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We are a diverse group of Hampton residents from all walks of life and political persuasions. We are advocates for the Hampton taxpayer. Our objective is to assure that value is being obtained for the tax dollars that we are asked to pay. We closely scrutinize all financial issues associated with the town of Hampton and its schools as they affect taxes and advocate accordingly. We can do this very effectively since we are free of any special interest influences hence remain objective on all issues. We choose to remain anonymous so that special interests cannot focus on character assassinations but are forced to focus on the substance that we report or give recommendations on.
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Fantasy used to justify Tax Hike By Norm Silberdick @ 11:25 AM :: 4956 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
Mr. Griffin’s comparisons to other towns are fantasy.
“While the tax rate has increased, Griffin said it’s important to note that Hampton’s tax rate is still relatively lower than in neighboring towns. I look at what’s going to be happening in Exeter and Newmarket. Hampton’s tax rate is a bargain compared to some towns like Durham,” Griffin said. “Hampton’s tax rate is not going up as fast as the other towns around it.”
Selectmen Griffin's tax comparisions reflect not "relatively lower tax rate", but in fact actual fantasy.
Early Preview of Hampton's Tax Increase By Norm Silberdick @ 10:47 AM :: 4233 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
For 2016 the Town Manager has proposed over forty tax impact warrant articles to the Board of Selectmen in addition to the operating budget. Although the 2016 operating budget itself is fairly flat when compared with last year’s budget, the basic ploy here is to have the ...
Unethical tactics behind mid-year pay raises By Norm Silberdick @ 6:10 AM :: 4836 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
We are especially concerned that the selectmen need to exercise diligence in their administrative duties. The idea that the Board of Selectmen have given a salary increase in excess of 50 percent or $30,000 to one employee, but have no money for part time employees is blatantly unfair. In addition, the BOS have violated their own purchasing policies by awarding over $2 million in the trash disposal and hauling contracts to designated vendors resulting in a lawsuit that ultimately saved the town several hundred thousand dollars. These are egregious examples of sloppy oversight and/or cronyism. The taxpayers of Hampton can ill afford to have lazy selectmen and weak town administration, if the town expects to have a bright future.
Town Manager Ploy to side step the voters By Norm Silberdick @ 11:24 PM :: 4608 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
The Town Manager and Board of Selectmen are fast tracking an “emergency request” to the State of New Hampshire Department of Revenue for approval to withdraw funds from the Town’s undesignated fund balance to
Selectmen's Goals - What SHOULD BE By Norm Silberdick @ 5:03 PM :: 5260 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
When the Selectmen met April 7th to establish their goals and objectives for this year, the takeaways that we got were as follows:
Demonstrating an unwillingness to listen and respond to the voters message with amended plans, the Selectmen’s comments primarily focused on the voters - who overwhelmingly turned down the Operating budget. The following Selectmen's comments were met with shared enthusiasm among themselves.
It was telling that most of the meeting was dedicated to Department Heads requests for additional resources, that there was no Public Comment period on the agenda and
SELECTMEN GOALS By Norm Silberdick @ 8:30 AM :: 5156 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
On Tuesday 4/07/2015 the Selectman had a discussion on goals for 2015/16. No public comment was solicited. Apparently the message from the voters regarding spending was totally off limits because the tenor of the presentation was how much can we spend.
It appeared to be a campfire sing-along and a rehashing of old and well-worn issues.
Mr. Welch is pulling a 'Bryan Williams act here' By Norm Silberdick @ 8:23 AM :: 6612 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
At the March 2, Board of Selectmen’s meeting Town Manager Welch made numerous references to the millions that he slashed from the original budget proposals as well as the additional cuts made by the Selectmen. All this hyperbole to justify the outrageous overspending created by the Board of Selectmen. We have compiled these remarks in a Video which we encourage the voters to see.
Frankly it is all malarkey, Mr. Welch you are really pulling a
Yellowsheet Reversal By Norm Silberdick @ 2:38 PM :: 5177 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
The authors of the Yellow Sheet suggested voting no on article 23, requesting $126.8K for capital spending on the air system for the library. While we felt was too much money on the project and we have had little confidence in the administration and transparency of the library’s historical practices. We did receive further information about the project that resulted in our reversal of our position and a support for the article. The capital spending is needed to maintain both a good environment for the books and patron comfort and will result in a reduction of future maintenance costs.
Town Manager enjoys pure fantasy while violating the public trust By Norm Silberdick @ 11:04 AM :: 5121 Views :: 1 Comments :: Letters to the Editor
The Town Manager’s comments are so far from the truth that they can accurately be described as pure fantasy and a violation of the public trust.
The facts associated with the budget process, based on the attached document which I believe was distributed by the Finance Director to the Budget Committee, are as follows:
Vote NO on $250,000 to Rebuild the Grist Mill Dam - Article 38 By Norm Silberdick @ 10:04 AM :: 8551 Views :: 1 Comments :: Tax Increase, Letters to the Editor
While we have no issue with the submission and enthusiastic promotion of Article 38 by the “Friends of the Grist Mill Dam”, Rational Taxpayers of Hampton is recommending a NO vote on this citizen’s petitioned article, which requests $250,000 for the “rebuilding” the Grist Mill Dam. If approved, the $250,000 would be in addition to the $400,000 voters approved last year in a Selectmen’s sponsored article to “decommission”, or remove the dam, and does not include a $170,000 increase in long-term costs. Our reasoning is