Rocked In Tiverton: Some Angry About Katz's Budget Message

TIVERTON, RI — So, the budget debate in Tiverton seems to be boiling down (or heating up) to a game of paper, scissors, rock. It all started when the Taxpayer Association's Justin Katz wanted to deliver a newsletter about his alternative Town budget. Paper blows away, so his supporters packed the newsletter in a plastic bag and secured it with a rock.

The rocks, Katz confirmed to Patch Thursday, were supposed to act as paperweights so the newsletters didn't fly away.

"That's correct," he said. "The rocks were in the bags to keep them from actually becoming litter blown around; the intention is delivery of a message. My understanding is that they're clean, purchased stones, not something dug out of the yard, and I've actually heard from some people who liked them and put them in rock gardens, or what have you."

But some people didn't like the rocks. And so "Littergate," as one wag dubbed it, began.

"What appears to have happened is that a small group of people who dislike the Tiverton Taxpayers Association because of our message and beliefs made a concerted effort to turn this into something it is not," Katz said. He singled out a Tiverton Democratic Town Committee man who sent letters to the newspaper claiming the Taxpayers Association members had taken to the streets to hurl rocks and litter at people's houses.

"Shockingly, some of these people were writing gleeful social media comments at the prospect of bankrupting our families and causing us to lose our homes over this," Katz said. "The reality is that delivering newsletters in bags (like newspapers) weighed down a little so they wouldn't blow around was one addition to our efforts to provide voters with information. Even before the controversy, it was part of the plan to retrace the path 48 hours later and pick up any that were still around. In doing so, we've actually picked up real litter as we've gone."

Although some residents reported they found the newsletter in the bag neatly tucked in between their front door and screen door, others took to online blogs and demanded Katz apologize. A few pointed out the controversy was probably about the delivery method, and not the message.

Nope, others said, it was definitely the message and have suggested voters send Katz their own message by voting for the Town-backed budget, and not for his alternative.

If they do, it will be a first.

Voters have approved Katz's budgets (and dismissed the Town budget) for the past several years. Last year, behind Katz's budget, Tiverton became one of a handful of Rhode Island cities and towns not to raise taxes. The Tiverton tax bills showed a slight decrease over the prior year, amounting to pennies on the per thousand valuation, but it was a decrease all the same.

This budget season, Katz has proposed taking stipends away from the town councilors, who are supposed to be volunteers, and thereby saving $264,000 for the taxpayers. He's also suggested including more of the Twin River Tiverton casino payments with the anticipated revenues. The casino is still under construction but is expected to open in late summer or early fall.

His opponents want money spent on services, two new trucks for the public works department and on other projects.

The vote is May 19.

Photo Credit: Damir Sencar via Shutterstock