Lisa Valone of Wayland takes a stand.
(Boston Globe Photo / Josh Reynolds)
It's one of those labels that just might stick: Override mom.
The Globe used that phrase last Sunday in a front-page story that generated strong reaction from readers. Override moms are sort of like soccer moms, with economics on the brain. They're suburban women who are lobbying for millions in property tax increases to pay for teachers, new school buildings, and classroom gear.
Callers, e-mail writers, and bloggers responded with largely heated opinions, split between those who want more town services for their families, and others who want to avoid paying more taxes.
"No one likes to pay taxes," said Jayne Adelman of Lexington. "[My husband] and I struggle each year to figure out how to pay our tax bill. I sometimes think of moving out of Lexington to a community where the taxes might be lower. If I stand on a corner with these people, it is not because I am a mom for more taxes. That is ridiculous and absurd. I would carry a sign because I believe that we as human beings have an obligation to take care of one another and to provide basic human and social services for one another."
But, as we learned from readers' reactions, not everyone sees the sign-toting activists as community heroes, especially defenders of the Proposition 2 1/2 law, passed in 1980, which caps property tax increases at 2.5 percent per year.
Override moms "are obsessed with what they want for their kids, which is a private-school experience that they don't have to pay for themselves," Barbara Anderson, executive director of an advocate group called Citizens for Limited Taxation, was quoted as saying in Sunday's story.
Some readers agreed that the women were going too far, including 78-year-old Patricia Waite Petrilli of Wellesley, a town that has passed six overrides since 2000.
"These are people with their oversize vans, oversize homes, and more bathrooms than children telling the rest of us to vote for another override," she wrote in an e-mail. "No one deserves the best if it is at the expense of others."
But others applauded the efforts, including a senior citizen from Belmont, who wrote in an e-mail: "I feel it is my responsibility to help pay for the same school services my parents and I received at that stage in our own lives."
A number of the mothers in the Globe story were from Natick - a suburb that has enjoyed five override-free years thanks to a vigorous commercial tax base and last year's arrival of the ultra-luxury mall, the Natick Collection. Few in town are eager to pay more this year.
This reporter first encountered them a few weeks ago during an off-duty Saturday morning stroll through Natick Center. On every corner, it seemed, there was a woman or two holding blue "Vote Yes!" signs and passing out informational fliers about the town's override vote on March 25.
They were passionate and enthusiastic. Nearly all were mothers of elementary school pupils who had come to politics through the schools, but were now worried about cuts to schools, the library, the town DPW, and other services, should the $3.9 million question fail.
But plenty of residents don't agree that more taxes are the answer.
"Natick is a very good place with a lot of good things, but mommy activists are not one of them. Overrides seem to be their solution to everything," wrote Ed Lawrence, 49, of Natick.
"I'm old enough to remember when Prop. 2 1/2 first passed. I remember all the scare tactics used by people in power. The mommy activists are using the same tactics today: 'It will be the end of the world if the override fails.' Well, maybe not," Lawrence wrote.
In Newton, which is girding for an override vote expected to be at least $10 million, the issue was also grist for debate late last week on a neighborhood chat board.
"It would be nice if these moms were also pushing for innovation and creative thinking about finances so overrides wouldn't be necessary," wrote Emily Norton.
Another Newton chatter suggested those who want to pay more for the schools should do so, but anti-override residents could opt out of more taxes. "It would be a very honest and fair solution," the board participant wrote.
Whether you agree or disagree with overrides, the issue isn't going away: At least 40 cities and towns in Eastern Massachusetts expect to put an override question on their spring ballots. If the questions pass, taxpayers across the state will pay at least another $50 million in property taxes for fiscal year 2009.
What do you think? Is Proposition 2 1/2 still an important way to keep property taxes under control? Do Massachusetts cities and towns need a new approach to municipal budgets? Where should the money come from? E-mail enoonan@globe.com if you have thoughts for a follow-up story.
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
