Before I head out for the day, I wanted to jot you all a little note celebrating the fact that it is August!!
Only one more month until school is back in session, One more month until the fall harvest festivals begin, One more month until the weather becomes less hot and humid. And the countdown has started with only a little over 90 days until the November Election date.
Most of our town's little online pages are going to begin telling you how you should vote on certain issues. I've committed to never telling anyone how they should spend one of the most precious commodities that belong to each and every person in the United States, your vote.
Your vote is private. It is your own. It is cast in a booth for a reason. Because it is private and personal. It is your voice without fear of retaliation or persecution. It is the only place in the operation of our town, our state, and our country where you can put your weight behind an issue or a person without anyone else knowing if you did things their way, or if you had your own ideas and thoughts.
There is never anyone who sees your vote or knows it was yours. It is anonymous and secret by nature. I like to tell people it's like a diary where your personal thoughts and feelings are put to paper and have the ability to shape and mold the laws, rules and regulations by which we all live.
I am personally more interested in having you all be attentive. Watching the videos of Selectmen's Meetings, asking questions, EXPECTING answers that are intelligent and informational and honest.
Lebanon has grown so much since I've come here. There are so many more businesses, so many more new homes and the growth is continuing with an expected 30 new homes going in here in town within the next year from one builder alone.
Our property tax MIL rate is expected to be up around 16.0 this coming tax year, and the services that we receive for our hard earned money, here in Lebanon, are minimal.
There are no zoning laws in Lebanon by a majority of voters several times over. This can be a good thing to townspeople who want to start a business without the expense of licensing or legal fees, but it can be a bad thing to as companies looking to build large businesses start to realize that as long as their building is up to code, they can build whatever sized building they like and operate whatever business in that building that they want to. There is no pre-approval needed from voters. There is no comprehensive plan in place. There are no guidelines for Selectmen or Planning Board to follow the will of the taxpayers.
So just what IS the will of the taxpayers??
We don't honestly know because in a town of almost 7,000 people, less than 1,500 have been showing up to vote.
Your vote is your town government's bond. By voting, you are speaking to your town officials, planning board, budget committee, road commissioner, school board, code enforcement officer, town clerk and treasurer. Without your vote, they can only operate on their own instinct and their feeling of what is best for the taxpayers. Sometimes you are blessed by voting the right people into office that truly have their finger on the pulse of what taxpayers want, and other times you vote in your buddies and friends who are operating under an agenda of a small group of taxpayers rather than looking at the whole of the greater good of all the residents. It is a weak link in the structure of a town, when registered voters only show up to be sure that their friend or neighbor is voted into a town office when the candidate is not educated enough in town proceedings to come into office on their very first day and understand what is happening and what has been happening, within the borders of town and within the walls of the office.
Voting is different from coffee shop chance meetings. A worthy candidate should be educated enough to read, write and have a basic understanding of how to use common everyday technology. A worthy candidate should have attended months worth of meetings as an observer and have specific goals and ideas on things that have happened in past years and how to prevent mistakes from happening, and how to encourage other people to become involved. They should be educators and willing to share honestly the laws and bylaws that govern the town. They should be well versed and even immersed in studying for the position they are about to enter into. "I'm voting for my next door neighbor because he (or she) is so nice," is wonderful, IF you can also add, "and they really know how to budget." or write complete motions, or understand the problems of town.......
In the upcoming months, the November election process should become very important to every taxpayer and resident of Lebanon. You will begin to see increased discussions at the Selectmen's Meetings regarding proposed ordinances (which are policies that can ONLY be changed by a majority vote of registered voters), and policies (which are put into place by the Selectmen in order to compliment laws and ordinances passed by the voters) and amendments (which are changes to already existing ordinances).
Your Town Clerk is beginning to put together information to be presented at a Town Meeting with information on all of the proposed questions on the November ballot. Stop by the Town Office and have a chat with her, talk to your neighbors and get a feel for what they are thinking about the changes, attend the Town Meeting and hear what questions or concerns other townspeople have regarding the proposals.
While I don't doubt that all of the people who already come and vote, or who hold town government office in Lebanon are good friends, neighbors and hard workers, or that they have what they perceive to be the best interest of the taxpayers at hand, I would much rather that they hear from each of you what you would like rather than having to pin their own agenda on your shoulders, hoping that they know and understand your heart and mind and desires for the town you live in.
Lebanon IS growing. Just like every other small town in southern Maine. There's no way to escape it as the United States population grows and begins to look for land to build homes and businesses. Many people are starting to take notice of the lack of zoning, business licensing, and law enforcement in Lebanon. As the towns who do not have rules are growing fewer and fewer, the people looking to skip past the rules are beginning to notice that Lebanon is here, and that our town land, services, and tax money is ripe for the taking.
Stopping short of promoting anyone else's proposals or agenda's, I'm only going to promote the agenda that should be first and foremost on every taxpayer, resident, and registered voter in Lebanon. This year it seems that we are at a crucial decision making point for our town. I urge each and every one of you to make town issues a priority in your home this voting season. Be aware. Take the extra minute to ask a question. Stop for a minute and watch what is happening at Selectmen's Meetings, attend meetings that involve issues that are important to you, attend the Town Meeting this autumn to hear the explanations of things being placed on your ballot, ask questions until you get your answers and understand the effect that each ordinance or budget item could have on your tax rate, your services, or your neighbors.
In short, I'm asking each of you to become good citizens of the Town of Lebanon. I'm asking you to educate yourselves, research, understand what is happening around you and pay attention.
If you think your vote doesn't matter on the national or state level, that's your option. But your vote does matter at the local level. You have the power to speak your mind to your town officials with a small colored in circle on a piece of legal documentation called the ballot.
We at Lebanon Maine Truth Seekers will be alerting you of upcoming meetings where these items will be discussed, and about the date for the Town Meeting. You will also be notified by other members of town government who have an interest in making the November 2015 election turnout one of the largest in recent years. There are going to be many important items on this ballot which will effectively aid your town government in controlling growth, controlling the kinds of growth, and being sure that businesses and gatherings are what the townspeople want and feel are acceptable and accountable.
Be sure to listen. Think about this. Speak about things with your children, friends and family, and then attend the November 2015 election and vote your decisions.
You may not win. You may not get everything that you think is correct. But if you take the time to be informed, to be smart, and to listen, you may just make this town a better place to live for all of us.
Thank you for reading this. Please consider registering to vote if you have not. Please consider attending your Town Meeting and informational meetings. If you can't attend, watch the video tapes of the meetings to help you form your decisions and then go and vote!!
Sincerely,
Deborah Dorey Wilson
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