To the editor:
Here are some questions one can ponder about our Town Budget.
1. Why do the Grafton Town Council members get paid ($250) per month, twice as much as Petersburgh and Berlin ($125) for attending one meeting a month. Is it allegiance to the Republican Town Chairman (Supervisor). Who voted on the salaries?
2. Why does Grafton have a Bookkeeper at $12,500 a year when Petersburgh and Berlin do not even have a budget line for the position.
3. Did you know the Grafton Bookkeeper (Supervisor) received a raise in the 2009 to 2010 from $11,800 to $15,000 or approx. 30% raise. Who voted for the raise in salary?
4. Who takes care of who? Not that you have any say!
5. Do you have paved roads? Who paid for the paving of a Town Road from Rt. 87 to just past the Supervisor’s house, about 2 miles? part of which is almost like an airport runway. It’s not Rt 2!
6. The Supervisor in his bid for re-election, talks about how he has not had a tax increase for the last 9 years. I thought he was “only” the Bookkeeper for the last 4 years. How many of you had a property tax increase to raise the tax revenue income of the Town.
7. Does this individual homeowner burden, insure there is a re-election political bragging point?
Pat Ivory
Grafton
Editor’s Note: Just to clarify – Petersburgh and Berlin do have bookkeepers to whom they pay a salary even though the money does not appear explicitly in a “Bookkeeper” budget line.