Demand Responsible

Spending

To the Editor:

I am a parent of two children in the Newtown school system. I’m also one of the 53 “statistically insignificant” voters who voted against the proposed budget.

I appreciate the Newtown educators as much as any parent here does, but my family doesn’t grow a money tree in the backyard to support these annual budget increases. I also resent our local government using our children’s “imperiled” welfare to try to manipulate parents into approving whatever dollar amount they want. In any case, it seems that no matter what kind of budget is passed, our children are sacrificed anyway. Most recently this was by the abolition of the fourth grade orchestra, the gifted program, and decreased busing services.

While Superintendent Pitkoff doesn’t call the 53-vote defeat a “mandate,” I wonder if he would have said the same thing if the budget passed by that same margin. I doubt it. Mandate or not, statistically insignificant or not, those 53 votes were enough to defeat a bloated, one-sided budget.

Our local government needs to be a more aggressive advocate for its taxpayers when negotiating with unions and contractors. It also needs to more evenly allocate the money it does get throughout the community. With Dickinson Pond closed, for example, this town desperately needs another town pool. (In my opinion the addition of the limited hours at the indoor high school pool is “statistically insignificant.”)

It’s time for Newtown taxpayers to put an end to this monetary free-for-all and to demand responsible spending by our local government at reasonable costs. Vote No until they get the point.

Allison Bloom

19 Greenbriar Lane, Newtown May 2, 2006