salvucci did wonder if each department were given a number to stick to and let them make their cuts, because department heads know where best to cut.
“My understanding, Mary Beth is that you have regular meetings with the department heads and discussed all of these things before Article 2 was made,” said Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski.
Carter said they had already trimmed back quite a bit, and there are smaller departments such as the assessors, where there is nowhere to cut.
“They only have a few lines, they’re a small budget, so there really isn’t anywhere other than personnel to cut,” she said. “There expenses may be only $500.”
Salvucci’s frame of reference was the Zero-based budget approach used at South Shore Tech, and Carter said that is the same budget approach she uses.
“I don’t see that we’re able to reduce the budget without reducing staffing in some areas,” she said.
In Hanson, in a brief Select Board meeting on Tuesday. May 20, Chair Laura Fitzgerald-Kemmett opened their discussion by noting that any budget cuts need to be made by July 1.
Town Administrator Lisa Green said she held a department head meeting Tuesday, at which time they, “went over the amounts departments need to look at and we’re going to be having further discussions.”
“Hopefully, we’re going to have everything in place by July 1,” Green said. “Of course, we do have to impact bargain with some of the unions for positions that may be impacted by this.”
Fitzgerald-Kemmett, said the town must continue to think outside the box in order to increase revenues.
“Is it going to solve our fiscal problem?” FitzGerald said of a recent meeting of the Economic Development. “No. But Every little bit helps.”
Remembering what Memorial Day means
By Linda Ibbitson Hurd
Special to the Express
HANSON — When I was in the fourth grade at Indian Head School in Hanson, I joined the school band. I played the clarinet and kept on with it through junior high.
Every Memorial Day our band marched into the Fern Hill Cemetery in Hanson. We all wore royal blue capes with satin gold colored lining and hats to match, with black patent leather visors.
Growing up with parents who had served our country, including some of our mothers, we had heard many stories and were very proud to be part of the Memorial Day ceremony, which we took very seriously. Every year there were three boys chosen to play “Taps” on their trumpets, each one placed on a specific hill to be the echo for one another. In spite of the large crowd, it was always a solemn occasion. Our music teachers, Mr. and Mrs. Hewitt, were always there to lead us in. “Abide With Me” was one of the songs we played. It took on a whole new meaning when we played it on Memorial Day and I thought about so many people who had lost their lives in the war.
The very first time I was in the band and part of the ceremonies, when those three young boys played “Taps” and it echoed through the cemetery on that beautiful day in May, it struck me that there were young men not much older than some of us who never got to live out their lives. Some years later, I thought about some of my own classmates who never made it home from Vietnam.
In later years as an adult, every parade I went to that Vietnam vets were in, I applauded and even stepped forward one time to shake the hand of one in the parade who was in a wheel chair. His grasp and the look in his eyes as he thanked me, I will never forget. Even though Vietnam has been labeled as an unpopular War, it’s not the fault of those who served and it angers me that they are not applauded in some of the parades. I was also told by a school mate who had served in Vietnam and still attended Memorial Day ceremonies at Fern Hill, that the gun salute brings back a variety of emotional responses, depending on their experiences.
We truly owe so much to so many who fought and sacrificed so much for our country and our Freedom. It should never be taken for granted. To all who served who are still here, my deepest thanks and gratitude for your service.
When I was in school and we started learning about the Presidents, I was taken with Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War, and learned all I could about him and that war. One early spring day in 1983 I was looking out my window. March had given way to April and the crocuses were pushing up through the ground in my backyard. I found myself thinking about The Civil War and that it may have started on a spring day like this.
A free verse poem came to me so quickly that I picked up my pen, writing fast to keep up with the words and visions I saw. Several years later I found out my grandfather’s grandfather, Corporal Edwin W. Pratt had volunteered for the 18th Mass. Infantry in August 1861. He was one of only seven members to re-enlist and was moved to the 32nd Infantry and went home to Hanson when the war ended at Appomattox Court House, Va., in 1865. There is a famous copyrighted painting that has been licensed as print by the artist Mort Kunstler (who recently passed away) that is shown on his site called, “The Salute of Honor.” It shows the Blue and the Grey lined up facing each other the day the War ended; one of the most important moments in American History.
Override decision is Saturday
As both towns approved overrides to move on to the May 17 ballots, there are still wrinkles in the situation that could complicate things, especially if the override fails in Hanson.
Whitman and Hanson also vote on candidates for town offics when polls open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Whitman and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Hanson.
“I think it’s important that the people in both towns understand that we, as a School Committee have authority over the school budget,” Vice Chair Hillary Kniffen said during the Wednesday, May 7 School Committee meeting. “In Hanson, they voted a contingency budget.”
Kniffen had said at the Monday, May 5 Town Meeting that, if the override failed to pass, that did not mean the cuts quoted by the Hanson Finance Committee for all departments would apply to the School Committee budget.
“I was told, ‘Then, your budget just isn’t passed,’” she said. “I didn’t make a thing of it.” She added that Finance Chair Kevin Sullivan reaffirmed that was the town’s position.
“I guess my point is, if they overrides fail, the way the budget lines were in Hanson was that [there would be a predetermined amount to be cut from each department to balance the budget,]” she said. “It’s important that we all understand that doesn’t mean that the School Department is making any cuts. We are back at another Town Meeting. We are the ones who have the final say on our assessment and on our budget.”
Kniffen said that left it on the School Committee’s doorstep to get the word out and work to pass the override.
“I think there is a misunderstanding … perhaps because [in Hanson] there were two numbers voted,” she said. “There are people who think that the School Department will lose $940,000, not understanding that then it goes to Whitman and there’s a cost associated there as well.”
She said it is an important point to let folks know.
Member Kara Moser said that $940,000 would directly impact WHRSD because they do not have the power to take any of that amount out of the vocational school budgets, referring to South Shore Tech in Hanover , Norfolk County Agricultural Vocational in Walpole and Bristol County Agricultural Vocational high schools. One student attends Bristol County Agricultural at a cost of between $28,000 to $30,000 plus transportation.
“That sounds like there might be some reason to talk to Mr. Szymaniak about signing off on everybody going where they want,” said Committee member Stephanie Blackman.
“You can’t – that’s FAPE,” Kniffen said. “We would be violating FAPE – it’s the law. FAPE means Free Access to Public Education. Every student in the state of Massachusetts is entitled to a public education that they see suits and fits their needs. We don’t have the authority to do that, we would be hit with a lawsuit in a second.
“It’s a ton of money… It’s beyond us,” she said. “It’s at the state level. How are you letting a school charge this much for tuition?”
Comment from the vocational schools re per student costs and why there is such a difference.
According to Foundation Budget Rate data from the DESE Office of School Finance, part of the reason vocational schools’ per-pupil costs are higher is because they have to pay their teachers more, particularly in shop classrooms.
“Since ed reform, the state funding formula has always assumed that vocational education is more expensive than traditional education,” SST Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey said Monday. “Based on FY26 foundation budget rates, the state expects the minimum per pupil cost for a vocational student to be around $5,500 more per pupil [than a non-vocational high school student]. In addition, our equipment and capital [expenses] are a larger share of our budget. When we give our towns an assessment, we assess them for any operating debt and capital all in one number.”
School equipment is expensive, and teachers’ salary scale at vocational schools must be reflective of industry pay, according to Hickey. For example, he said that first year vocational teachers are hired at a higher salary than first-year academic teachers.
“In a tight labor market we need to be mindful of industry wage levels in order to recruit skilled professionals to teach in our vocational areas,” Hickey said.
“There are students who are not built for a traditional school like this, and for us to say no to those students would be doing them a disservice,” Kniffen said.
Ferro said he recalled from back when he was a principal there were specific towns that tried to put caps on students that were allowed to go to vocational [schools], and there were towns that simply did not let vocational schools have access to the middle schools when they were in eighth grade.
“That has been challenged,” he said. “There are DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) regulations about what we can and cannot do and what we have to do in order to [admit] students in the member towns attend.”
There are only nine agricultural-vocational schools in the state and students had been limited to attend one in their region, but four or five years ago that changed to permit students who feel they are uniquely qualified for a program offered only at a specific vocational school. Sending towns are required to fund transportation for those students.
Agricultural-Vocational schools operate under different regulations, Hickey said, echoing Ferro’s point on acceptance regulations.
“In no way do I want to limit the opportunities for students to attend vocational schools,” Moser said. “I certainly wouldn’t argue that a student with a disability should not get the services that they are fully and legally entitled to. Charter schools I could have a longer conversation about, but for a certain population, I think that it is an appropriate [avenue]. My argument is more about the fact that when town boards propose a budget cut for the school department, which is technically not in their prevue that that cut is not coming out of any of those places [but] is coming out of the majority of the experience of our student population who are housed in the buildings in our two towns. It’s not equitably distributed,”
Rosemary Hill said fellow Committee member Christopher Marks’ illustration of what cuts would mean – a child doing a math problem and scribbling it out in frustration, told if a pair, was not given another piece of paper, but would have to take the limited supplies because the budget fell short.
“That was a small thing in a bigger picture of lots of small things,” she said. “Just fund us to be competitive.
Chair Beth Stafford argues that the school district is it’s own municipality in the way it had to fund faculty and staff benefits and salaries that town-connected districts fund in the town’s budget.
Regional vocational schools budget the same way.
During the Public Comment period, Erin O’Donnell, of 207 Waltham St., in Hanson, spoke about the override being only level-funded.
“We need to plan for the future and increase and staff programs in the schools,” she said, noting cuts to the budget over the past 20 to 30 years, which has been detrimental to students. “But, first we have to pass the override.”
In other business, Business Manager Stephen Marshall reported that a short-term borrowing of 10 months was needed, maturing in March 2026, until the final two district audits for fiscal 2023 and 2024 are complete, as two potential bidders for the initial borrowing for Whitman Middle School by state-qualified bonds backed out because the audits were incomplete. He said those audits are expected to be completed before the borrowing matures, when the district can again seek state-qualified bonds.
The committee voted to approve that borrowing to pay costs for the WMS project under MA General Laws Ch 70B.
Committee member Dawn Byers asked what the risk was.
“It feels really heavy,” she said.
“There’s no greater risk here than the bond,” Marshall said. “We need it to borrow anyway. The risk is if our audits are not complete and we’re not able to go back out to borrow in addition [the building could stop]. That’s always the risk.”
“It’s a bridge loan,” said Committee member Glen DiGravio. “It’s a loan until we get a loan.”
The 2022 audit delayed the following two, because that was the year the district was recovering from the data breach of 2022.
Marshall outlined the third-quarter revenue report as well.
The 2024 year-ending excess & deficiency balance through March 31 was $616,288.77.
Fiscal 2025 end-of-year budget line transfers will be calculated and ready for votes at the next full School Committee meeting.
Chapter 70 aid is expected to be $261,516 greater than what ha been budgeted, Marshall said, but added that Charter School reimbursement is expected to be $120,203 less that forecast.
“Every time they give us money, they quickly take it away,” he said. Regional transportation reimbursement is still unknown.
“There is some fiscal 2026 budget workings that include the FY 25 transportation numbers, so as the budget went through the House and Senate, and pulling some of the money out of the “millionaire’s tax” some [lawmakers] have asked for it to help us in this year, and some have asked for it to be fully [budgeted] for ’26,” Marshall said. “We still don’t know how that’s going to land.”
Medicare reimbursement is expected to be $95,000 less than budgeted.
“When you add those things up, we’re still within our budget,” he said. “I don’t expect us to be under budget on revenue.”
Taking on Hanson’s nip ban violators
HANSON – The Select Board on Tuesday, May 13 voted to take a two-pronged approach to enforcing the town’s “nip” alcohol bottle ban, on the books – but ignored by at least some alcoholic beverage retailers – since Jan. 1.
“The cleanest, best way to proceed would be to move down two tracks,” Town Counsel Matt Provencher told the Select Board. “When you issue a liquor license under Chapter 138, whether it’s a restaurant license or a retail [alcohol] license, you’re acting under power that the state legislature gave to the Select Board … as the licensing authority.”
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said she would have Town Administrator Lisa Green work on a letter of non-compliance with a timeline of 30 days, after which the board approved the motion.
Those two tracks involve the placement of “reasonable conditions” on the issuance of a license, and the board can issue regulations that apply to licenses issued in the town.
“The first thing you can do is send these folks a notice that, based on their failure to voluntarily comply [with town regulations] … that you’re going to contemplate bringing them in for a hearing to determine whether their licenses need to be modified to include an expressed condition that they’re not allowed to sell nips,” Provencher said.
Licenses already awarded and not due to go into effect because the contracts didn’t have that because the law didn’t go into effect until Jan, 1, 2025.
The board can also issue a notice to hold a public hearing on some regulations that you’re going to adopt,” Provencher said.
“I’d like to do both,” said FitzGerald-Kemmett.
“I think we should do both,” said Committee member Joe Weeks. Member Ed Heal also agreed to that approach.
One of the retailers, Irwin Patel, apparently admitted to selling nips in violation of the ban during discussion of an annual attempt by various residents by citizen’s petition at Town Meeting. A 2024 Town Meeting vote had placed the ban on the books. [See related story]
I don’t care whether we ban nips or not,” said Town Moderator Sean Kealy, who had purchased a nip bottle at Hanson’s Village Mini-mart in April to use as a prop proving at the May 5 Town Meeting that the ban was being ignored. “What bothers me, what really disgusts me, is when people don’t follow the law that this Town Meeting passed.”
Kealy said he would be seeking a conversation with the Select Board about methods of enforcing the ban and for other issues on which Town Meeting took votes.
Town Administrator Lisa Green said she would work with town counsel and we’ll get the regulations together and, if a hearing is held she said she would comply with all of the regulations as far as hearings.”
Provencher said setting up a hearing would involve being authorized to send a letter to retailers noting she is aware that they haven’t been in complete compliance. If they were going to issue a notice of non-compliance hearing to determine whether their license should be modified, suspended or revoked.
Providing the retailers notice of public hearings while the town prepares the Municipal regulations, will include a copy of the proposed regulations, and everyone will have the opportunity to be heard, Provencher said.
“Since we do have this being somewhat of a groundhog day, with the [attempts at repeal] continuing, and there is a potential that somebody Could submit a citizens petition to, yet again, repeal the nip ban,” she basically asked if they believed there was a bylaw.
Hanson nip ban upheld again
HANSON – The saying goes that nothing’s certain except death and taxes.
Hanson might be ready to amend that to include the annual citizen’s petition on the Town Meeting warrant to try repealing a 2024 Town Meeting bylaw vote banning the sale of nip bottles by package and convenience stores.
At issue is the ongoing debate between supporting small businesses, while combatting the problems of driving littering vs basic respect for a town business regulation.
The Town Meeting run-up this time around did see some firsts, though, from an individual text-banking nip ban opponents to encourage them to attend Town Meeting, a poster campaign among friendly businesses participated in, and a stand-out by Luke’s Liquors to informally poll attendees, have more commonly been associated with election campaigns.
In the end, nothing changed but the temperature under collars as debate roiled on.
The petition, introduced by David George as a help to small business owners, was again rejected by the Town Meeting.
“The petition, upon approval, would support the struggling small businesses in the town of
Hanson,” George said.
Green Hanson chair Marianne DiMascio said that during her 16 years with the organization, the group has cleaned up “thousands and thousands” of nip bottles along Hanson roadways.
“Those thousands and thousands of nips mean that people are driving and drinking and throwing [the nip bottles] on the side of the roads, in addition to the trash,” she said.
Resident Bob Hayes shared his thought that to avoid placing “undue stress on small businesses,” Hanson could consider if it is legally possible to place a 10-cent tax or a similar revenue source on the nip bottles to ensure they are returned.
“Why don’t we get innovative instead of always saying no,” he said.
From the look on Town Counsel’s face, we do not have an answer to that at the moment,” said Town Moderator Sean Kealy.
Resident Steve Smith of 4 Monroe St., said did know the answer to Hayes’ question.
“The answer is no,” Smith said. “As of 2010 that is illegal. You cannot put taxes on alcohol, specifically. That was one of the arguments I made when I petitioned this originally last year.”
He also noted that most empties are found within an eighth of a mile from a liquor store.
One retailer put up posters advocating “Cold on the Go, and yet another one was ignoring the ban.
Kealy could attest to that, pulling an unopened nip bottle from his pocket that he said he bought at Villge MiniMart last month, despite the ban on sales.
Retailer Kenny Patel said he wished that “banning the nips would change a little problem, but it would not.” He argued it would only slap small businesses financially.
“We need to educate our people,” he said. “[It] doesn’t matter if it’s nips, paper, glass, a water bottles – anything in our town. This is our house. You cannot throw [away] anything.”
Irwin Patel, who gave his address as 904 Main St., was asked to pause as Kealy in fact brought forth his nip bottle.
“Are you here from the Village Mini-Mart?” Kealy said to a perplexed-looking Patel, who replied, “Yup.”
“Well, I think that’s the store a gentleman before you alluded to,” Kealy said. “Are you still sellig nips?”
After a pause, Patel said, “Yes,” arguing he is the store manager, not the owner.
“I bought this on April 14, and the law has been in place since January,” Kealy said. “I don’t mean any more than to just bring attention to this. I don’t care whether we ban nips or not. What bothers me, what really disgusts me, is when people don’t follow the law that this Town Meeting passed.”
Kealy said he would be seeking a conversation with the Select Board about methods of enforcing the ban and for other issues on which Town Meeting took votes.
Housing article OK’d
WHITMAN – A new state statue aimed at increasing available housing in the Commonweath has meant Whitman voters were asked to amend a Zoning bylaw to enable residents who can, the chance to hielp their neighbors find shelter in an unforgiving housing climate.
Voters passed Article 13 by the required two-thirds majority..
“For almost 25 years, Whitman has had a provision in its zoning bylaws that allows accessory apartments within a residential dwelling, provided that the occupants living in the accessory apartments are relatives of the owner of the residential dwelling,” said John Goldrosen, 238 South Ave., who chairs the Zoning Board of Appeals.
Such dwellings also require a special permit from the ZBA.
Planning Board Chair Adam Somerville said his board voted unanimously to send the article to the Bylaw Study Committee for some public hearings and recommended approval with no reservations. Peter Sumner of the town counsel’s office said he has worked closely with Goldrosen on the bylaw.
“We did send this to the attorney general’s office and a former AG who has been assisting towns with reviewing their ADU bylaws,” Sumner said. “After review by them, we feel this will meet the requirements of the state law.”
In 2024 the General Court passed the new statue, requiring that all Bay State municipalities allow what the statute refers to as “accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and that towns cannot limit the occupancy by family members alone.
They also do not require a special permit, he said, effectively overriding the existing by law. But it does allow municipalities to adopt “reasonable regulations,” providing that those regulations do not serve to prevent ADU useable housing from being developed. Those regulations will no longer include a “family-occupied” or special permit requirements, effectively overriding the existing by-law.
Still, Whitman’s by-law will contain some constraints in the town’s interests, Goldrosen said, and accepting the article permits that, he said. And he cautioned that, if the article were rejected the ZBA would have no control over ADUs in Whitman.
Brittany Cavallo of Washington Street asked the main changes in the statute and what the ZBA wants to require.
“We’d have site plan review, we’d have a public hearing and abutters get notified,” he said. “It still provides for some negotiations, ‘jawboning,’ and pubic input. We think that’s important.” Accessory units would be allowed to go in a free-standing building, like a garage, Goldrosen said.
“Under our Zoning bylaw, garages can be within 10 feet of a property line.” he said.
The town’s bylaw adjustments to the statute would require site plan review by the ZBA. Without it, all anyone need to is go to the building inspector and get a building permit with no notice to any abutters.
Ed Winnett of Raynor Avenue said the size specifications for some allowable uses “has the potential to have developers build tiny homes that encroach on open spaces we hadn’t considered, which could threaten Whitman’s character and potential resources.”
He asked why those specifications weren’t listed under the regulations.
“We went as far with the bylaw as we could without being struck down as inconsistent with the state law,” Goldrosen said.
Goldrosen said the bylaw has worked pretty well, with an average of four a year have been approved.
Whitman OK’s $2M override plan
WHITMAN – An elderly woman unable to afford false teeth was on the minds of voters on both sides of the Proposition 2.5 override discussion at Town Meeting, on Monday, May 5.
In the end, the 191 registered voters, approved by a 148-66 margin, a one-year, $2 million override to fund town departments as well as the schools, in a consolidated budget – and, in part, to ensure programs and services senior citizens depend on continue, even as those on fixed incomes expressed their worry about affording the override.
Those who voted yes explained why that woman’s plight was as much on their minds as it was for those who voted no because they also lived on fixed incomes, or were allies of those with limited means. Others agreed with her.
“In the grand scheme of things, $2 million doesn’t sound like a lot,” said Ed Winnett of Raynor Avenue. “But I can tell you, when you go to the Council on Aging and you become a senior and you’re on a fixed income, that little amount makes a big difference.”
He recalled one woman at the override forum held there, who rose to say, “‘I have no teeth,’ and she showed us she has no teeth, because she can’t afford it,” he recalled, asking people to consider the lot of others. “Today you may not see it, but I guarantee you. When you hit that age, you’re going to feel the impact.”
School Committee member and former Finance Committee member, Rosemary Hill thanked Winett for his compassion for others and agreed the town should be careful of how money is spent, as she recalled the discussion at the override forum at the Council on Aging.
“What would be the impact if we don’t pass the override and we make these cuts?” she said. “It may not lead to the savings that you think. … Cutting the school budget could risk a financial spiral of sorts.”
She pointed to the $90,000 increase, to $1.5-plus million, that Whitman residents have to pay toward Charter School reimbursements – an increase not approved by our budget, but is a state requirement –which have increased 200 percent over the past seven years. State charter school aid the district receives is temporary, she said.
“[Local public schools at a cost of $18,000 per student] are the best value in education,” Hill said. “We are the most effective, most accountable and most connected to the community, and yet we’re being the ones being told to cut again. When we cut programs, families look elsewhere and every time a student leaves, we send more money out of district.”
The potential cost of cuts to other departments were also pointed out.
Retiree Rick Anderson, who also has 35 years’ experience in municipal finance, said the current crisis was predictable and, for the most part, preventable.
“We stood before you last year and said the override presented at that time was not the best patch forward,” he said of his role as FinCom chair at the 2024 Town Meeting. “More long-term projections and involvement from all town departments was needed to present a financial plan for the future.”
Town Meeting listened and agreed, he said, adding he has watched that collaboration and cooperation happening over the past eight months.
“We are at a time when we have to make the difficult decision to raise our levy capacity to maintain the basic services we all depend upon,” Anderson said, urging support of the override in the best interests of the town’s future.
Some voters asked what guarantee there was that the town would not return in the near future for more overrides or about specific tax impacts on their homes.
Select Board member Justin Evans said that, while projections show a potential gap of $400,000 to $500,000 in fiscal 2027, and “the following year would look a little bit worse,” the town is seeing some light at the end of the tunnel between retirement of the Plymouth County retirement assessment payoff ahead that would open up a lot o capacity in the general fund after 2030.
“It may be necessary for another override to close those 2028-29 years, but there is some light at the end of the tunnel and we’re getting some good news on some of the capital projects as well,” he said.
Finance Chair Kathleen Ottina said there were several compelling reasons why her committee recommended that plan as a way to instill trust with the voters, who would know what to expect from a yes vote and while they know what revenue will be for fiscal 2026, projections for 2027 and 2028 are just that.
Carter explained the $372.66 a year on the average home assessed at $496,000.
Another voter said that change – of about 77 cents per $1,000 of assessed value – would be used to help all town departments including the Council on Aging.
“It’s also going to help pay for the fire department with ambulances, so if you’re an older person, you want those things,” she said. “If you don’t have such a large, expensive home it’s not going to be as dramatic a change for you, but you still want t have those services [the Council on Aging and the police and the fire [departments] and the ambulances – its seems like that’s important for everyone.”
“It’s not just a school override,” said Marshall Ottina of Lazell Street. “Look at the impact across the board – we’re looking at fire shifts lost, police shifts lost, services lost at the Council on Aging, the library, veterans’ service officer – there’s something that impacts almost everyone in this room, probably multiple departments impact everyone in this room.”
Resident John Galvin, however, cautioned that without seeking a three-year override that was originally proposed, is “not sustainable.”
“I’m in favor of an override, but we need an override that gets the job done,” he said. “This one doesn’t.”
Budget worksheets with detailed breakdowns of each department’s budget were made available, but Town Moderator Michael Seele stressed that the meeting would be voting on the budget and it’s 35 line lines contained in the warrant itself. He also announced his intention to complete work on all 53 articles before adjourning the Town Meeting, and once again achieved that goal.
With the passage of the override article by a vote of 148-68, putting it before the voters at the Saturday, May 17 annual election, Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter moved to take articles 18 and 19 out of order, which allowed the transfer of $200,000 to Plymouth County Retirement [see below] and $140,000 to the town’s OPEB unfunded liability, which were directly related to budget lines in Article 2, to which they moved on, followed by the rest of the articles.
Had the override article failed, Carter said, she was ready to move to take non-financial articles 9 through 14 and 49 through 51 out of order for votes before moving to adjourn Town Meeting until June 11.
Ottina said the budget document was the result of a year of collaboration and communication among all town government parties, beginning last August, with discussions about the potential need for an override to bridge a deficit of just under $2 million spanning one year. The FinCom made that recommendation following an hour-long discussion on March 25.
“The reason for voting the more conservative, one-year override is we believed it maintained transparency and accountability with the Fiscal 2026 funding sources solidly in place, and would have a higher chance of being passed by the voters,” Ottina said.
After all those discussions and three public forums, there were still questions on the minds of some voters, while others voiced their opinions for or against it. But before that happened, former Selectman Brian Bezanson moved to use a secret paper ballot for the vote.
“There may be plenty of people here who may be for it or against it, but they feel intimidated and there are empty seats here, probably for that reason,” Bezanson said in making his motion. A standing counted vote yielded a vote of 134 to 80, against a secret ballot despite the fact that some who eventually voted in favor of the override, also voted against a secret ballot.
Town officials outlined the work ahead and thate they hoped to see during debate at the outset of the Town Meeting.
“For a lot of years … I couldn’t stand the Finance Committee,” Select Board Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski said, looking back on his years of service on both the School Committee and Select Board. “They always seemed to be in the way of how I thought the town should spend its money. The sea change this year, with this Finance Committee and with this Board of Selectmen, they worked together in concert to come up with a plan that we think is going to be the best for the town – or at least give the voters the opportunity to vote what they think is best for the town.
“That’s different,” he said. “It’s different. It’s a good feeling, to know there’s commonality there.”
Kowalski also noted that, through diligent work, the per-pupil budgeting at W-H had climbed from the bottom 10 percent among state school districts in per-pupil spending, to the bottom 20 percent.
He reminded the Town Meeting that a survey of residents as part of the work behind the Madden report on funding town departments sustainably ad determining which departments Whitman residents valued, three – including public schools, public safety and public works – scored high. This year, senior services may have joined them.
You’ll see that we are low, in terms of [our] tax rate, compared to surrounding towns, Kowalski said.
“Hope we keep that in mind,” he said, while reminding them that Whitman voters have always been generous when times were tough.
“This town does it when it has to,” he said. “And that’s the spirit I would like to end with today.”
Carter told the meeting that every vote they cast Monday, and at the ballot box on Saturday, May 17, will help to guide the town’s path forward.
She outlined the new policy for free cash the town is now using.
Besides its traditional use as a source of funding for capital improvements; 10 percent of free cash will now be allocated to the capital stabilization fund; 10 percent of the remaining balance will be allocated to the general stabilization fund to build town reserves; an annual minimum transfer from free cash of $200,000 to Article 2, line 35: Plymouth County Retirement Expense until that unfunded liability is paid in full (within five to seven years); and a minimum of $140,000 annually to Article 2, line 34: other Post-employment Benefits unfunded liability.
The 2025 warrant articles were taken in the order of – following Article 1 and prior year articles – Article 8, the override article, out of order.
“I encourage respectful discussion and active participation as we work together to ensure that Whitman remains a great place to live,” Carter said.
Whitman has 14,497 residents and 11,997 voters, with only 266 residents in attendance – about 2.2 percent – and only 1,771 residents voted in last year’s town election – about 14.75 percent.
“The major decisions we make as a town, both our annual Town Meeting and our annual Town Election are made by a relatively small number of voters,” Carter said, encouraging residents to vote May 17.
Hanson passes $3M override proposal
HANSON – Hanson Town meeting voters are giving the town’s voters another chance to be heard on the proposed operational override to fund town departments and the schools.
Meeting at Whitman-Hanson Regional High School to accommodate a larger crowd, the Town Meeting voters agreed, by a vote of 230-118 to place the override on the town’s annual Town Election ballot for a Saturday, May 17 vote.
A brief informational slide presentation on the basics of overrides and town revenue sources, preceded Article 5 and Article 6, which encompass the fiscal 2026 town budget.
“Usually, we just vote on one budget, but because we have a Proposition 2.5 override on the ballot coming up May 17 … whatever we do tonight, that question will be on the ballot that day, and whatever the vote comes out will be what is done – whether we have an override or we reject it, Moderator Sean Kealy said.
The meeting then addressed Article 5 – without the override – and if the override passes, as it did, the Article 6 budget will be used. If the override is defeated at the ballot box, Article 6 will have no legal effect.
“[The budget] is entirely contingent on how the town votes,” he said.
Hanson Finance Chair Kevin Sullivan spoke frankly about the “serious budget challenges” Hanson faces, and why after an extensive review, the $3 million operational override has been recommended by his committee to maintain the services Hanson residents rely on every day.
Hanson receives 85 percent of its revenue from property taxes
“Under the limits of Proposition 2.5 our allowable revenue growth simply isn’t keeping pace with the rising costs of operating the town, especially in the face of inflation, contractual obligations and the increasing demands on our services,” Sullivan said. “This isn’t about funding new programs, this is about preserving the level of service that we have come to expect:”
- Police and fire departments, already operating with lean staffing and increasing call volumes;
- Town Hall, library, recreation and outdoor spaces, which provide vital functions for residents and businesses alike;
- School, essential not only for the education of children, but also for the town’s strength and stability.
“Without an override, we will be forced to make extremely difficult decisions, including depleting free cash reserves, which are largely meant for capital expenditures, or making deep cuts across every department,” Sullivan said. “The Finance Committee has scrutinized this budget. We worked with every department head. We’ve reviewed every line item. We have prioritized needs, not wants, but the numbers don’t lie, the gap is real and we can no longer stretch our limited resources without damaging the core of what makes Hanson work.”
He emphasized that the picture he painted was not intended to be a scare tactic, but is a fiscal reality.
The lower school budget number in Article 5 than was approved by the School Committee would have been a rejection of the school budget if approved, which only the School Committee has the authority to reduce and send back to the town.
Richard Road resident and former School Committee member Jim Armstrong said the state supplied 74 percent of the school budget until it convinced Hanson and Whitman to regionalize.
“Every so often we have to go back and remember we used to get spoiled,” he said. “We’re not anymore and we have to start paying our way, and that’s really what it comes down to, because the state’s not supporting us like they used to so over the years we’ve had to figure out how to get there and once in a while we have to do an override to get there.”
Another resident asked why the departments were linked together in the budget.
Sullivan replied that they were not, but to fairly budget, all departments were asked to cut their budgets by 5 percent.
“But if you say yes to the override, you’re saying yes to everyone equally,” she countered.
“The override is just a method for overcoming a monetary threshold,” Sullivan said. “It has nothing to do with the town departments.”
“I think what you’re asking is, ‘Why not separate [them]?’” Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “Because we have gotten some feedback on that and we did look at that as a board in terms of how to present it.”
She noted that the town conducted an override just for the schools last year.
“That did not go well because … at Town Meeting, people got up and ended up eviscerating the Town Hall budget in order to fund the educational budget,” she said. As a result, small cuts had to be made affecting individual services like transfer station hours.
“This year, we had more than one department that really made a compelling argument, so it made sense to bundle it,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
“This is sort of resetting the baseline,” Sullivan, noting that $3 million is the largest override they’ve recommended. “For too many years we were too far behind.” The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education switched the funding formula and that left Hanson in a pretty significant hole, as well, which served to set the town even farther behind, he explained.
“This is resetting the number to get all the town departments the correct personnel that they want for the needs that we have and continue us on a path where, hopefully, we won’t need another override three to five years from now,” Sullivan said.
School Committee member Kara Moser, while stressing that the school budget is level-serviced, sought to explain why that department’s expenses keep increasing. For example, regional school districts are responsible for paying employee benefits, just as a municipality would and W-H employs 600 people who are eligible for benefits. Then there are the state and federal mandates for services the school district is legally required to provide – such as special education – and not all are funded – such as out of district transportation for homeless students. Students going to charter or some vocational schools are also not always funded.
Two residents asked about the procedure if the override were to fail Town Meeting, but pass at the ballot box.
“We would go again,” Sullivan said. “We have another option to hold another Town Meeting and revote the override again.”
“It seems like it’s pointless to vote no on the override thing tonight,” one resident said. “Even if you are very, very against the override, you still should vote yes on six because the actual vote that kills the override is at the ballot – not tonight.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett said that may be, but it wouldn’t alter the town’s dilemma of having a school budget left unfunded.
“Ultimately that sends it back to the School Committee about whether they’re going to lower the budget or seek the same assessment,” she said.
Resident Mike DiCarlo of Indian Head Street made a motion to separate the school and public safety budgets into to override questions instead of one.
Kealy said the motion would be more properly made during discussion of Article 6, and that the ballots are already printed and cannot be changed.
Whitman honors fire Lt. Brian Trefry
WHITMAN – The Select Board on Tuesday, April 29 honored a hometown hero, awarding a proclamation recognizing the above-the-call lifesaving efforts successfully performed by Lt. Brian Trefry last month along Route 24 in Raynham.
Vice Chair Dan Salvucci, read the board’s proclamation, saluting Trefery’s quick action. Salvucci was filling in for Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski’s role as he was traveling on Sunday, April 13,
Trefey was driving to a family gathering when he saw smoke ahead on the opposite side of the highway, the proclamation outlined.
Coming up on the source of the smoke, he saw a heavily damaged SUV in a ravine with a woman trapped inside, Salvucci said. He pulled over, and after crossing four lanes to get to the scene.
“After trying, unsuccessfully, to break the windows, Lt. Trefry was able to open the door enough to pull the woman out and, with the help of another good Samaritan, was able to move the woman about 30 feet way from the fire, before he returned to the vehicle to see if there was anyone else inside.” Salvucci read. “Lt. Brian Trefry acted heroically and selflessly through his exceptional and commendable actions and has earned the admiration and respect of not only his colleagues on the Whitman Fire Department, but that of other town officials and the residents as well.”
Fire Chief Timothy Clancy announced that he was recommending Trefry for consideration by the Department of Fire Services for the Mass. Firefighter of the Year Award.
“Without any hesitation, he went across the highway and tried to get into that vehicle,” Clancy said. Another good Samaritan was able to get the victim out after Trefry pried the door open as a fire in the engine compartment burned.
Clancy echoed the words of the Raynham Fire Department’s chief at the scene, “Their actions certainly made a difference and my very well have saved the life. I will take that a step further and say their actions did save a life.
“This is prime example of how the members of Whitman Fire Rescue are committed to aiding the public whether they are on duty or off,” Clancy said.
Scott Figgins also read a proclamation from state Rep. Alyson Sullivan-Almeida, who could not attend due to budget work at the State House.
In other business, the board voted to grant the Whitman Cultural Council to use the Town Hall auditorium as an alternate location for its summer concerts program in the event of inclement weather.
They also granted permission to Whitman Veterans’ Council hold the annual Memorial Day Parade on Monday, May 26.
After several executive sessions, the board returned to open session to ratify a memorandum of understanding with the Town Hall Employee Union, OPEIU Local 6.
Sr. tax work-off raise
WHITMAN – Along with a review of the first public forum on Whitman’s combined Proposition 2.5 override to address town and school district deficits; the Select Board on April 22 discussed a proposal to amend a previous Town Meeting vote regarding the senior citizen tax work-off program.
The Board also, returning from four consecutive executive sessions, voted to ratify memoranda of agreement with the Whitman Public Library Employees Union, SEIU Local 888; and the Whitman DPW Union, AFSCME Council 93 Local 17.
During the tax work-off discussion, Select Board member Justin Evans repeated an earlier recommendation that, rather than adjust the Town Meeting vote, which has set the hours, they could adjust the Select Board’s vote, which set the wage.
“I think what the seniors were looking for was not necessarily more hours to hit the cap, but to be able to hit the cap,” he said. “We can adjust the wage up, from $15 an hour to $16, keep the same 125 hours and … [they’d] hit the $2,000 cap.”
The board approved the wage change, 3-0.
Council on Aging Director Mary Holland asked if the adjustment on either hours or wages might be made again, or would seniors be able to work longer hours to meet the cap if they wished.
Evans said the wage would be increased to $16 per hour next year and, if they work the 125 hours they are set to work, they would exactly meet the cap.
“That way, if the state adjusts the cap in the future, we can adjust the wage by a vote of this board, rather than a Town Meeting vote adjusting the hours,” he said. “This happens more frequently.”