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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Flint budget deficit deepensUpdated at 02:28 PM today
Tags:budget, flint, state government, local, angela brown
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Angela Brown
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FLINT (WJRT) -- (01/05/11) -- A new report puts Flint's budget deficit at $17 million.
Auditors combined past and present administration deficits to come up with the number.
Flint City Council financial chairman Josh Freeman says the city has 90 days to put together a deficit reduction plan that could include a bond, new taxes, cuts and employee concesions
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If the city can't fix its budget, the state could take over city operations. "If we don't balance the budget, then the state's gonna come in and take over and they'll balance the budget," Freeman said.
"A person that's just is here to look at that bottom line isn't gonna care whether we have 122 officers on the street, which is what we have now, or we have 15 officers on the street. Their job is to get that balance to zero."
To make the money crunch worse, decreasing property values mean less revenue will be collected from property taxes.
ABC12's Angela Brown says unless something changes in the next few months, the city may not be able to meet payroll.
(Copyright ©2011 WJRT-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
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Wed Jan 05, 2011 3:15 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Flint officials to hear audit presentation; Deficit expected to be about $17 million
Published: Wednesday, January 05, 2011, 3:09 PM Updated: Wednesday, January 05, 2011, 3:10 PM
By Kristin Longley | Flint Journal
FLINT, Michigan — The city's annual financial audit is scheduled to be presented tonight to the Flint City Council at a committee meeting.
City officials said the audit is expected to show Flint's total deficit is about $17 million — not more than $20 million as previously projected.
Councilman Joshua Freeman, chairman of the council's finance committee, said the audit will paint a clearer picture of the city's financial situation.
"Better than bad is still bad," Freeman said of the new deficit projections. "We still have a significant structural deficit."
The meeting starts at 5 p.m. tonight at Flint City Hall, 1101 S. Saginaw St.
Flint Mayor Dayne Walling said he still plans to ask the state to approve a fiscal stabilization bond, which will allow the city to borrow money to pay off the deficits. The bond payments could be made over a longer period of time, up to 15 or even 20 years, he said.
Walling also plans to again ask city council members t put a public safety millage on the ballot for voters to consider.
Instead of a 6-mill proposal, which council members vetoed, he said other options will be discussed.
New options could include a 4-mill public safety tax proposal or putting a "menu" of options on the ballot for voters to individually consider. Those could include renewal of the current 2-mill community policing tax, a jail millage and a police millage increase, he said.
"It really needs to go to the voters," Walling said. "We all want to see as many police officers on the streets as we can." |
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Wed Jan 05, 2011 3:24 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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City of Flint's largest union reaches tentative agreement on contract concessions
Published: Wednesday, January 05, 2011, 3:37 PM Updated: Wednesday, January 05, 2011, 3:37 PM
By Kristin Longley | Flint Journal
FLINT, Michigan — The city of Flint has reached a tentative agreement on concessions with its largest union, AFSCME Local 1600, officials said today.
Flint Mayor Dayne Walling said the agreement is a "double-digit concession," but declined to discuss details of the proposal until the employees have had a chance to review it.
Walling made the announcement at a press conference, flanked by members of the union and members of his administration.
Larry Roehrig, secretary-treasurer of Michigan AFSCME Council 25, said the union understands the city's financial situation and didn't engage in "adversarial" negotiations with the city.
"As members of the workforce and taxpaying public we have an obligation to do everything in our power to be fair and honest and recognize the good times and well as the bad times," he said.
The city recently reached a tentative agreement with the firefighters union, which was later voted down by the employees.
Roehrig said the AFSCME collective bargaining team will hold informational meetings with members beginning next week before members vote on the package. He said local union officials will be encouraging members to support the proposal.
"We are fully in favor of this agreement being ratified," he said.
The union has about 380 members, Walling said. Local 1600's contract expired in June, and officials have been at the bargaining table since, he said.
Walling said the agreement shows a "spirit of cooperation" he hopes will continue into the new year.
"It's great to start off on a positive high note," Walling said. "They understand city finances, they understand the needs of our residents and they've come forward in good time with a solid proposal." |
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Wed Jan 05, 2011 3:58 pm |
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00SL2
F L I N T O I D
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How about some ideas for cutting expenses. I'll start:
1. Close the mini-stations, there aren't enough volunteers to staff them and there is no support available from the Police Department. I know one is "rent free" but it must have utility and phone expenses. So must the others.
2. Put the ombudsman's office on the ballot again.
3. Turn off the arch lights on Saginaw Street, especially the Christmas bulbs, to save money. Turn off lights not being used, except for safety.
4. Renegotiate the Complete Auto contract out of necessity. I know nothing of this personally but have heard voices complaining loudly about the exorbitant cost.
5. Reduce health care premiums for employees. What company is their insurer?
Webs, which appointments by the mayor could be safely eliminated or consolidated? |
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Sun Jan 09, 2011 12:57 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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AFSCME local 1600 successfullly reduced health care costs for current employees. Legacy costs for retiree health care (in part from the early retirements) are putting a burden on the pension system which I believe must be borne by the administration per the contracts. Remember the sensational Journal stories years ago about police , such as Gary Dickenson, retiring with a pension greater rhan his salary. So far the pension sysem has made good decisions on investments. Hurley did not meet their payments into the system and moved to the state sytem.
Rhoda Mathews could be eliminated legitimately as she is no longer workng in a recognized position that was approved by council. That goes for Tracy Atkinson and some others. It appaears Dawn Jones is now in a contractual relationship and I am unsure if that contract was approved per council as required by ordinance,
Word is there is a new monitoring report issued by HUD's Steve Spencer that is critical of the DCED epartments lack of knowlwdge. Those new hires were ruled unnecessary by a judge that I believe was an Administrative Law Judge. Eason and Walling continue to keep them and have laid off those who have the knowledge.
Give council the cajones to challenge Walling as they did Williamson and other mayors.
The mini-stations are not being usd and were a waste of resources. The administrations interference caused at least one effective mini station to almost shut down.
The investigator of the Ombudsman is a fool. I have seen at least 3 so called investigations that she totally screwed up by trying to be conciliatory. If Brenda Purifoy is that afraid of losing her job then the position needs to go. It was viable in the past but has beena failure for the past 12 years. One reason for the failure is the setting of a racial and gender preference for the position instead of looking at qualifications. Everything with council is about race.
The FBI should investigate this Complete contract and others.
Almost all of the unions have come up with cost saving plans which have been ignored by almost every administration. Perhaps it is time to listen to them!
These are my opinions. |
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Sun Jan 09, 2011 1:59 pm |
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