Wednesday, May 23, 2012
All four members present approve document, second passage to be scheduled.
The Woonsocket School Committee voted for first passage of their draft budget totalling $69,850,000 tonight. School Committee Chair Anita Forcier-McGuire was not present because she and Superintendent Giovanna Donoyan are attending a conference. The remaining members unanimously voted for first passage. The next step in the process, said Committee member Chris Roberts, is second passage, which could happen as early as Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. That vote will be strictly pass/fail, he said. Any needed changes discovered now will be included as an amendment. "What we had last year was unrealistic," Committee Vice Chair Vimala Phongsavanh said. Earlier Wednesday, City Finance Director Thomas Bruce echoed her assessment. He said the…
42.004722
-71.500708
Woonsocket Middle School at Hamlet/Villa Nova
60 Florence Dr, Woonsocket, RI
/articles/woonsocket-school-committee-continues-draft-budget-review
1718836
/locations/7084854
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Bill was held till Woonsocket delegation weighed in with their support.
After hearing the Woonsocket delegation's support for the supplemental tax bill, the House Finance Committee has scheduled a vote on the measure Tuesday. The bill, which would authorize Woonsocket to levy an additional tax on property and motor vehicles to raise up to $6.6 million, was tabled by the Committee on Tuesday, May 15. Larry Berman, communications director for the Speaker, said bill was tabled because nobody from the Woonsocket delegation testified on the bill, which left their position on the measure in doubt. "The House leadership was waiting for them to weigh in on this," Berman said. He said members of the city's delegation have since stated they're in favor of the bill. The vote on the bill (2012-S 2872A), sponsored by …
Ward told members of joint Council, School Committee working session that bill could get second shot.
City Council President John Ward told members of the Council and School Committee Wednesday that the act authorizing the city to issue new tax bills could get another chance May 22. Ward spoke during a Council working session at Town Hall last night, with School Committee Chair Anita Forcier-Mcguire, School Committee Vice Chair Vimala Phongsavanh and Superintendent Giovanna Donoyan present. He said he'd spoken with Rep. Jon Brien (Dist. 50, Woonsocket) earlier Wednesday and had learned the Finance Committee might be considering the act again as early as next Tuesday. The Finance Committee tabled the authorizing legislation Tuesday, May 15. "It usually means that the bill is killed," when a committee tables a bill for further study, said …
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Saturday working session examines line items in determining final figure.
As Woonsocket's School Committee reviewed a draft $64 million budget in advance of an anticipated vote on the document Monday, the final figure was increasing. Nearly two hours in, the Committee had already added two $89,000 elementary school principal positions at Savoy and Harris Schools to the mix, in anticipation of thawing out a hiring freeze. The Committee also added $550,000 for a capital budget, which would cover the biggest ticket item on a laundry list of needed fixes: a new boiler for Bernon Heights Elementary School with a likely cost of $500,000. The original request on the capital budget was $860,000. At $550,000, Superintendent Giovanna Donoyan said, if they are forced to fix the boiler, "If one other thing happens, we'll …
42.004722
-71.500708
Woonsocket Middle School at Hamlet/Villa Nova
60 Florence Dr, Woonsocket, RI
/articles/woonsocket-school-committee-reviews-draft-budget
1718836
/locations/6997518
DonQ
6:21 pm on Thursday, May 24, 2012
Forcier-McGuire and Donoyan wanted to waste taxpayer money so they can get ideas on how to pad the WED budget even more next time around. They are trying to figure out how many more lives they can destroy in this city. more ›