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The town has already collected $4 million of a possible $13 million in extra money hidden from the budget process.
News & Commentary
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Commentary
With Charter Commission Blockade, Town Council Wants Total Control
Much has happened since Marcia Pobzeznik wrote in the June 25 Newport Daily News that the Tiverton Town Council's "made quick work" dismissing just about every suggestion that the elected Charter Review Commission (CRC) spent a year developing, but the article is worth revisiting. The first point worth making is that this is not normal. The town's Home Rule Charter calls for a Charter Review Commission to "recommend for approval and adoption, amendments or revisions." Nobody is authorized to "approve or adopt" amendments except the people of Tiverton, voting directly on the proposals. That is to whom the commission is making its recommendation; the council is authorized simply to "approve the statement of the question as it shall appear on the ballot." In other words, the council just checks the language that the voters will see. Even if one considers this legal language to be somewhat ambiguous, it is clear that the Charter does not intend for the Town Council simply to brush aside the work of the Charter Review Commission. Why would we hold an election for the positions if that were the intent? It would save the town money and be more efficient simply to have the council appoint the commission members. That is why no council has ever blocked a CRC proposal before, to the knowledge of people who've watched these matters closely. The strong impression of the last year of charter review politics is that the Town Council called for a review because its members were hoping to claim authority…
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