Here are the unofficial results.
There were 5411 votes cast.
Q1a ($4MM override)
YES 1779
NO 3610
Q1b ($6.5MM override)
YES 1466
NO 3911
Obviously this is not the outcome we were hoping for our town.
We knew this was going to be a tough battle. We were told that the number was too high, that the town needed more time to feel the pain of inadequate funding, and that Norton had never passed an operational override. But we persisted, because we didn't want to see the across-the-board cuts and degradation of services both in town and at the schools in the coming year. We persisted to invest in our town and move it forward. We persisted because we can't keep doing the same thing and expect different results.
We are thankful to everyone who came out to vote, engaged in discussions with friends and neighbors, and supported or volunteered with this campaign. We'd like to recognize the NTA/MTA who also worked tirelessly to spread the word and get out the vote.
In the days and weeks ahead, there is still work to be done! We must all work together to keep Norton moving forward. How can you help?
Consider volunteering on a town committee - Check the town website for openings.
Run for office in the spring - There will be seats for Select Board and School Committee. We need to have leadership in town that will move the town forward.
Attend town meetings - meetings are held in the spring and fall.
We hope that our town’s elected leaders, our Boards and Committees, and our neighbors and friends come together to work towards real solutions for our town. Our shared vision for Norton’s well-being can be realized more effectively when we work together!
Following the passing of the $4M and $6.5M override budgets at Town Meeting on May 28th, the Select Board voted to schedule a Special Election for Saturday, July 13 from 8am - 5pm at the Norton Middle School and include both amounts on the ballot. Absentee voting is also available. A specimen ballot is posted on our Voter Information page. We encourage you to vote YES on both the $4M and $6.5M questions to support our town. See our budget and FAQ pages for details.
Investing Today for a Stronger Tomorrow: Everyone FOR Norton!
Norton faces a crucial decision regarding an override to finance its annual operating budget. The current levy limit (maximum property tax collection) is insufficient to cover inflation in costs like labor and utilities. Without a step up in the levy limit, important services will be affected, including the School Department, Fire and Police Departments, new Senior Center, and others. Residents are encouraged to educate themselves, attend town meetings, and spread awareness to build a brighter future for Norton.
Inflation’s Impact: For 42 years, unlike area towns, Norton has never adjusted its levy limit to match inflation. This has gradually eroded our ability to maintain vital services.
Break the Cycle: Past override attempts have been turned down, pushing the problem onto future generations - onto us and our children. Voting “No” is how we got here. We can break this cycle now.
A Long Term Solution: We've avoided more significant cuts by using grants, one-time funds, and our savings. But these are short term solutions and not sustainable.
Say YES FOR NORTON!:
No one likes paying higher taxes.
But we love it when police and fire and the ambulance get there quickly.
We love when our children get a well rounded education including languages and music and art.
Which is more more important to you?
VOTE YES!
WHY ARE WE HEARING ABOUT AN OVERRIDE THIS YEAR?
Put simply, the amount of money we can raise from property taxes is no longer sufficient to run the day to day services of the town. The levy limit (the maximum amount that the town can collect from property taxes) is not indexed to inflation. Due to Proposition 2 1/2, without an override, that total amount can only be automatically increased each year by up to 2.5%, plus new growth. Unless we have a lot of new growth in town, that 2.5% increase on the existing value of the town is not enough to offset recent high inflation in costs like labor, utilities, insurance, etc. This coupled with a reduction in various Covid-era grants leads us to the situation we are in today.
Without a step up in our levy limit, we will have to eliminate services that our town and students depend upon across various departments.
Numerous towns throughout Massachusetts have enacted one or more overrides since the passage of Proposition 2 1/2 in 1980 to finance their municipal budgets. This year, we face that crucial decision ourselves.
WHAT IS THE AMOUNT OF THE OVERRIDE?
At a joint meeting on April 11th, the decision was made to present 3 budget options to Town Meeting, two of which would require the passage of an override. Ultimately it is up to all of us at Town Meeting (May 28th) to set and approve the budget (or for this year, 3 budget options) and then approve the ballot question for the Proposition 2 1/2 override.
HOW CAN WE SUPPORT EACH OTHER?
First, educate yourself about how our town government works. We have a growing list of FAQs on this site and links to various videos.
Second, attend upcoming town meetings and ask questions, including the all-important "Annual Town Meeting" on May 28th.
Third, spread the word to your friends and neighbors. We all do better when we are better informed.
TOGETHER, WE CAN BUILD A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR NORTON
As you know, override debates can be highly emotional and very personal, given the impacts that overrides have on our families, our finances, our homes, and our hometown. That is not necessarily a bad thing. It is with the free exchange of opinions that many good ideas are generated, and compromises forged. But these debates can cause frustration and division.
So, no matter the results of Saturday’s election, we are calling on all of our town’s elected leaders, our Boards and Committees, and our neighbors and friends to come together to work towards solutions for our town. In the end we all want what we think is best for Norton, and our shared goals can be achieved better together!
Once again, please get out to vote on Saturday!
Everyone For Norton was formed by members of our Norton community with goals of:
First, increasing awareness and understanding of the override issue by sharing information through our social media portals, website, and mailer. Things like breaking down what each budget means with regards to layoffs and impacts to services, a calculator tool to allow residents to estimate the property tax increases for both the $4m and $6.5m overrides, as well as personal impact statements from town employees and residents. There’s a lot of information floating around, and unfortunately some of it is untrue or lacks proper context. We do our best to validate anything we share and cite our sources when doing so. As much as we are advocating for the override to succeed, we very much want to be a resource of good information for anyone looking to learn more.
Second, making sure people vote. Turnout in recent elections and Town Meetings has been disappointingly low. Less than 12% of eligible voters came out for the Annual Town Election this April, with less than 1/2 that many attending our Spring Town Meeting in May. For a town with over 14,000 voters it would be amazing to see at least half of them take part in setting the future of our town.
Recently we mailed information about the upcoming Election to residents of Norton. Please check your mail for a copy or see below.
Want to help support ensuring our Town services are properly funded?
Paid for by Everyone For Norton
Photos used on this site provided courtesy of Laura Gustafson