Franklin Matters

Thursday, January 19, 2012

MassBudget's FY13 Budget Preview

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Budget Preview, FY 2013

Looking ahead to the fiscal challenges the Commonwealth faces in FY 2013, our Preview shows that the budget deficit will be well over $1 billion. That shortfall can be traced to three things:

Tax Revenues have fallen sharply. Not just because of the Great Recession--which has reduced revenues since 2008--but also because of tax cuts and other declines in tax receipts over the last twenty years which are costing the state over $3 billion in annual revenue.
The cost of government programs has grown. Overall inflation and health care cost growth both increase government spending. As does the current economic downturn--because more people rely on our social safety net.
We have to address a $550 million deficit carried over from FY 2012. A series of temporary measures helped to fill the gap in this year's budget. As we move into FY13, that gap will return.

Our Preview evaluates each of these factors in greater detail. And it paints a very stark picture of the difficult choices ahead.

Read The FY13 Budget Preview

MassBudget provides independent research and analysis of state budget and tax policies--with particular attention to the effects on low- and moderate-income people.

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Wednesday, January 18, 2012

STOP SOPA

To support the STOP SOPA Blackout being conducted today, this will be the only post created here:

I have included the link to wikipedia but they are one of the sites reported to be going offline so you may not view this link today.

If you like what I do here, sharing information about what matters in Franklin, MA - then please find out more about SOPA and PIPA.

What would happen if this site got shut down?

Google has a page with information and petition to sign here
https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/

Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view the video.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Wadsworth Diary - Jan 17, 1892

Very pleasant & cold morn, but warmer day. Done the chores. Baked beans, cooked rice, cranberry sauce & c. E. Simonds.

In the 1850s, on a busy working farm in the southern part of Franklin, a man named George Wadsworth started writing in a journal about everyday events. When he filled that journal, he bought another, and filled that up too. Two dozen journals, and 27 years later, he had written about almost everything that can happen in a small New England town. His words were lost to history until 1986, when town resident Gail Lembo came across some of the journals at a yard sale.

From the Franklin Historical Museum website
http://www.franklinhistoricalmuseum.com/p/wadsworth-diaries_30.html

Would you like to dream?

Spend a few minutes (about 20 actually) to view this video and see the story of three young women and their exploration of science played out.

In 2011, three young women swept the top prizes of the first Google Science Fair. At TEDxWomen Lauren Hodge, Shree Bose and Naomi Shah described their extraordinary projects-- and their route to a passion for science.

They all were driven by passion and determination. They all succeeded despite lots of rejections.

Creation of a Citizen Committee

On the Town Council agenda for Weds Jan 18, 2012 is this RESOLUTION 12-04:

WHEREAS, the Town Council continues to explore ways of making improvements to our community; and

WHEREAS, the Town Council would like participation by the citizens to provide valuable input.

Now therefore, be it resolved by the Franklin Town Council that a Citizen Committee is established. Said committee shall consist of 5 to 9 members to be appointed by the Town Council. Said committee shall make recommendations to the Town council on how to improve the quality of life for the citizens of Franklin in areas including but not limited to enhancing citizen participation, aesthetics of the community, and business development, and other recommendations that the Council deems appropriate. Said committee shall make its recommendations by December, 2012. This Resolution shall become effective according to the rules and regulations of the Town of Franklin Home Rule Charter.

Would you be interested?

Sounds like it would be a short-term commitment (complete the work by Dec 2012).

"I just don’t see that as a reality"

... Carriera wonders how she will get to work if potential cuts that would eliminate commuter rail service on weekends and after 10 p.m. during the week come to fruition.

“I can’t imagine not having this,” the 26-year-old Franklin resident said yesterday as she waited for a train at the Dean College station. “I don’t know what I would do.”

Needing to close a $161 million gap in next year’s budget, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority released two scenarios that would see fares rise by 35 to 43 percent and include service cuts on rail lines, buses and ferries.

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x873521975/MBTA-considering-fare-hikes-service-cuts#ixzz1ji8n5P9n

The MBTA has published their full listing of public meetings on the proposed fare increase. The MDN article doesn't include that link but it is available here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/01/mbta-fares-service-public-meetings-set.html

“I’d like to raise awareness"

“It’s very scary, very alarming to people,” Dr. Sara Gray said, Pursuit’s veterinarian at Franklin Veterinary Clinic. About a dozen animals at the clinic are medicated for seizures, she added. “I think it’s just the scariness of watching their animals go through seizures like that.”

Both Gray and McLean have seen dog owners decide to euthanize their epileptic dogs, before getting the combination of diet and medication right.

“It’s a very overwhelming disease,” McLean said. She gestured toward her computer, where she found a support network online of other dog owners dealing with the same issue. “Honestly, every week someone is putting their dog to sleep.”

Monday, January 16, 2012

Parking Ban Activated

January 16 2012

Parking Ban Activated Through 5am Tuesday.

426 PM EST MON JAN 16 2012

...A PERIOD OF SNOW SHOULD OVERSPREAD THE REGION BETWEEN 10 PM AND

1 AM TONIGHT RESULTING IN UNTREATED ROADS BECOMING SNOW COVERED

AND SLIPPERY FOR A TIME...

AN AREA OF SNOW IS EXPECTED TO OVERSPREAD THE REGION LATE TONIGHT

AND CONTINUE INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF A

COATING TO 1 INCH ARE POSSIBLE. SINCE ITS BEEN VERY COLD THE PAST

FEW DAYS...UNTREATED ROADS MAY BECOME SNOW COVERED AND SLIPPERY

FOR A TIME OVERNIGHT. THE SNOW SHOULD CHANGE TO RAIN FROM SOUTHEAST TO

NORTHWEST BETWEEN 3 AM AND 7 AM TUESDAY MORNING.

HOWEVER...MOTORISTS PLANNING TRAVEL OVERNIGHT SHOULD BE PREPARED

FOR UNTREATED ROADS TO BECOME SNOW COVERED AND SLIPPERY FOR A

TIME.

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"I have a dream"

On this day, it is important to remember.

To save man from the morass of propaganda, in my opinion, is one of the chief aims of education. Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal, and the facts from the fiction.

Dr Martin Luther King, Jr., The Purpose of Education

Campaign starting for a new Franklin High School

Hi everyone,

I hope you are enjoying the long weekend. I wanted to pass along the email (below) I received from the citizens group formed to win approval of the debt exclusion for the new high school building. It contains information if you wish to support the effort. If you have any questions or if you wish to be added to the mailing list, please feel free to contact the campaign committee at voteyesforfhs@gmail.com, or just shoot me an email.

_________

Thank you for volunteering to help Citizens for a New Franklin High School. Together we will bring the community a modern new facility that serves our children, strengthens our great community and school system, and makes us all proud. Also, thank you to those of you who joined us Thursday night for the organizational meeting of the Citizens for a New Franklin High School. The energy in the room was amazing! There is a lot of work ahead of us to get the 5,000 - 6,000 votes we need, and we have a great plan to get there.

In case you did not sign up that evening, couldn't make the meeting or are just learning about the group, there are a lot of ways to get involved:

Donate - We have a lot of great ideas -- lawn signs, handouts, mailings, get-out-the vote efforts -- but these ideas need money to be implemented. Checks can be made out to "Citizens for a New Franklin High School" and mailed to Mary Jo Peterson, 10 Juniper Road, Franklin, MA 02038.

Register to Vote - Confirm that you are registered to vote by contacting the Town Clerk's office at 508-520-4900. Encourage your friends and neighbors to do the same. Once the vote date is determined, a deadline for registration will be set.

Volunteer - If you are interested in helping with the get-out-the-vote effort -- planting a sign, helping our friends and neighbors get registered, obtaining an absentee ballot or voting on Election Day or many other opportunities, contact Craig or LeAnne Haba at clhaba@comcast.net.

Host - Tom Mercer, chairman of the Building Committee, as well as other committee members, have agreed to speak to various civic organizations in Franklin, and at gatherings hosted in people's homes. If you are interested in hosting a gathering in your home, please contact Laura Brand at Brandfam4@gmail.com to schedule it.

Follow Us - Follow us on Facebook on the page "Vote Yes for the New Franklin High School Building " on Twitter with the handle @sayYEStoFHS. When our website goes live next week we will circulate that as well. When in doubt, please check these resources for accurate, timely information. Feel free to ask questions on these sites. To be added to our mailing list, please email Tina Powderly at ttpowderly@gmail.com.

Please share this email with your friends, neighbors, family members and coworkers who live here in Franklin. It is important that all of us - homeowners and renters, parents or those with no connection to the school system - have the information we need to make a good decision for the vote.

Thank you!

Citizens for a New Franklin High School

_____________

Ed Cafasso
edcafasso@comcast.net
Cell: 508.259.1833
Twitter: @edcafasso
http://www.linkedin.com/in/edcafasso
Blog: http://edcafasso.blogspot.com

Wadsworth Diary - Jan 16, 1892

Pleasant & cold. Have done but little besides the chores & looked over some papers & c & c. E. Simonds here to night. Took ?_ of buggy & put on express.

"70 percent of school systems have such charges"

The Milford Daily News covers the increase in fees being charged by school districts for sports and other activities. This is one key reason that drew my attention to the Franklin budget problem as my daughters were going through the Franklin schools.

Hawkins’ survey shows a range of approaches to fees in Massachusetts. While some districts charge flat fees, some vary charges depending on the cost of a particular activity or sport.

“Some communities have family caps on fees, others do not,” Hawkins said.

Franklin charges $200 per sport, $175 for track and $450 for hockey with no family cap, and a $325 bus fee with a $975 family cap for that per year.

The fees were much less back when my girls were going to school here. They graduated from FHS in 2004 and 2006. The forecast is for a continued and gradual increase.

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x255285967/Area-schools-trying-to-rein-in-student-fees#ixzz1jcpcPSc0

Did you get a Kindle?

The Milford Daily News reports a jump in e-book users across the Minuteman Library Network:

Susan McAlister, the executive director of the Minuteman Library Network, said the consortium that serves 42 libraries in 35 communities saw a huge jump in subscriptions to the network’s OverDrive e-book service after Christmas. From Dec. 25-29 the network saw 1,292 subscribers, with 316 joining on Christmas Day. She said an average day sees 80 new subscribers.

“There were a lot of people looking to get content, even on Christmas Day,” she said.
McAlister said the consortium has a committee that is tasked with growing the network’s library, which currently stands at 4,553 unique titles and 7,962 total copies.

While Franklin's Library is not referenced in the article, there is a class scheduled at the Library on Monday, Jan 23 to help you understand how to take advantage of your new e-reader/e-book.

Details on the class can be found here:
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/01/franklin-public-library-ereaders-and.html

The remainder of the MDN article can be found here: http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x1987746710/Area-libraries-trying-to-keep-up-with-e-reader-explosion#ixzz1jcnlQ0oX

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Wadsworth Diary - Jan 15, 1892

Foggy & rained most of AM, than snowed a little the rest of the day. Have been in house most the day, except when doing chores & seeing to trains for Willie. Think my cold’s a little better, or looser to day.

"I’ll take the pay reduction"

“It was a calculated (risk),” Cropper said. “I thought I had a good chance. The athletic director, the department heads were recommending me. But they’re not the ones who make the decisions.”

Cropper, 48, didn’t get the job, because, she says, her 15 years of experience required her to receive more money than the school was willing to pay.

“Teaching seems to be the only profession where if you move, you’re screwed,” she said. “I thought all this experience would help me, but it hasn’t.”

Actually it is more this age group of workers, 40-60, that have the issue across all professions. How do I know? I spent the better part of two years looking for work after being let go from Fidelity Investments in 2008.

Some can call it a 'union' problem but it is bigger than that. The financial sector was largely devoid of unions and yet significant cuts were made across the board to reduce costs. Entire levels of management were let go, coincidentally in the 40-60 age category, and in a way to avoid age discrimination law suits.

Everybody loves a bargain so the low cost sellers of goods are driving down prices. Low price competition is making it tough to compete on delivering 'value'. This is one of the major reason why this recession has lasted so long. Prior ones could make a quick upturn when one of the Fortune 500 expanded a product line or opened a new plant. That is not going to happen within the Fortune 500 nor the Fortune 1000! Growth when it comes will be driven by the small and medium businesses, and entrepreneurs who are looking to serve gaps in the market. It will be a slow up turn.

As a result of the slow up turn and continued price pressures, the salaries that were available before should be considered gone. The odds are we won't see those again.

So what do we do in the face of all this?

Those looking for work need to network, expanding their connections, building relationships, practicing their elevator pitch and being ready to identify an opportunity where they can add value for the right position.

There are likely networking groups in the area that can help. The Hopkinton Networking group meets on the first and third Fridays of the month and they have a good program. If there is interest to get something like that for Franklin, let me know and we can collaborate to get one started here.

You can find more information about the job search at http://jobsearchjamsessions.blogspot.com/

Read more about Lisa Cropper: http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x2062851256/High-School-Notebook-Cropped-out-of-a-job#ixzz1jWuVsLgA