Abuse of Law
There are good ways that a town can raise revenue, such as the growth of its business district to help defray the cost of residential taxes.
And there are bad ways that a town can raise revenue, such as the abuse of regulatory fines for the purpose of fundraising.
Amherst has long had a commitment to a policy of of zero growth, and is now destroying itself financially and abusing every regulatory law on its books as it inevitably slides towards bankruptcy.
As the financial crisis in Amherst Massachusetts deepens the abuse of these regulatory laws increases and the Town becomes an increasingly hostile place to live, do business in, and visit.
Every aspect of Amherst life is becoming controlled by the abuse of the Town’s civil, and this abuse is now destroying the business and personal relationships that they were intending to maintain.
A clear and obvious case of this abuse of regulatory laws is the over-enforcement of parking regulations in Amherst Massachusetts.
As suggested by Claire McGinnis, Parking Ticket hearings officer for the Town of Amherst, she told me that community action is a good way to address the abuse of the parking laws in Town for the purpose of short term town fundraising.
Below find documentation that Amherst Massachusetts is indeed using abusing parking enforcement for the purpose of raising.
As printed in the Town of Amherst 2006 Finance Committee Report:
http://www.amherstma.gov/PDFs/06_Finance_Committee_Report_Part_2_final.pdf
Or locally 06_Finance_Committee_Report_Part_2_final.pdf
New revenues
The Town Manager recently proposed a list of revenue increases totaling over $800,000. However, the list includes some contributions that are still being discussed and some fee increases that are not officially set. The Town Manager suggested and the Finance Committee agrees that an estimate of $700,000 be used in balancing the Town’s budget, assuming that most but not all of the money will actually materialize. The largest amounts of money would come from increased ambulance fees ($100,000), increased parking ticket fines and hourly parking rates ($200,000), other miscellaneous fee increases ($76,000), and use of $285,000 in new revenue and re-appropriation of unspent capital project balances to free up capital plan money for operating budgets. These and other sources of funds would be shared among the municipal, library and school operating budgets.
You had better be careful where you leave your car if you need an ambulance!
As written in the Amherst Select Board minutes:
http://www.amherstma.gov/minutes/view_minutes.asp?id=265
Or locally View_minutes_id=265.pdf
FY 06 Proposed Revenues
Agreed that the goal of the proposed revenues is a total of $700,000. and that the goal of additional parking revenues is a total of approximately $200,000.
Does this imply that we have a goal of inducing more people to park illegally to get this money?
As presented before the Town Meeting:
http://www.amherstma.gov/departments/Town_Clerk/town_meeting/warrantsandresults/110205_Warrant.htm
Or locally Town_Warrant_Nov_2005.pdf
Parking (Select Board)
To see if the Town will amend the Town Bylaws, Article II, Handicapped Parking, by increasing the penalty in Section 2 from $100 to $200.
Does this increase help the Handicapped? Who is being served by this fine doubling?