Exeter

Exeter Warrant Article 44 asks voters to support a resolution for state leaders to reject the "Pledge" and to have an open discussion covering all taxing options, and to adopt a revenue system that lowers property taxes. A group of senior citizens that has been meeting regularly since last spring primarily to discuss the presidential primary has now focused on this article. We all support it, and have reviewed the major arguments for changing tax policy away from heavy reliance on property taxes. We are preparing a letter to the local newspaper urging Exeter residents to support this warrant, and we are circulating information about the article through some local churches' weekly bulletins. We will also contact our local state Senator and representatives urging them to NOT take the pledge in the fall election campaign, promising our hard work and support for those candidates who support the fair tax article. Our long-range goal is for a revised tax system in this state which will provide better services to residents, particulary in education. We feel it is the social responsibility for state government to provide services which are not funded or underfunded by our current tax system.

A citizen’s petition before voters in March, Article 40, asks if they support directing the Exeter Board of Selectmen to charge neighboring towns for mutual aid services provided by the town’s fire and ambulance services.
This is something that has never been done by the Town of Exeter and should never be done. Mutual Aid is just that, mutual. It is provided by Exeter in some cases and to Exeter in others. Mutual aid is requested when a community needs assistance due to a fire, flood, car accident or multiple calls where the community’s resources are not enough to handle the situation effectively and safely. There is no fire department that I know of that has enough personnel and equipment to handle every incident. And to adequately staff and equip any one municipality to handle any and all incidents would be cost prohibitive. We are lucky that fire departments across the Seacoast, and country, have long had a mutual aid policy, which allows towns to provide services to residents while at the same time staying within a budget.
Some are concerned about the cost to the town of Exeter when mutual aid is provided. The town’s ambulance sends a bill for each and every call they respond to, whether it originates in Exeter or another town. This brings in money to the town through ambulance billing to users and their insurance companies. In 2006 we had income, after expenses, of $2,486 and in 2007 income of $4,347. Exeter does not however charge for fire apparatus when it goes mutual aid. No other town charges us when we receive it either. In 2006, mutual aid calls made up 3.9 percent of the total emergency calls the town responded to and 3.8 percent in 2007. We are also able to cover our cost of sending mutual aid to our neighboring communities. If we were to start charging other communities I’m sure that they would begin to charge the town of Exeter. There will be no free ride for the town of Exeter. Not only will we lose income but a new line will appear in our budget for mutual aid expenses. There is no way to predict the expense this could bring to the town. An example of mutual aid provided to Exeter can be seen in the tremendous manpower sent to help Exeter when the Presbyterian Church on Front Street burned several years ago.
This citizen’s petition article has gotten the attention of State Fire Marshal J. William Degnan who sent a letter to the board of selectmen speaking of his concerns with the intent of this article. Degnan cautioned the board that charging for mutual aid puts fire officers in a dangerous position of having to make decisions of public safety based on finances. For example, a town that has seen more mutual aid costs in their budget might be hesitant to call for help, when it is truly needed, if there is a concern about having enough money in the budget to pay those other fire departments.
A study of the Exeter Fire Department recently conducted by MMA Consulting Group Inc,. actually recommended expanded the current mutual aid plan to include automatic mutual aid to certain communities or calls. This would be done to get appropriate aid to the scene as quickly as possible, as well as to deliver additional emergency responders to a large incident requiring more personnel than Exeter has available. This expanded service would be very cost effective because mutual aid is currently free.
Mutual Aid requests in Exeter are based on safety, and should not be about money. We call enough apparatus and personnel to account for the safety of the residents of Exeter and our own fire fighters. No town can stand on it’s own and Exeter is no exception. Please support the Exeter Fire Department and vote NO on article 40 on March 11.
Ken Berkenbush is the assistant fire chief for the town of Exeter

I signed the petition article for a dog park to be created in town. There is enough town-owned land that a portion of it could be fenced off safely for this purpose. A women's group in town has already volunteered to provide funding towards the construction.
The town of Exeter has already received a grant to develop a "plan for pet waste" which impacts local water quality when not picked up. http://www.town.exeter.nh.us/stormwater/index.cfm
Dog waste can pose a serious health risk due to the large number parasites that can remain in the soil for many years. Responsible pet owners would be the primary users of a dog park, where waste clean up is enforced strictly.

Portsmouth's dog park has the following rules: Clean up after your dog. No unsupervised children under 12. No children under 6. Remove all spike and choke collars. Dogs need collar with ID license and vaccination tags. Dog to be controlled by voice. No dogs left unattended. No puppies under four months. Limit of three dogs per person. Use park at own risk. Owners responsible for all dog actions. No glass, littering or motor equipment. Dog with bite history must be muzzled. Dogs in park must be spayed or neutered.

Their website talks about fostering responsible pet ownership: http://www.portcitydogs.org/html/dog_park_renovation.html
From the messes left on my property from the neighborhood dog owners who refuse to clean up after them (especially the 3-legged dog) - we could use a little more role modeling in town.

A citizen's petition article on the 2008 Town Warrant asks voters to approve charging for fire and ambulance services rendered to other communities by the Exeter Fire Department. Many erroneous facts and figures were tossed around by the petitioner to support such a move.
A little history: Mutual aid has been around the seacoast for over 60 years.
Exeter was a charter member of the first mutual aid system under the Interstate Emergency Unit where communities would assist other member communities in times of need.
More recently, Exeter Fire was also a charter member when the Seacoast Chief Fire Officers Association formed a three-state mutual aid district with the same purpose, to help each other in times of need. This latest agreement has been formally approved and recognized by the state attorneys general office, the secretary of state, and the state fire marshal, and as such is considered a municipality under the NH RSAs.
Mutual aid as we know it is an excepted pracrise across the country, and involves big cities right down to the smallest towns. No one entity can afford the staff nor the equipment to handle every emergency situation. Thus the need for mutual aid.
These mutual aid agreements are quite simply insurance; in fact, catastrophic insurance. In Exeter's case, the cost to taxpayers is nothing. Although the department responded to more than twice as many mutual aid calls as it received in 2006 and 2007, it turned over to the Exeter general fund more than $6,500 above the cost of giving mutual aid. This surplus money is the result of Exeter (as do other towns) charging for mutual aid ambulance calls.
One neighboring fire chief told me if Exeter started charging for mutual aid then you'd better believe "I'll start charging double." One can easily see where such a move is headed.
Make no mistake about it; this is a win-win for Exeter. Catastrophic insurance at no cost to taxpayers. Now there's a true bargain!
I urge you to vote no on Article 40 Tuesday.
Harry Thayer
Deputy Chief
Exeter Fire Department

Let's not get all in a dither on this one. We bought this site as a Town. We must insure the Barn is preserved and not lost to fire.This is short money to preserve and protect this property.Vote yes!