Mancieri: Budget Commission Chair Owes Woonsocket An Apology

TO THE EDITOR:

This letter respectfully requests a public apology from the Chairman, Bill Sequino, to the people of Woonsocket for comments made at the last commission budget meeting (Feb. 19) regarding the supplemental tax bill and our pension obligations.  These issues are very serious to the taxpayers, employees, and retirees and they deserve more than 15 minutes to discuss a vote; the Chairman showed a complete lack of compassion for the people of our city who will face an incredible burden by this five year plan. If any member did not have the time to serve on this commission, then they should not have taken the position and we could have found someone who did.  I was glad to see it tabled to discuss with our delegation that should have been brought into the discussion from the very beginning.

With regards to the proposal to support a plan that calls for an immediate reduction of the homestead from 39 to 27.6 percent for single families and condos in one single year would be devastating to this community. 

My own family would see our bill go from just over $5,000 a year to a little over $6,000 in one single year. This would create many more foreclosures and will harm many of our low income households that cannot endure such a tax increase.  I recognize and support reducing the homestead exemption and lowering the commercial tax rate in Woonsocket but it must be done over a period of time for our residents to plan and budget for those increases.  I also would like to see the supplemental tax be reduced over time as our State aid increases each year and then the tax should be eventually eliminated all together once the funding formula is fully funded.  Then, I may be able to still convince my clients to buy a home here and businesses to come or return to Woonsocket.  It is your responsibility to not only look at the numbers but to ensure that this is a place in which people want to live and a place where businesses can be successful.

My delegation is copied on this e-mail and I am encouraging them to withhold support of any plan for a supplemental tax bill until the proposed concessions have been agreed to in writing to be assured we are not headed to receivership.  We as taxpayers are not going to pay one bill and then be handed another one down the road from the receiver. I am still shocked and dismayed at the lack of urgency this commission has had for accomplishing this sooner than almost nine months.  I, like all of you, attend these meetings away from my business and away from my family for no pay but I attend because I love Woonsocket and I do not understand why this plan took so long.  This community deserves better treatment from the budget commission and its staff.

I would also ask you to speak to our delegation about your proposal to spread out our pension obligations from 5 years to 25 years. I do not see how they would gain support from their colleagues in the General Assembly for this since it would encourage other communities to be fiscally irresponsible by not funding their pension obligations.  This underfunding has been done to fool our residents into believing we had a surplus on the city side when we really should have had deficits.  If this goal is not achievable without support from the Speaker of the House, Senate President, and the Governor; then we need to immediately move to a receiver.  It would be impossible for the City of Woonsocket to allocate $8 million dollars a year to fully fund our system in five years.

I am deeply concerned about my community which I still believe can have a bright future but I feel that the opportunity this commission was given to help us was lost by its lack of ability to focus on the big financial items that really should have been renegotiated last winter, avoiding a budget commission in the first place.  Also on your way out of the City, please make sure to put the street lights back on.  The citizens of Woonsocket expect fair treatment and they understand that cutbacks are necessary.  However, these cuts should not adversely affect our quality of life and our hope for a prosperous future. Thank you.

Garrett S. Mancieri

Vice President, Gateway Realty

2 Main Street

Woonsocket, RI, 02895