Letter: Charter candidates should be open-minded, ask questions, listen

Posted 7/13/17

To the editor:As indicated in a previous Letter to the Editor, I wanted to find a way to help inform and engage voters in Tiverton. As a result, the Tiverton Votes website was born. You can view on …

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Letter: Charter candidates should be open-minded, ask questions, listen

Posted

To the editor:
As indicated in a previous Letter to the Editor, I wanted to find a way to help inform and engage voters in Tiverton. As a result, the Tiverton Votes website was born. You can view on the website candidates for the Charter Review Commission responses to questions I sent them as well as other helpful information regarding voting https://tivertonvotes11.wixsite.com/tivri.
The opportunity to vote on July 18 for the Charter Review Commission candidates is particularly important, as the charter affects every aspect of Tiverton. Ultimately the results of the commission (if approved by voters) could affect every town resident.
Do you have any concerns about the charter and/or the CRC? I do. I really hope the CRC will take input from town officials and residents. I also hope they research charters in other towns. I implore all those that are elected (even if they already have ideas for what they do or do not want to change in the charter) to leave some room for new ideas and discussion. Hopefully there will be individuals with multiple perspectives sitting at the table. Maybe there will even be new ideas discovered that will be even better for the town.
While I believe several clarifications need to be made to the charter, there is one area that I have a great concern about. The charter allows any citizen to submit a budget (with 50 signatures) to be put on the ballot. Some would say this allows the citizens to have a voice. But maybe there are other ways to allow for a voice?
What if the citizen makes a mistake and the budget they submit could actually harm the town? What safeguards are in place?
In terms of giving citizens a voice, what if someone wants to suggest changes but does not feel equipped to create a full budget? This may deter them from giving any input. Some say requiring more signatures to submit a budget will address concerns about a citizen submitted budget. But I don’t think it would address these issues I have raised.
I don’t have the answers to these and other questions. But it’s good to raise the questions. I don’t expect the candidates to have all the answers either. However, I hope they are inquisitive and open minded. I hope they are good at details but also at seeing the big picture. I also hope they have a lot of time and dedication to do a lot of research.
What questions or concerns do you have about the charter? Which candidates have indicated your concerns? What characteristics do you think would be most helpful in a candidate for the CRC? My hope is that the residents of Tiverton do their due diligence and review information about and from the candidates, ask for other’s views on the candidates and speak to the candidates directly where possible so they can gain a full picture of who they are voting for.
Maureen Umehara
Tiverton

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