Name: Dan King,

Office sought: Board of Assessors

Address: 224 Main Street, Kingston

Telephone: 781-936-8099

Occupation: Minister, First Congregational Parish in Kingston. Retired attorney & Manager in various capacities (1975-94); inactive member, State Bar of Texas, SC State Bar

Family: Age 59 (born 1949) Marietta GA, attended GA public schools 1955-1967 (US Presidential Scholar, 1967).
Married to Mary Annina Benedetto since 1976, 2 married children, 2 grandsons

Education: College:

• Rice University, Houston TX 1967-71, BA - National Merit Scholar (major courses in govt., history, & languages, Outstanding Student, Phi Delta Pi honor society)

Graduate Schools:

• University of Georgia, 1971-2 (research assistant- major courses in international govt. studies)
• University of Texas Law School 1972-5, J.D. (Strasberger Scholar, major courses in taxation, govt. policy, corporations, etc.)
• University of Texas McCombs School of Business, 1975-6 (major courses in organizational management, real estate, etc.)
• Graduate Theological Union: Starr King School for Ministry, 1994-7, M.Div. (major courses in practical theology, counseling, etc.)

Public Service Background:

• Elected Graduate Student Senator, University of Texas (1975-76)
• Appointed volunteer member, alternative revenue committee for the City of Austin, TX ( 1974-6)
• Tax Examiner, US Internal Revenue Service Regional Office, Austin, TX (1976-7)
• Assistant Attorney General, Public Finance Division, State of Texas (1977-9)
• Attorney-Advisor, US Small Business Administration, SC (1987-8)

Community Service:

• Jones River Village Historical Society (2007-date)
• Plymouth Area Interfaith Clergy Association (2007- date)
• District VP, denominational Ministers’ Association (2007-date)
• Treasurer, Cedar Hill Retreat Center, Inc., Duxbury MA (current)
• Rotary International, Columbia SC (1987-91), Augusta GA (2004-06), Plymouth MA (2007-date)
• Rice University Alumni Interviewer Volunteer (1986-date)
• Albany HS Community Board of Trustees, Albany CA (1995-97)
• Friends of Library Board of Trustees, Columbia SC (1982-7) incl. Treasurer, VP, & President
• Western NC Environmental Alliance Board, Asheville NC (1992-4) incl. President
• Sierra Club Life Member since 1985; NAACP Silver Life Member since 1998; ACLU Member since 1975

Political Activities:

• Candidate for City Council, Austin TX (1977) - came in 2nd to long-time incumbent with 20% of vote using only $40 in expenses
• Precinct election official, Austin TX (1974); Columbia SC (1986-90)
• Precinct President, Columbia SC (1987-91)
• SC 2nd District Congressional Campaign issues coordinator, (1988, 1990)
• SC State Coordinator for Sen. Paul Simon primary campaign (1987-88)

What are the four top issues facing the board you seek ?

1. General lack of faith in government accountability and efficiency overall, at all levels of government.
2. General concerns about taxation levels and equitable assessments as market values have fluctuated.
3. General concerns about perceived fairness in application of abatements.
4. Perceived lack of transparency in Board meeting schedules, procedures which may intimidate the public.

How will you address these issues if you are elected ?
As a newcomer to the Town, I believe I can bring new energy and fresh perspectives to the special problems and concerns which have come from the serious economic disruptions of the past two years. I hope that we can move beyond “business as usual” to make sure that it is more obvious that equality before the law is the first principle of Town government in general, and the Board of Assessors specifically.

With my broad and deep background in law, business, management, and government at all levels, I believe I can bring an attentive and empathetic approach to the judgment calls which confront the Board of Assessors in maintaining the procedures and policies of applicable law and regulations in a fair and unbiased way.

In this way, by building upon the foundation established by a long history of competence and accuracy in the Assessors’ office, I hope to participate in maintaining and improving the Board’s perceived transparency, visibility, credibility, and accountability to the public.

Name: Andrew MacInnis

Office sought: Assessor

Address: 133 Wolf Pond Road Kingston

Telephone: 508.280.4451

Occupation: Real Estate Title Examiner

Age: 43

Family: Wife: Angelyn Daughters: Liz (7), Callie (5)

Place of birth: Holyoke, MA Raised in Brockton, MA

Education: Assoc. Degree in business, NE Institute of Tech

Previous public service: none

Membership/Community Service/Activities:
Active in neighborhood association. Supporter of Kingston Youth Soccer.

Have you ever run for political office before?  No

What are the four top issues facing the board you seek ?
The board is responsible for the equitable valuation of all real and personal property in accordance with state statutes. The members will review and decide on local abatement issues. This includes: signing commitments, examining recent real estate sales data, and responding to correspondence directed to the board.

How will you address these issues if you are elected ?
During the current economic outlook, assessments are becoming more of a focus.  With my current 18 years as a real estate title examiner, I understand the technical issues in respect to real estate properties. Should I be elected to this position, I feel I will bring a new perspective and support to the board.

Name: Nancy Shea

Office: Assessor

Address: 54 Shore Drive

Phone: 781-585-5273

Occupation: Retired

Age: 57

Family: My Mother and three sisters living in Southeastern Mass

Place of Birth: Plainfield, N.J.

Education: BA from Harvard; JD (Law Degree) from Stanford

Previous Public/Community Service: I was appointed to the Board of Assessors by the Board of Selectmen in June 2008, and have been serving since. I have also been a volunteer Assistant Shellfish Warden for Kingston since June 2006. Before moving to Kingston, I was a Big Sister for the Big Brothers Big Sisters Organization. My dog, Dickens, and I are a trained therapy dog team.

Previous public service: I have not run for political office before.

Top Four Issues Facing the Board:
For the Board of Assessors, the main issues are: (1) to give Kingston citizens confidence that our process is fair and impartial; (2) to reflect the real world in our assessments; (3) to explain our system to taxpayers so they know their rights; and (4) to make the assessment process as transparent as possible.

How will you address these issues if you are elected?  
For the Board of Assessors, I think the number one job is to give the citizens of Kingston confidence that the assessment process is fair, impartial, and accurate.   To do that, we first need to keep up with the real world of today’s real estate market, and reflect those values in our assessments. I’m not a real estate professional – I’m just a homeowner like many of the voters -- and I see real estate prices dropping just like they do.

econd, we need to reach out to explain the process to citizens, so that people understand their rights and don’t feel intimidated. I have gone into the field on home inspections to answer taxpayers’ questions, and I want to see the Board hold “open house” events so we can explain things like how we set values, how to apply for an exemption, and how to challenge your assessment if you feel it’s wrong.

Finally, we should make the assessment process as transparent as possible. One step would be to get Kingston’s property assessment data base on-line, where taxpayers can use it from the privacy of their own homes. Right now, with economic times so tough, we don’t have money in the budget for this. But I will work to get us on-line as soon possible.