by Joe Gervais

In Arlington, there has been much blame cast about following the issuing of property tax bills with a staggering increase in the town tax rate this past September. I appeared at a selectboard meeting shortly following the release of the bill, and asked what happened? Furthermore, why didn’t the selectboard explain what happened proactively?

Following the meeting, the selectboard wrote and issued a letter to the townspeople, but the letter still left questions as to what really happened and the ultimate responsibility for the error.  

Currently, there is a ballot initiative to ask the citizens if the town treasurer should be an appointed position. I’ve been asked my opinion on the issue, and I have to ask, what problem are we trying to solve? Are there issues with how the money is being managed? Timely audits of the town financial records would provide clarity on that matter. Until this fall, the town had not done a financial audit since 2016, even though the town elected a new treasurer five years ago. The town auditor was just completing an audit for the 2021 and 2022 fiscal years.

As a past board member of a non-profit with a $40 million annual revenue stream, we ensured we had timely annual audits of the books. This is especially critical when there are significant personnel changes in the finance function of an organization like a new treasurer.  These audits are the only way a board can demonstrate to its constituents that finances are being managed appropriately. The Selectboard is ultimately responsible for the audit process.  

Concerns have been voiced about the working relationship between the elected treasurer and the selectboard. As an elected official, the treasurer does not report to the selectboard. This means that influence-based leadership needs to be used by the selectboard to have relationship with the treasurer and leverage that relationship towards common goals. Influence-based leadership is a skill I honed leading volunteers in the South Pacific while living in Arlington.

Both the treasurer and the selectboard have common constituents – the townspeople of Arlington that elected both entities. Furthermore, the town treasurer has legal requirements based on state statutes.  

We are entering a challenging fiscal season. The federal government has not slowed down spending since 2020, and is currently spending two trillion dollars a year in excess of revenue. In Vermont, we have seen spending grow from 6 billion to 8.5 billion dollars a year in that same period. The state legislature does not appear to want to temper that spending.

The state legislature is currently exploring creative ways to tax the citizenry to avoid directly raising the school tax rate by the required 18.5% to cover unfunded mandates that were put into law in previous legislative sessions. Citizens only have so much capacity for increased taxation at the local, state and federal level.  

As a selectboard member I can’t impact taxation at the state and federal level. I can work to ensure Arlington’s budget is prudent. I can also work to improve the relationship between the selectboard and town treasurer. Whether the treasurer is elected or appointed, the selectboard still has work to do on timely audits to ensure our financial reports accurately represent the town’s finances.

We are ending a season of significant pandemic money from the federal government, taxed out of the townspeople’s other pocket, and need to adjust to this new reality without these funds. As a small business owner, a past non-profit board member, and a caring member of the community, I intend to serve my fellow townspeople with excellence. 

Joe Gervais is an Arlington resident currently running for Selectboard.