Vote DiVeronica for Lenox supervisor

In regards to Oneida Daily Dispatch articles Oct. 29 in regards to Supervisor Pinard’s comment on lack of sufficient fund balance, a town will find itself subjected to short term borrowing, late payments, deferring necessary spending or other undesirable actions.

All of these points made can be avoided by executing sound budgetary practices. Line items in the annual budget are built in to avoid these possibilities. Raising town tax rates to do nothing more than increase fund balance is not sound management. Realizing that emergencies will occur from time to time, this is what fund balance monies should be earmarked for. Late payments would not occur if payments are made on time. Deferred spending would be curtailed by again projecting an accurate and rational a budget as possible. Emergencies can usually be covered by the contingent line in an annual budget, then accessing the fund balance if need be. Past administration practices have never created an emergency that placed the township in jeopardy.

In regards to Pinard’s rebuttal on physical stress close up and fund balance. Physical stress is not simply financial stress. It also encompasses things like population growth, labor force and unemployment, expandable funds available to family households to maintain acceptable standards of living. Raising taxes to increase the fund balance at the end of the year is not necessarily in the best interest of the taxpayers. NYS Comptroller Napoli stated, a fund balance is the surplus of budgeted funds at the end of the year. Again, why are town tax rates increasing higher than the rate of inflation, when the only result is to increase the fund balance? If rates need to increase, there should be a good reason, expenditures should be earmarked for specific public betterment. If not, shouldn’t the tax rates be decreased to manageable levels consistent with the taxpayers’ best interest in mind? Again, “you be the judge.” Vote Nov. 7. ROCKYFORSUPERVISOR.COM Rocco DiVeronica,

Canastota