March Updates: Budget articles up front

Budget Articles:

School Assessment: 3/20

The School Committee voted their assessments to Whitman and Hanson on 3/20, two days before the statutory deadline of 45 days before Town Meeting. The 9-1 vote was to maintain services and staffing previously supported by COVID funds and other one time money, and a separate decision was made not to use one time Excess & Deficiency funds to reduce the operating assessments without impacting the budget. This results in a WHRSD operating budget of $63,590,845, and an assessment to Whitman of $19,695,553. This is a $1,956,053 increase over last year, or growth of 11.03% from FY24. The discussion actually produced two Whitman-Hanson Express articles linked below.

Express articles: https://whitmanhansonexpress.com/school-committee-opts-to-leave-issue-to-voters/ and https://whitmanhansonexpress.com/school-panel-voices-budget-concerns/

WHCA video: https://youtu.be/5Cpl3zwG6Ik?si=VaRYLTtUMm7VsaN1

BOS - FinCom joint meeting: 3/26

The Board of Selectmen met jointly with the Finance Committee on 3/26, coming days after the WHRSD school assessment, and the Town Administrator laid out the potential budget impacts of meeting that number. As a reminder, Whitman had been preparing the budget since the fall with a 5% assessment increase to the District, but quickly had to cut $1.1 million from other parts of the budget to meet the 11.03% increase. Self-insuring unemployment also means the town would be on the hook for those costs as well, meaning layoffs don’t actually reduce the budget by a whole salary. The proposed balanced budget with the 11% school assessment now includes no raises for non-union employees, closing the Library and Recreation Department, reducing 3 departments to part time, and laying off the following: 3 police officers, 3 fire fighters, 1 DPW worker, 2 part time COA employees, 1 person in the Clerks office, 1 in the Assessors office, 1 in the Treasurer/Collectors office, and the technology specialist. The Town Administrator also set out an alternate plan, where the town maintains services, the school is funded 5% over last year, and the additional increase to meet the school assessment is placed before the voters as an override. The Board of Selectmen have until April 12 to decide to place an override on the ballot.

Express article: https://whitmanhansonexpress.com/whitman-officials-foresee-drastic-cuts/

WHCA video: https://youtu.be/GTJUHn0rKQk?si=HXL726bHqfTPcKux

Keep an eye on the weeks between now and the May 6th Town Meeting, budget news is moving quickly.

Super Tuesday results in Whitman

No surprises as Joe Biden topped the Democratic Primary and Donald Trump topped the Republican Primary. The most interest was probably in the MassGOP State Committee race where Geoff Diehl and KathyJo Boss were able to hold on to their seats by landslide margins in their hometown.

Express article: https://whitmanhansonexpress.com/super-tuesday-focus-on-down-ballot/

Justin’s preliminary results posted as soon as the Clerk read them: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid026G8qhqtsvegxYY1vSnABYRVsZJJH8chXMg9TBbEmvyJfs1U72ZSJMpuZnTJHQnjUl&id=100063511493323

WHRSD educational improvement

To break from the Budget discussion, something Whitman-Hanson is doing seems to be working. The Assistant Superintendent and Director of Equity and MTSS presented mid-year data at the March 13 School Committee meeting showing improvements in reading and math across the board. Following the learning loss from COVID, Whitman-Hanson seems to be improving farther and faster than either state or national averages.

Express article: https://whitmanhansonexpress.com/midyear-data-shows-educational-growth/

WHCA video: https://youtu.be/2JTFrQC-COc?si=k3vy_u_BApP9M1_4&t=1172

Easter Event by Whitman Recreation (and upcoming movie night)

The Recreation Department had another very successful Easter event. It was so successful that the 5000 Easter Eggs went quicker than expected. I attended with my daughter, and we had a great time! She’s still talking about the “big Easter Bunny”. Save the date for their Movie Night, coming up on April 12!

Facebook post: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid0351wrmRUb18F9o7Nr7jDyaxKLk9DRb8nVL8bAMWBibtV34Wr6rkkqa4r6qiM6TaYJl&id=100063470802094

Taste of Whitman and Hanson

Whitman-Hanson Dollars for Scholars had its 15th annual Taste of Whitman and Hanson. If you’ve never been it’s a can’t miss! In what is becoming a trend, it was another town event I spent chasing a toddler around while she gravitated toward the sweets. Quick Dillon cameo in the WHCA video linked below.

WHCA video: https://youtu.be/CZdaRRywf34?si=llzoAVYSn-mrL8u_

Plymouth County leadership council

In the first of what I hope will become a regular event, I joined Shawn Kain and Dan Salvucci at the Plymouth County Leadership Council where the Plymouth County Commissioners, Treasurer, and Assistant Treasurer presented information about opportunities available from the County to support our cities and towns. Whitman also got a shout out for not leaving any ARPA money on the table. What was most valuable, however, was meeting Select Board members from all over the county to chat about what they’re working on.

Facebook post: https://www.facebook.com/100069344583928/posts/pfbid02Q68wXwN9ZvLSzFGnGeNjnuFcHNkUXdD7QccE2nVyeE1WhELAaNvqvqg5VUdGUT5Pl/?

Hemp Based THC

Whitman was featured in The Horse Race podcast, following up on a story I helped bring to light about hemp based THC being available in unexpected and unregulated places. As the story grows, it seems that Beacon Hill is taking notice and the Joint Committee on Agriculture is said to be scheduling a hearing for June.

Podcast link: https://thehorseracepodcast.com/episodes/episode-298-the-hemp-race-s1!f404d

Original article: https://commonwealthbeacon.org/marijuana/hemp-based-thc-products-are-showing-up-all-over/

Globe follow up: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/01/31/metro/delta-8-cannabis/

Commonwealth Beacon follow up: https://commonwealthbeacon.org/drug-addiction-2/drugs-drug-addiction-2/thc-infused-hemp-products-getting-beacon-hills-attention/

Globe Editorial: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/02/22/opinion/thc-infused-gummies-shouldnt-be-sold-without-regulation/