No State budget today . . .
Despite working late into the night, our elected State leaders remain deadlocked on bridging the $24 billion budget gap, the product of both years of polarized partisan zealotry and the international fiscal crisis.In Ventura, the City Council adopted a balanced budget back in March, reducing spending by $11 million. We made the hard choices. We are not spending money we don’t have. Barring further deep declines in the economy, we will be able to live within our means for the next two years.
City leaders around the State remain mystified and angry at the continuing resort by State leaders to diverting local revenues to patch the State's budget deficit. San Luis Obispo citizens, for example, three years ago voted a sales tax increase and have responsibly managed their resources to protect their public safety, quality of life and standard of living. Their City Manager, Ken Hampian, yesterday wrote to the Governor:
Governor, as a City Manager, I know that there is great urgency when it comes to the State budget. Here in San Luis Obispo, our City Council recently closed a projected $11.3 million budget gap by doing the hard work of fiscal stewardship – looking people in the eye and making very tough cuts (cuts composed 80% of our gap closing actions), securing “zero year” employee concessions from every bargaining group, raising some revenues, and strategically using our rainy day fund.
While our Council is “non-partisan”, it is composed of Democrats and Republicans and yet these political differences did not stop them from doing what they had to do for the greater good of the communit
y that they represent. When we look toward Sacramento, we see nothing that resembles responsibility stewardship and political compromise for “the greater good.” Instead, we see an endless death spiral of increasingly irresponsible, dogmatic behavior that is driving California (and its communities) off the cliff.We are a national embarrassment. If we saw a shred of hope from our elected officials in Sacramento, we might suggest triggering Proposition 1A. However, borrowing or seizing local government revenues to close a budget gap that has been festering for years due to a completely dysfunctional system of governance is just bad fiscal policy. Based on the lack of political courage in Sacramento, we really have no reason to believe that the State would fulfill its commitment to pay back Proposition 1A funds plus interest, when it matures in three years. And, of course, we have no evidence that the State can afford to do so, even if it wanted to meet its debt obligations.
California needs an honest budget based on integrity not budget gimmicks, which will only threaten investor confidence. I am respectfully asking you to put an end to gimmicks including borrowing or seizing local revenues.
We live in an incredibly diverse State. So the scale of problems is daunting. But isn't it about time that we get leadership from both parties to do what city leaders from both parties are doing all across California? Now is the time to find a way to bridge the partisan gap and balance competing priorities. It's incredibly difficult work. But it's July 1 and the time for excuses, delays or gimmicks has long since passed.
posted by Rick Cole at
9:50 AM
8 Comments:
"We are not spending money we don't have" Sending 6 people to Las Vegas for no apparent result, hiring consultants by the truck load to answer questions that should be answered by the City Employees, thinking about giving Best But a $2,000,000 handout, paying the State of California $1,000,000 per year to maintain our place in the pipeline Que even though we know full well we will never hook up to the state water system. This list of spending money we don't have is endless. Please get a new mantra.
Rellis makes some excellent points here. The City of Ventura has not demonstrated fiscal responsibility in many of its recent decisions, so it shouldn't be acting holier than thou by comparing itself favorably to the State.
Rellis is absolutely right. There is no excuse for sending City Council members on junkets to Washington D.C. and Las Vegas while it's laying off park maintenance workers and cutting police officer and firefighter positions.
Before the City is so quick to criticize the State, it should start looking to make sure its own fiscal house is in order. In my book, its not much better than the State.
Rellis is great at laundry lists of genuine figures, murky figures, exaggerated figures, misleading figures and imaginary figures to add up to sweeping indictments.
The Ventura budget is balanced. The California budget is not. Take any budget and you will find expenditures that can be questioned. But we are not spending money we don't have. The State of California is issuing IOUs starting today.
The contrast could not be starker.
State budget broken. Gubinator campaigns on a platform of shutting out the special intrests from Sacramento. Survey says he's accepted more special intrest money than any of his predecessors.
City of Ventura in unprecendented economic times, budget balenced, not much to see here folks move along!
I'm proud to see my City operate within it's means. Its an idea from a bygone era. Black is the the new red.
Mr Cole, I really didn't mean to hurt your feelers, If I was to demean you as you did me, you wouldn't even publish the piece.
As far as a balanced budget is concerned I recall hearing the Financial manager mention that most of it is only good for about 3 to 6 months then the city will have to begin looking for more areas to cut. That is the same as filling your gas tank half full and saying you are full of gas.
Rick,
I challenge you put together a budget that returns to the days of fair and honest pensions. What if you present a budget with 2 at 55 and dropped all this 3 at 50 crap. We can't afford it, yet because it helps you, you don't see the problem. I know other city have done the same because all people and city managers are self centered. If cities would stop giving away tax payer money, we could still support police and fire with a 6% sales tax. We can't keep this up for 20+ years more. Look at Vallejo and wise up.
The issue of public pensions deserves debate and I will pursue that in a future blog posting. But I can't unilaterally change pensions. That comes at the bargaining table with eight unions that represent our workforce. Nor can I ignore the long-term competitive marketplace for talent. I have publicly stated that I do not think California's public pension system is sustainable. But neither are our national Social Security or Medicare programs, for essentially the same reasons -- people are living longer and we are not getting the kind of returns on investments that will sustain these commitments. But Ventura, unlike Vallejo, has actually been quite cautious in making these commitments. Our pay and benefits are never above average for the public sector and usually below.
I am surprized. Good to hear what you say about pensions. I know Ventura has been slower than average to increase pensions, but Ventura and other cities are headed for big troubles. Good luck fixing it. I will help. I do see how Ventura needs more police and fire on the streets. And I'll vote for a city sales tax when pensions return to 2 at 55. If you truly wish to help, present a report to the city leaders on how many police and fire personal Ventura could have on the street if pensions were 2 at 55.
Post a Comment
<< Home