Letter: Resident Sees Board of Ed Misusing Assets to Promote Referendum

How does the BOE justify the use of public assets and the subterfuge of sending its pro-referendum letter to all the schoolchildren parents through its principals?

The failure of the Board to publicly send out notices to every registered voter is reprehensible. BOE elections are notoriously low turnout. Special elections are also low turnout. To mobilize only the parents and remind only the parents is a biased act unto itself. To threaten dire results to be borne by the children of those parents borders on extortion. 

The Board has known for years that various roofs needed repair. They used the money in the budget for maintenance for other things or didn't include money for those repairs in the next budget. They now are faced with the fruits of their past bad choices and use public assets to convince voters to remove these costs from the 2% caps. 

The BOE would never allow anyone to use those same assets to campaign against the referendum. It is unfair for the BOE to try to influence the decision of the voters. They represent all the people of Westfield and they should not be suffered to use public assets to further their position. Their position should be that they will do the will of all the people as they are directed.

A. John Blake