Professional Documents
Culture Documents
William Ferris
13 Spruce Brook Rd.
Seymour, CT 06483
Board Of Finance
Town Of Seymour
1 First St.
Seymour, CT 06483
Dear Board Of Finance:
I was in attendance at last night’s Board Of Finance meeting, at which the Board Of Finance elected to
deny the Board Of Education its requested budget, and instead elected (5‐2) to provide The Board of
Education with approximately only 45% of the increase needed to maintain the current level of service.
This was despite the unanimous consensus, amongst the dozens of people who chose to speak, that the
Board Of Education budget should be brought to the town for a vote “as is”.
During the very brief discussion that took place prior to the vote, at least two dissenting Board Of
Finance members seemed to express the belief that education should be funded at the level requested
by the Board Of Education. However, these board members said that they had doubts as to whether the
Board Of Education budget could pass. Explaining that each referendum costs the town $5,000, these
members stated that they could not in good conscience vote to have the Board Of Education budget
brought forward for a vote, due to the expense involved, and what they perceived as the unlikely
chances for success.
No other argument was put forward by any member of the Board Of Finance as to why the Board Of
Education budget should not be brought to the town for a vote. One Board Of Finance member pointed
out that not a single item of waste, fraud or frivolous spending had been identified within the Board Of
Education budget.
I personally find it regrettable that the heartfelt beliefs of these Board Of Finance members were
subverted by the $5,000 cost of the referendum.
Since the $5,000 cost of the referendum appears to be the only thing preventing the Board Of Education
budget from moving forward to the town for a vote, I would like to offer to donate the $5,000 necessary
for the Town Of Seymour to hold the referendum. The only condition to this offer is that the Board Of
Education budget must be brought to the town for a vote “as is”. If requested, I will provide a check in
advance to act as a financial guarantee of the offer.
With the financial cost of the referendum no longer a concern, I hope that the Board Of Finance
members will now feel free to reconsider the issue, vote according to their stated beliefs, and in good
conscience allow the democratic process to move forward with the Board Of Education budget.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter. I hope that you will accept my offer.
Thanks.
Sincerely,
William G. Ferris
cc. Paul Roy, First Selectman, Town Of Seymour