Was Ending the Community Newsletter’s Funding Legal?
Since 2000 Nottingham residents have received in the mail the bi-monthly Nottingham Community Newsletter. The newsletter is created by volunteers. The printing and mailing of the newsletter are paid for by the taxpayers, with these costs substantially offset by advertising revenue. [Correction: North River Printing of Nottingham donates the printing.]
Until this year, every annual operating budget since 2000 proposed to the voters has included the cost of the newsletter. However, this year, the Budget Committee and the Board of Selectmen decided to defund the newsletter.
How did the newsletter get into the budget in the first place?
It turns out that the newsletter was created by a warrant article. Here it is in the 1999 Nottingham Annual Report.
As the newsletter was established by a warrant article passed by card vote (meaning the vote was so overwhelming that there was no need to count the votes), is it legal for the Budget Committee and Board of Selectmen to disregard the expressed will of the voters?
It’s complicated.
For those who consider the letter of the law to be of the most importance, the decision looks legal. The warrant article says nothing about continuing to fund the newsletter in perpetuity or spending anything more than $3k.
For those who consider the intent of the voters and the subsequent behavior of town government, then the decision looks to be against - if not the letter - at least the spirit of the law. Following the passing of this warrant article, the town consistently funded the newsletter for over two decades. Besides, the typical understanding of the creation of a periodical publication is that it will continue to be published. This is exactly what happened.
In this view of the matter, it looks like the Budget Committee and Board of Selectmen have arrogated to themselves a decision contrary to the expressed will of the voters. The correct thing to have done would have been to pose a warrant article asking the voters if they wished to discontinue the newsletter.
At this point, there’s still time before the budget must be finalized, although the deadline for submitting a warrant article to defund the newsletter has passed.
Those who feel that the Budget Committee and the Board of Selectmen have acted wrongly on this matter may wish to immediately voice their complaints to them in the hope that doing so will encourage a reversal of the decision. The grounds for doing so need be only for the reason that the method of defunding the newsletter was undemocratic, and not for the reason one wishes to see the newsletter receive continued funding.
It’s also possible for voters at the deliberative session to restore the newsletter’s funding to the budget, although this will require someone to propose the amendment at the deliberative session and to persuade the voters in attendance that the decision should be overturned.
Thanks for getting this out there. As a volunteer on the Newletter I had hope that defunding would not happen. There are many people who do not have access to the newsletter online, as we have discussed this.
Also tge printing of the newsletter has always been donated by the printer, saving the town a lot of money. Sad that this was not understood by the BOS. Big surprise
Mary Crockett
To clarify, and In the interest of accuracy, funding for the Nottingham Newsletter (as a line item In the Town’s Operating Budget) was proposed to be reduced, not eliminated. There was a general consensus amongst the Select Board and the Budget Committee that the Newsletter was valued and should remain supported.
With a very tight 4% budget cap, however, it has been necessary to economize in every way possible, on every line item possible.
The good news is that the
Nottingham Newsletter WILL continue on, bringing information to all community members.
Thank you.