By Meredith McCulloch
Representative Ken Gordon and Senator Michael Barrett presented to the Selectman on September 8 a plaque commemorating the successful passage of MGLA Chapter 173, 2014, which makes permanent state financial support of Bedford’s cost of educating high school students from Hanscom Air Force Base. The law will bring at least $517,000 per year to the town beginning July 1, 2014. [See: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/SessionLaws/Acts/2014/Chapter173]
This has been a long sought outcome involving many town boards and officials. In his opening words, Rep. Gordon noted that when first elected two years ago he and Senator Barrett were tasked to secure this funding on a permanent basis rather than year-to-year. The Selectmen listed it as their top priority at a meeting on December 6, 2012.
The plaque contains an original signed copy of the legislation and even the accompanying signing pen, duly mounted and framed. “The pen still has Governor Patrick’s finger prints on it,” Barrett quipped.
Commenting on the community-wide effort, Gordon listed the many town officials who had worked toward its passage. They included past and current Selectmen Catherine Cordes, William Moonan, Michael Rosenberg, and Mark Siegenthaler, plus School Committee members Ann Guay, Ann Bickford, Ed Pierce, and Michael McAllister, Finance Committee members Mike Seibert and Richard Bowen plus Superintendent Jon Sills and Town Administrator Rick Reed.
In a subsequent telephone conversation with Richard Bowen of the Finance Committee, Bowen recalled that former Representative Charles Murphy was successful in creating a line item in the state budget for “impact aid” for towns with military base students. Bedford and Bourne (adjacent to Otis Air Force Base) are the two Massachusetts towns that frequently sought financial assistance for education of students of military families.
In recent years the state has contributed approximately $400,000 toward Bedford’s expenses, but as a line item it had to be appropriated on an annual basis and was vulnerable to reduction or elimination in lean years.
The Town actively pursued permanent funding by forming a Strategic Communications Committee of which Bowen was a member. It oversaw a paid lobbyist from Rasky Baerlein Strategic Communications Inc., which over three years advised the Town on the effort.
On July 22, 2014 Gordon and Barrett, working with colleagues and several legislative committees, completed the charge given to them in December 2012 by the Selectmen to secure permanent funding.
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