Kassner claims she’s brought relief to the taxpayers by reducing property taxes, increasing state aid for schools, and reducing the “cost of everyday life.”  Really?

Property taxes have not been reduced – they go up every year.  And every town in the district has been subject to annual requests for Proposition 2 ½ overrides.  Kassner can point to no actual results when it comes to property tax relief.

Kassner claims she “pushed” Chapter 70 funding for the operational expenses of schools from $40 to $160 per pupil, with a further increase of $200 per pupil in 2027. These statewide minimums were already at the $60 level when she took office, and later increases were the result of collaborative efforts by a variety of legislative committees in the House and Senate.  Kassner did not lead or substantively participate in these efforts.  The $200 per pupil minimum was never passed.

The Chapter 70 increase was a statewide budget decision she did not design or lead. More importantly, she points to a higher minimum while showing no district-specific reform to the funding formula that continues to shortchange communities like ours.

Her transportation bill does not fund 100 percent reimbursement. It merely directs DESE to ask the Legislature for the money, and it remains in committee. The primary-care bill was a unanimous House vote and remains unfinished. Chapter 90 was another statewide formula vote, not funding Kassner personally brought home.

Then there is the supposed $16 million, offered without a project list, calculation, timeframe, or accounting of her role.

Requests do not pay local bills. Unfinished legislation does not lower costs. And voting with everyone else is not delivering relief.