SCHOOL BOARD MEETING TONIGHT & CLIFTON TOWN MEETING "ROASTING"

Tonight - Monday the 22nd - is the monthly SAD 63 School Board meeting. Hope to see a LARGE crowd at the Holden School at 6:30pm. Should be interesting to see what "items" the joint budget committee brings before the Board for approval (such as the appointment of the Interim Superintendent). If you don't know what this is all about, see previous postings starting from March 3 forward.

The Clifton Town Meeting took place this past Saturday at which their new School Board representative was elected. She should take her seat tonight. Hopefully she will have been "briefed" by some of her townspeople on the issues THEY want her to speak up about on their behalf. Somebody better start speaking up (besides Hart, that is).

Ben Pratt, area representative to the State Legislature's House of Representatives, was in attendance at the Clifton Town Meeting. Seems he was asked quite a few questions re: the Legislature's (budgetary) actions which we are all hearing will significantly impact the SAD 63 school budget (and therefore property taxes in Clifton, Eddington and Holden). Seems Mr. Pratt didn't know what the Legislature was doing. ?! - or the impact being felt right here at home in the schools or property owners. (Isn't that his job? The one we taxpayers are paying him to do what with the salary and benefits he's currently receiving, and the retirement benefits he'll receive once he's out of office?)

Perhaps the individuals responsible for cleaning up the hall after the Town Meeting might want to see if they can find any of Mr. Pratt's skin on the floor since this writer heard Pratt was rightly "skinned" for not knowing what was going on at the place of business where his constituents sent him to represent and advocate for them. Hopefully, Mr. Pratt will be better informed before he attends the Eddington Town Meeting next Tuesday - March the 30th.

NOTE: One of the questions asked at the Clifton Town Meeting was how the state dared to levy tax penalties on taxpayers for not being able to consolidate (especially under current circumstances here) when the Legislature has never complied with the law voters State-wide passed requiring State government to fund 55% of public education. Perhaps it would be wise if Mr. Pratt spent more time finding out what his constituents expect of him and less time marching to the tune of the House Majority Caucus.... or maybe he'll find himself spending all of his time amongst his (former) constituents.