Live reporting: Finance Committee - Budget Hearing - May 4

Present: Dowd, Conley, Fleming, Smith, Bertone, Huempher, Dewsnap (approx 7:15)
Absent:  Dufour, Aparo

Nutting, Gagner, Dacey

Monday

(Dept #) (Dept name) (page number of budget book)

• 300 School Dept C-1

Sabolinski, Goodman, Rohrbach

highlights of the school budget can be viewed in the presentation doc from last week's School Committee meeting

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/04/fy-2016-school-budget-proposal.html

$113M spent in FY 2015

$56,950,000 = 2.4% increase over FY 2015

net increase of 4 teachers overall

• 5 teachers shifting from elementary due to declining enrollment
• 1 to go to the high school
• 2 each to go to Remington and Annie Sullivan to eliminate the split teams there
• adding 3 math specialists (part time) to elementary to assist with the new math program introduced
• adding one ELL specialist to assist with non-English language learners

no one losing a job, there are other opportunities and transfers within the district

Franklin's enrollment is an anomaly for most studies due to the movement in/out of the community. Looking at all sources available for the data, including births from the Town Clerk to indicate the school population several years down the road.

increase in high school some of which was students within Franklin returning from private schools but a good portion was simple move ins to the district

The substantial Federal grant we get is to support students with disbilities. If it ever went away, there would be a major outcry. It has not decreased, the goal is to cover 100% of the costs and it has not gotten to that. It was as high as 40% of the costs but it is not that now.

Cost for active employee health insurance is covered with the School budget, the costs for retired health insurance is covered by the Town's budget. All the same plan, same benefits.

if any questions, the FinCom can contact Maureen or Miriam.

• 390 Tri County C-2

an assessment based upon student enrollment

Tri-County will need capital, they are working to develop a capital plan

Franklin makes up about 8% of the students at Tri-County

two ways to manage their building needs, one absorb in the budget and passed to the communities equally; if major, then through the MSBA and a debt exclusion would be needed coordinated among the communities

overall the Tri-County population is down as well, North Attleboro is the other large sending community to Tri-County

• 395 Norfolk Aggie C-3

an estimate based upon some estimates on how many students will participate

• 630 Recreation F-9

Ryan Jette, Recreation Director

in process of obtaining and fitting out the new building

service based organization

rely heavily on the participation to support the program

self-supporting, personnel services and expenses

reach about 8,000 with the programs

clerical staff added to handle the registrations, etc. for the program

no firm date yet on when the move would occur

scheduled a 21e environmental review, tentative closing date in July

town hall sale might get pushed a little to Aug/Sep to help minimize impact

may suspend some of the programs being run out of the building

every one has been notified

will increase some fees to help offset the cost of the new building

new programs coming online along with participation each year

summer camp is increasing

joint coordination with Medway working well

Choate Park camp well received

has help increase our program participation

each year seems to be getting better and better

• 210 Police B-1

Chief Semerjian, Kevin Ryan who does all the finances for the department

some time this year we'll be looking at a deputy chief position, there are funds in the budget but the head count is not added

we came in at just below 2% increase over last year

the community is lucky and it makes my job easier we have so many good folks working for us

no budgets include salary or cost of living increases yet

anticipating any retirements?

not really, the senior would be looking at several years before that

folks would reach max step with 5-7 years of hire

would need to look at viable deputy candidates, from among the lieutenants

no net new hires, backfilling vacancies

grant money restrictions are coming more so now than before

I see that as a challenge coming up with some of those 'extra' funds

the department is pretty fluid

we have no diversity in the department, the last woman left

you heard of the changing demographics in Franklin but it will not happen over night; how do we do that with the minimal turn over we have?

we are 50% of the district by call volume, we haven't looked at the staffign numbers yet, what are we going to run at, we might save some money but we are planning on breaking even initially

• 293 Parking Meter B-31

looking to have the Council eliminate the meters sometime during the fiscal year, we'd still have the parking officer, etc.

Linda Darling, new assistant to Susan Gagner, Comptroller

Old business 

none

New business

Council will vote on capital plan Wednesday

might ask for $10K for an OPEB study, may ask for it at the Thursday meeting

the study would be turned around in 30 days or so

maybe have an informational session on OPEB in the fall when it is quieter

get the Trust here, maybe the actuary (although it is not cheap)

motion to adjourn, passed

Should there be High Stakes Testing for Kindergarteners???

Do you have a child in kindergarten? Or one beginning kindergarten in September? 

Either way, you might want to schedule to participate in this information session sponsored by the Massachusetts Teachers Association and the Franklin Education Association (the union representing Franklin's teachers).

Child care will be provided. Register in advance to ensure you have coverage.

While good teaching practice involves assessment of students, the TS Gold Assessment given in Kindergarten is extensive and unwarranted. This test has put a great deal of stress on both students and educators and takes a tremendous amount of time away from good teaching practice. 

Teachers using TS Gold process have to spend precious class time documenting the personal achievement of students and uploading it to a private companies website. 

For more information about the impact of this assessment, please come to a meeting sponsored by the Massachusetts Teachers Association and the Franklin Education Association to be held May 12, 2015. 

This meeting will happen at the Alumni Restaurant (Function Room) 391 East Central Street Franklin MA from 6:00 to 8:00 Pm. Childcare will be provided. 

Please email CSingleton@massteacher.org to RSVP that you will be attending.

What is TS Gold?

From the MA DESE webpage:

Teaching Strategies GOLD is an assessment system for children from birth through kindergarten designed to help teachers: observe and document children’s development and learning over time; support, guide, and inform planning and instruction; identify children who might benefit from special help, screening, or further evaluation; and report and communicate with family members and others.  Teaching Strategies GOLD also enables to teachers to (1) collect and gather child outcome information as one part of a larger accountability system and (2) provide reports to administrators to guide program planning and professional development opportunities.  Teaching Strategies GOLD addresses the following Developmental Domains: (1) Social-Emotional, (2) Physical, (3) Language, (4) Cognition, (5) Literacy, (6) Mathematics, (7) Science and Technology, (8) Social Studies, (9) The Arts, and (10) English Language Acquisition.

screen grab of MA GOV webpage on the TS Gold assessments

Franklin is currently assessing only 2 of the domains listed as part of a pilot. The individual assessments take the kindergarten teachers away from time spent teaching the class. The State has not yet decided what will happen with the program next year. The more people know about the program, the better the decision should be to either continue or discontinue the assessments.

For additional information on this program, explore the state webpage
http://www.mass.gov/edu/birth-grade-12/early-education-and-care/mkea/#description

Franklin Library: Author C.E. Zaniboni - May 7

Author C.E. Zaniboni is coming to the Franklin Public Library on Thursday, May 7 at 6:30pm.

From Zaniboni's website:

"ICED AT MIDNIGHT is a murder mystery that is appealing to a wide range of readers with down to earth old Maine characters in real life situations with typical dialogue of the region. The protagonist is a real laid back kind of guy who finds himself deeply immersed in an unusual murder in his hometown. As the novel progresses he finds out who his friends really are with a surprising twist concerning the dead young FBI agent with a carrot in his ear and why he was in Gammil’s Point, Maine."

Author C.E. Zaniboni - May 7th

Some of the content was shared from the Franklin Library page here
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2015/04/author-ce-zaniboni.html

Rock the House III - May 7 at THE BLACK BOX

You are invited to a fundraiser for State Representative 
(and Franklin Downtown Partnership member) Jeff Roy! 

Thursday, May 7, at The Black Box, 15 W. Central St. 

For a suggested contribution you can enjoy great music and fun with 

Jeff and "Ben Gardner's Boat"

Rock the House III - May 7 at THE BLACK BOX

This was shared from the Franklin Downtown Partnership page here

http://www.franklindowntownpartnership.org/2015/04/fundraiser-for-representative-roy-next.html

FHS girls softball team drop double header

From Hockomock Sports we find that the FHS girls softball team dropped a double header on Sunday to Bridgewater-Raynham.

Softball

Franklin, 0 @ Bridgewater-Raynham, 9 - Final

Franklin, 4 @ Bridgewater-Raynham, 7 - Final

Finance Committee does the detailed work to understand the FY 2016 budget

The first of the series of budget hearings was held last Thursday evening. The budget hearings continue this week with meetings on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. If necessary, there is also one more meeting currently scheduled for Monday, May 11.

The Finance Committee will conduct their vote on the budget after hearing all the details on each department. The vote will likely come on Thursday evening and worse case on the meeting for May 11.

Franklin Municpal Bulding - site of the budget hearings

Why so many meetings?

The Finance Committee takes time to talk with each of the department heads. They get into details of the operations, what changes are planned for and of course, the budget dollars needed. The Town Council in recent years has skipped this detailed discussion to speed up their meetings. They do have a two night budget hearing but realistically if you want to really find out what is in each departments budget, watch the FinCom meetings.

The published schedule of the meetings is shown below. The large budget items are in bold. These major departments cover most of the budget with schools accounting for half of the total town spending. Note that the total school spending is more than the total town amount. You can see the details of that in the school department budget reviewed last week and posted here.

What is the budget cycle?

The budget is put together by each department and consolidated by the Town Administrator and Comptroller starting about October each year. The capital requirements are reviewed and the 'free cash' is allocated to meet as many of the requirements are possible. Some of the capital budget is up for Town Council vote this week (May 6th). A small portion of 'free cash' about $400,000 is held in reserve for contingencies and then allocated before the end of the fiscal year (June 30th).

The department budget is review by the Town Administrator and in many cases comes forward as is. There are cases where the Town Administrator will recommend either a higher or lower amount. You can view the details in the voting document. There is a column for the FY 2015 budget (what the Town is operating under now), the department request, the Town Administrator recommendation, and then the Finance Committee recommendation. The last number is proposed and could be changed during these budget hearings.

As noted, the Finance Committee conducts their budget hearings and then votes to recommend a budget for the Town Council to review. The Council will spend two nights in a budget hearing but as has been happening recently, the second night is a formality. Unless an unresolved question from the first night needs to be addressed, the Council votes on the budget.

The budget needs to be balanced and approved by June 30 so when July 1 arrives, the Town can operate. The key to balancing the budget is what revenues are being used (recurring or one time?, fee increases or not?) and where are the expenses prioritized? 

• Will there be an increase in road repairs? Not likely in this budget.
• Will there be an increase in personnel? Yes, on both the town and school side.
• Will there be an improvement in services? No, it is being talked of as a 'level service' budget.

Monday

(Dept #) (Dept name) (page number of budget book)

• 630 Recreation F-9
• 210 Police B-1
• 293 Parking Meter B-31
• 300 School Dept C-1
• 390 Tri County C-2
• 395 Norfolk Aggie C-3

Tuesday

• 510 Health E-1
• 520 Public Health E-7
• 155 Information Tech A-25
• 541 COA E-8
• 543 Veterans E-17
• 161 Town Clerk A-28
• 164 Elections A-31
• 691 Historical Comm F-11
• 192 Facilities A-39

Thursday

Budget Presentations:

• 177 Planning A-35
• 610 Library F-1
• 220 Fire B-13
• 225 Regional Dispatch B-24
• 422 DPW D-1
• 424 Streetlights D-17
• 440 Sewer Enterprise H-2
• 450 Water Enterprise H-9
• 434 Solid Waste Enterp H-16

Action Items:

• FY 16 Operating Budget Vote
• OPEB Actuary funding

The budget hearing voting document can be found here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/budgets/FY%2016%20Budget/voting%2016.pdf

The revenue side of the budget can be found here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/budgets/FY%2016%20Budget/REVENUES.pdf

My notes from the first budget hearing can be found here:
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/04/live-reporting-finance-committee-budget.html


The published agenda for the future budget hearings can be found here

Monday
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_FinanceAgendas/Agenda%202015-05-4

Tuesday
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_FinanceAgendas/Agenda%202015-05-5

Thursday
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_FinanceAgendas/Agenda%202015-05-7

Franklin, MA: Town Council - Agenda - May 6, 2015

A. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
– April 1, 2015, April 15, 2015

B. ANNOUNCEMENTS
– This meeting is being recorded by Franklin TV and shown on Comcast channel 11 and Verizon channel 29. This meeting may be recorded by others.

C. PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS

D. CITIZEN COMMENTS

E. APPOINTMENTS
– Conservation Commission - William Batchelor

F. HEARINGS

G. LICENSE TRANSACTIONS

• Table & Vine, Inc. – Annual Wine & Malt Package Store - New License – 7:10 pm
• Gill N Sidhu, LLC – Chinese Mirch - Change of DBA- 7:10 pm
• British Beer Company – Change of Manager- 7:10 pm

H. PRESENTATIONS/DISCUSSIONS

• Purple Heart Presentation
• Cable TV
• Culture District

I. SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS

J. LEGISLATION FOR ACTION
1. Resolution15-17: Amending the Senior Citizen Property Tax Work-Off Abatement Program
2. Resolution 15-18: Acceptance of Gift – Council on Aging
3. Resolution 15-19: Appropriation - Fire Truck Stabilization Fund
4. Resolution 15-20: Appropriation – Athletic Fields Capital Improvement Stabilization Fund
5. Resolution 15-21: Appropriation – Capital FY 15
6. Resolution 15-22: Appropriation - Sewer Enterprise Capital FY 15
7. Resolution 15-23: Appropriation – Water Enterprise Capital FY 15
8. Resolution 15-24: Authorization to Issue Request for Proposals – Pond Street Property
9. Resolution 15-25: Authorization to Issue Request for Proposals – Pond Street Property
10. Bylaw Amendment 15-747:Amendment of Service Fee Rates – Solid Waste and Recycling – 1st Reading

K. TOWN ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT

L. OLD BUSINESS

M. NEW BUSINESS

N. COUNCIL COMMENTS

O EXECUTIVE SESSION

P. ADJOURN

The set of documents released for this meeting can be found here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2015%20Complete%20With%20Documents/05062015.pdf

Franklin Municipal Building, Town Council meets on the 2nd floor

"It needs some tender, loving care"

A large field of runners took part in the Franklin and Bellingham Rail Trail Committee's road race Saturday morning. The fifth annual event is held to raise money for the development of a trunkline trail. 

The race consisted of multiple events, with a 1.5-mile or 3.5-mile walk and a five-mile run. 

Committee Vice Chairman Mark Kaplan said the race changed somewhat this year.
"It was previously a 5K race - this is the first year it's been five miles," he said. "It was really (Chairman) David (Labonte's) push (to change the race) - there are a lot of 5Ks out there."

Continue reading the article here
http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150503/NEWS/150509021/1994/NEWS

For more about the Franklin Bellingham Rail Trail Committee visit their webpage or find them on Facebook

parking for the SNETT can be found on Grove St

For complete results of Saturday's race
http://www.coolrunning.com/results/15/ma/May2_5thAnn_set2.shtml

Arts Happen Here!

The title of this article is the tag line for the Cultural District Committee, as they work toward the establishment of a Cultural District in Franklin. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts established a process through which cities and towns may apply for Cultural District status. The Town of Franklin Cultural District Committee in the process of applying for Cultural District status and one step in the process is the Franklin Cultural Festival, which is scheduled for July 29 to August 2, 2015. 

Franklin Cultural Festival - Arts Happen Here!

When Anita Walker, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Cultural Council, visited Franklin in November 2013, she noted that, “A cultural district is a specific walkable area in the community with a concentration of cultural buildings and activities. Cultural districts aim to attract artists and cultural enterprises to the community, encourage business and job development, establish tourist destinations, preserve and reuse historic buildings, enhance property values and foster local cultural development.” 

This summer, the Cultural Festival will focus its efforts throughout downtown Franklin and beyond, including Dean College, the Franklin Public Library, the Town Common, and the Horace Mann Middle School. The activities will be clustered each day to increase the walkability of the proposed cultural district while simultaneously highlighting the activities and events in the performing arts, the fine arts and the culinary arts. 

The next meeting of the Cultural District Committee is scheduled for Tuesday, May 5 at 7:00 PM at THE BLACK BOX. For more information, contact the Cultural District Committee via email at FranklinCulturalDistrict@gmail.com.

"we just didn’t do the job today”

Josh Perry, Managing Editor of Hockomock Sports writes:

There was little that Franklin coach Lou Verrochi could say after the game. His team had gone from leading at halftime to losing by eight goals at home against a potential tournament opponent. 

“We imploded,” he said. “The third quarter, they just came out like gangbusters and we didn’t match their intensity and it hurt us. We just didn’t rise to the occasion the way that I thought we would.” 

Franklin held a 5-4 lead heading into the break, but BC High outscored the Panthers 10-1 in the second half to pull away for a comfortable 14-6 victory. Senior Jack Vail and freshman Eric Civetti each scored a pair of goals, but it was not enough for the Panthers. 

Verrochi explained, “I thought we had a good first half and we told them what we had to do on the slides because that skip pass in the crease was killing us. We made those adjustments, but we just didn’t do the job today.”

Kyle Filbert (24) and Jack Vail (14) share a smile after Vail scored one of his two first half goals. The Panthers struggled in the second half and fell to BC High. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

Continue reading the full article here
http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/franklin-implodes-in-second-half-against-bc-high

Senator Ross: April 2015 State House Update

Senator Richard J. Ross, State House Update, April 2015 View this email in your browser Facebook Twitter Website LinkedIn State Senator Richard J. Ross (R-Wrentham) proudly serving the Norfolk, Bristol and Middlesex District. State House Room 419 Boston, MA 02133 Ph: 617-722-1555 Fax: 617-722-1054 Email:richard.ross@masenate.gov Dear Friends, Warmer weather has finally graced the Commonwealth and Beacon Hill has certainly been busy as FY16 budget talks have made their way to the Senate. This month I will need your help and input as we work hard to ensure next year's budget is smart, efficient, and works well for you, my constituents. Please read my monthly newsletter for information on what has been going on in the district and the State House. As always, let me know what you would like me to focus on. It is my honor and privilege to serve you in the State Senate. Sincerely, CHARLES RIVER CENTER IN NEEDHAM Recently, I joined Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito at the Charles River Center in Needham to discuss the great work they do for children and adults with developmental disabilities. Founded in 1956, the mission of the CRC is "to empower and support people with developmental disabilities by offering high-quality, individualized opportunities that foster independence and community inclusion." I am grateful that such an organization helps so many individuals and families not only in my district, but all across the Commonwealth as well. Thank you to the Lieutenant Governor for coming to Needham. For more information on the Charles River Center, please visit their website here. MA TREASURER VISITS NATICK I was pleased to welcome Massachusetts State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg to Natick for the first stop of her statewide economic empowerment tour. The tour began with a roundtable discussion and tour of the MathWorks facility and continued at robotics classrooms at Natick High School to discuss the impact of STEM education on our children and the Commonwealth as a whole. Treasurer Goldberg is conducting a statewide economic empowerment tour to highlight the work of her new Office of Economic Empowerment which is focused on closing the skills gap in Massachusetts to help stimulate economic growth. STEM education and the programs they offer are essential to our students, their future, and the Commonwealth's future. Treasurer Goldberg witnessed the great work being done by our hardworking students and teachers. ATTLEBORO BUSINESS AWARDED FOR INNOVATION The Department of Agricultural Resources (DAR) recently awarded the co-owners of 2 Friends Farm in Attleboro, Ashley Driscoll and John Irving, the Commonwealth Quality Innovator Award. 2 Friends Farm opened in 2013 and began as an idea to grow and offer healthy food options locally. The Commonwealth Quality Program (CQP), sponsored by the DAR, was created to identify food products grown, harvested, and produced locally while also providing local growers with the tools they need to compete in a thriving marketplace. This great program has offered them, and other local growers, the tools they need to succeed. Currently, there are 100 CQP participants across Massachusetts. I look forward to witnessing 2 Friends Farm's continued expansion and development in our community. PROMOTING AUTISM AWARENESS April was Autism Awareness Month, and on Beacon Hill and across the Commonwealth we demonstrated our continued dedication to those on the autism spectrum and their families. Currently, I am serving on the senate special commission on autism, created to make recommendations and monitor the implementation of policies impacting individuals with autism spectrum disorders. The commission is tasked with investigating the range of services and supports necessary for such individuals, so that they may have ready access and availability to these services across their lifespan. The commission was established in the autism assistance bill, signed into law this past August. I have always been a strong advocate for autism awareness and research, and I'm proud to be a part of this commission. I look forward to continuing the fight for those living with autism spectrum disorders and their families, something that must be a priority all year long. GOVERNOR BAKER PROPOSES MBTA CONTROL BOARD In April, Governor Charlie Baker filed legislation to deliver a reliable transportation system for the people of the Commonwealth. The bill would establish a Fiscal Management and Control Board (FMCB) and Chief Administrator to oversee operations and finances through 2018, create capital plans, introduce reporting and audit requirements and lift procurement restrictions for the MBTA. The FMCB and Chief Administrator would be charged with establishing a safe, reliable, financially sound and sustainable customer-oriented public transit system. The harshness of this past winter brought to light what has been evident for a very long time--the MBTA suffers from clear mismanagement at all levels. Reforming and addressing the many concerns of our public transportation system is a priority for me as our taxpayers and commuters deserve better. This legislation takes the necessary steps to fix a broken system and save the Commonwealth money. For more information, please click here. Congratulations to the 160 D.A.R.E. Program Graduates from the Delaney School in Wrentham (left). MA Association of School Committees Day on the Hill with members of the Plainville School Committee and the King Philip School Committee (right). Wonderful to have the National Honor Society members from the Brennan Middle School and Coelho Middle School in Attleboro at the State House (left). Happy to read to some great kindergarten students at the John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Franklin (right). [Message clipped]  View entire message

...

Has the process been followed?

Given that the following resolution was passed in May 2014, did you see any notifications or announcements about a license being available in the past several weeks?

No, neither did some other folks. Franklin announcements are usually posted here:

Franklin news and announcements

Why is there a license award coming up for the Town Council meeting on Wednesday?

Or is this the same one that brought about the discussion in March 2014 that lead to the policy?
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2014/03/live-reporting-town-council-mar-5-2014.html



- - - - - - - - - -

TOWN OF FRANKLIN 

RESOLUTION 14-36 

ISSUING AVAILABLE ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES (PACKAGE STORE) LICENSES POLICY 

Whereas: The Town Council has asked for a fair and equitable policy for the disposition of available alcoholic beverages (Package Store) Licenses;

Whereas: In order to provide an opportunity to all potential businesses to compete for an available (either because census results in additional license or existing licensee surrenders license) Liquor or Beer and Wine license, the Town Council wishes to adopt the following process.

• When the Town Administrator becomes aware of an available license he/she shall:
• Give notice to Town Council at the next Council meeting.
• Advertise the availability of the license via the Town Web page and other appropriate means. The advertisement will state the date the applications must be submitted and the hearing date before the Town Council.
• Conduct a hearing at which the applicants will be allowed to make their case before the Council in support of their application.
• Council will make a determination whether a public need exists based on a set of criteria which may include:

o Proximity of existing establishments.
o Will the license be used to enhance the economic development of a neighborhood?
o Impact on neighborhood.
o Is it near a school or place of worship?
o Other? 

• Council may determine that no public need exists, not withstanding applicant(s)

- - - - -

The policy was posted on the Franklin webpage here
http://town.franklin.ma.us/Pages/FranklinMA_Admin/licensing/policy.pdf

David vs. Goliath

Franklin Liquors (yes, the one located just down the street from the Big Y) posted this
https://franklinliquors.wordpress.com/2015/05/01/david-vs-goliath-we-need-your-support/

MassBudget: The Town-by-Town Reach of the MA State EITC

Earned Income Tax Credit = EITC

The Town-by-Town Reach of the MA State EITC  In Massachusetts - one of only four states boasting the term "commonwealth" in the official state name - we seek to build a thriving state economy that delivers broadly shared prosperity to workers and their families. Unfortunately, since the 1970s, wages have stagnated for low and moderate income workers in Massachusetts and nationally, making it increasingly difficult for many hardworking parents to make ends meet and provide for their children. The state earned income tax credit (EITC) program helps push back against this troubling trend, providing a meaningful boost to the after-tax earnings of thousands of low-income working families. (For a more detailed discussion of the EITC program, its proven benefits, and the effects of proposed increases, please see MassBudget's factsheet.)   Typically, between 415,000 and 430,000 filers claim the Massachusetts state EITC each year, together receiving a total of $125 million to $135 million in credits annually (for further funding details, see MassBudget's Children's Budget).      Using the most current data available from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue (2013), the interactive map to the right shows the share of all tax filers in each city and town who received the state EITC. (Click on the image to access the full interactive map or go to the Kids Count Data Center.)     The table below shows both the share and total number of filers receiving the state EITC for a select set of Massachusetts cities and towns. For a table showing these data for all 351 Massachusetts cities and towns, visit the Kids Count Data Center.     The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center | 15 Court Square | Suite 700 | Boston | MA | 02108

The interactive table allows for comparison of up to five communities

FHS Panthers top Canton in softball and boys tennis; lose in baseball

The baseball team ran into a good pitcher at Canton while the softball team and the boys tennis teams were victorious on Friday. The results are shared from Hockomock Sports.

Baseball

Franklin, 0 @ Canton, 4 - Final

- Junior Sean Doyle tossed his first career complete game shutout, scattering four hits, walking one and striking out one. Junior Griffin Jerrier went 2-3 with an RBI triple, Kevin powers hit an inside the park home run, Joe Peccia reached base three times and scored two runs and Steve Bonica had a sacrifice fly. Zane Byrne went 2-3 for the Panthers and Kyle Wardrop came on relief for Franklin with the bases loaded and escaped the jam, allowed just one unearned run in 2.1 innings of work and struck out three.

FHS Panthers

Softball

Franklin, 8 @ Canton, 3 - Final 

- Caroline D'Aprille struck out seven to pick up the win for the Panthers. Brie Flaherty knocked in a pair of runs on a base hit and a sacrifice fly and Maddie Connelly went 2-4 with two RBI and played solid defense according to head coach Kate Fallon-Comeau.

Boys Tennis

Franklin, 5 @ Canton, 0 - Final


For all the Hockomock League action on Friday
http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/hockomock-schedule-scoreboard-050115