Westborough Taxpayers Association

and the Citizens Economic Research Foundation Post Office Box 1147  ●  Marblehead, Massachusetts 01945  ●  (508) 915-3665 “Every Tax is a Pay Cut ... A Tax Cut is a Pay Raise” 36 years as “The Voice of Massachusetts Taxpayers”

Greetings activists and supporters:

Proposition 2½ recently came under attack again, and once again CLT raced to its rescue and saved it.

Now, Prop 2½ is becoming a national model, with a version recently proposed by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. His bold moves since taking office to save his state's taxpayers have the usual tax-borrow-and-spend suspects in the expected frenzy.

As our Proposition 2½ approaches its 30th anniversary this November, too often we hear about what a failure it has become, how everyone's property taxes still increase as if it didn't exist. It's hard for many who were around back then to appreciate how much CLT's Proposition 2½ is saving them. And for those who weren't paying property taxes thirty years ago, or weren't residents of Massachusetts back then -- we'll, you don't know what you don't know. Many simply have no perspective, or no imagination of just how worse things could (likely would) be without it.

Josh Barro, the Walter B. Wriston Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, author of the recent study "Do Property-Tax Caps Work?", wrote:

"Massachusetts had the country’s second-highest property taxes per capita. But since then, property tax growth has been slow — just a 22 percent rise in real terms from 1980 to 2007, compared to 68 percent nationwide and 102 percent in New Jersey."

Those who aren't members of Citizens for Limited Taxation have so very, very much for which to thank those of us who are for saving them billions of their dollars while saving ourselves from a rapacious and insatiable government.

And while on celebrations, CLT's "Friday Morning Group" recently celebrated its 100th monthly meeting.

Citizen for Limited Taxation hosts a meeting of conservative activists from all around the state on the second Friday of every month. The Friday Morning Group (FMG) meets from 9:30 to 11:30 in Lexington by invitation only. We welcome individuals who are politically active in center-right organizations, on town committees, fiscally-conservative candidate campaigns, etc. The meeting is patterned after the Wednesday morning meetings hosted by Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform in Washington, DC. More detail about the issues covered can be found in Grover’s book “Leave Us Alone.”

There are similar “leave us alone coalition” groups in almost every state. Massachusetts has one of the top four or five most active nationally, with an average attendance of over fifty activists.

On May 14th we celebrated the 100th meeting of the group – having scheduled a meeting every month since December 2001. There’s always a guest speaker, along with 8-10 others on the agenda. Grover himself came to help celebrate the 100th as guest speaker; he drew a record crowd of 81 attendees.

Chip Faulkner, CLT associate director hosts the meeting.

You can see Len Mead's photos of that meeting at the CLT website under "Most Recent Updates," and find further information. We also thank Len for the large banner and Sue Blais and Howard Bibeault of the Attleboro Republican City Committee, who brought the big birthday cake and soda. Lastly we appreciate the FMG regular – who wishes to remain anonymous – who paid the May fee for rental of the auditorium.

You should have received our spring membership mailing, or will in the next day or two. It includes a "Revolution 2010" bumper sticker which incorporates CLT's Minute Man logo. We hope you'll display it proudly during this year of "The Second American Revolution," let others who see it on your vehicle know that they are not alone.

And of course, we hope you'll respond with your most generous contribution to keep a struggling CLT at least able to continue struggling a while longer! Especially those many of you who didn't renew your 2010 membership yet this year from the February membership mailing.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Celebrating the 100th meeting of CLT's "Friday Morning Group"

Citizen for Limited Taxation hosts a meeting of conservative activists from all around the state on the second Friday of every month. The Friday Morning Group (FMG) meets from 9:30 to 11:30 in Lexington by invitation only. We welcome individuals who are politically active in center-right organizations, on town committees, fiscally-conservative candidate campaigns, etc. The meeting is patterned after the Wednesday morning meetings hosted by Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform in Washington, DC. More detail about the issues covered can be found in Grover’s book “Leave Us Alone.”

There are similar “leave us alone coalition” groups in almost every state. Massachusetts has one of the top four or five most active nationally, with an average attendance of over fifty activists.

On May 14th we celebrated the 100th meeting of the group – having scheduled a meeting every month since December 2001. There’s always a guest speaker, along with 8-10 others on the agenda. Grover himself came to help celebrate the 100th as guest speaker; he drew a record crowd of 81 attendees.

Chip Faulkner, CLT associate director hosts the meeting. If you want to learn more about the FMG, you can call Chip at 508-915-3665 or email at fjf@cltg.org.

Many thanks to CLT member and FMG regular, Len Mead, for providing the photos here of the meeting. We also thank Len for the large banner and Sue Blais and Howard Bibeault of the Attleboro Republican City Committee, who brought the big birthday cake and soda. Lastly we appreciate the FMG regular – who wishes to remain anonymous – who paid the May fee for rental of the auditorium.