Fuller’s “Strong City” view ignores taxpayers

By Mark Cestari

I read with astonishment Mayor Ruthanne Fuller’s “The state of the city is strong” column. While the mayor sounded many dog whistles of self-praise for Newton’s stellar service to her key fan groups, social service activists, seniors, affordable housing proponents, policemen, teachers, and green fanatics, one constituency remained conspicuously absent from her tributes. Newton’s taxpayers!

Yes, taxpayers, the investors and underwriters of Fuller and her comrades on the City Council’s endless array of spending, pay raises, bloated capital projects which are driving taxes through the roof. Newton’s “spending addiction,” compounded by new tax law limiting state and local property tax (SALT) deductions to $10,000, are driving hard-working Newton residents to the poor house, or exiting altogether to lower tax locations.

Fuller was fast to fawn over Newton’s gold-plated public schools. What with our $200 million-dollar high school, a plagiarist superintendent knocking down a quarter million a year and pay raises of up to 6% in the 2015-18 labor contracts, we truly should expect high-honors all around. But despite spending considerably MORE per student than most towns in MA, Newton students have much lower MCAS scores in both Math and Science, than counterparts in Hingham, Winchester, Hopkinton, Belmont and Westford. Newton will also shell out $9.9 million in FY 2019 rolling out the red carpet and providing free education for out-of-district students.

One of Fuller’s most farcical “strong city” assertions is sustainability, one of every social justice warrior’s favorite words and typically a guaranteed recipe for never-ending tax increase, overrides, usage fees and even bag surcharges. In her article, Fuller referred to “financial sustainability,” which is quite humorous given $305+ million net underfunded pension liability, $635 million net underfunded OPEB (retiree healthcare) liability, or just under $940 Million combined. That’s $30K in debt over the head of each household in Newton.

Perhaps the worst Fuller falsehood is that Newton’s tax deferral program “won’t force our elders to move away.” This is like Macy’s jacking up prices, then raising my credit card limit and then calling it a sale! When I bought my Newton home in 2004 my property tax was $5K. This year it will surpass $10K, with no end in sight. That is not “sustainable,” it is confiscatory.

Mayor Fuller, the best way to make Newton “strong” is to cut spending and work to make it affordable.

Mark Cestari has lived in Newton since 1995 and is an officer in the Newton Taxpayers Association