by Robert L. Fennell / For the Sun Post
Jul 31, 2009 | 580 views | 1
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EDITOR,
It has been several months since I wrote several articles concerning Manteca’s budget and the inaction of our elected officials and City Manager Steve Pinkerton.
The lack of action to resolve the budget deficit continues.
On June 13, 2008, I wrote, “We could end up like Vallejo.” On Jan. 16, 2009, I wrote, “Citizens should not pay for bad decisions,” and several more articles criticizing the lack of leadership by Mayor Willie Weatherford and the City Council because of their lack of action to address the budget gap.
On Friday, July 24, I read in the Sun Post that another committee the — Manteca Budget Advisory Committee — has made similar recommendations, suggesting a reduction in the high-earners’ salaries. Their recommendations are consistent with my recommendation and similar to those of the ad hoc citizens committee established by the mayor and City Council.
Therefore, the question is, why doesn’t the mayor, City Council and city manager implement those recommendations?
The first answer is that the city manager’s salary will be reduced if the recommendations are implemented. The second answer is that our elected leaders do not want to impact the special-interest groups — police and fire department personnel — that should take a pay reduction. And lastly, they are more concerned by the impact on those who work for the city than the impact on its citizens.
However, city after city is making the hard decisions by recommending and making reductions to bring their budgets in line with income. But this city manager wants to continue this charade until August, which will result in deeper personnel cuts.
It is a fact that some question public safety if police personnel and firefighters are laid off, but police officers do not prevent crime — they respond after the crime has been committed. Therefore, police will continue to provide the same level of response to reported crimes.
Moreover, other city managers have been able to maintain a viable budget during these economic times. The question is, did Manteca hire the wrong person? Is the city manager capable of being part of the solution? Or is the city manager going to continue this charade and compound the present budget crisis?
What city leaders should do is revamp police and firefighter retirement and health benefits, while at the same time freezing all raises, uniform allotments and overtime. But it is very important to make salary reductions at the upper echelon of management.
Robert L. Fennell, Manteca
I have been writing the council on the same issues
Mr.Fennel mentioned.He is right about City Managers being exempt from any large cotribution to the deficit.I disagree with Mr. Fennel on his
assumption that the city police should have their hard earned retirement reduced and everything else
taken from them.How would he like it if his ass was kicked like he suggested the council do to the police officers.I wonder Mr. Fennel, if you would like your retirement adjusted to a lower level.Perhaps their are people like you that don't
think they earned their retirement and would be willing to reduce their retirement income.The police work all kind of hours and face many dangerous situations for many years to earn their retirement.The Mayor is retired on a police retirement fund himself.Perhaps Mr.Fennel doesn't
realize the police makes contributions themselves to their retirement.Not one damn time in your editorial did you mention the councils constant spending and fee deferrments to big business and
land giveaways to Developers.You also failed to
mention the many useless payments to consultants
for such things as deciding on what kind of restaurants we need or spending 89k for a Lobbyist
to go after stimulus money.This was taken from the three tier water and sewer increase we were recently assessed for.When you reccomend the budget that the council created with excessive spending be bridged by whacking the police excessively, your stepping in forbidden territory dude and I want buy into that.Chief Bricker was the first leader to reorganize his officers to
address the budget and you have the nerve to say
the police should be hit more.He saved the city
about 340k annaually.The council should learn to
stop giving away the taxpayers money and spending
conservatively to address their deficit. Don't
reduce our officers pay or lay them off for the
councils inability to activate budget control and control spending.
Fleener Richards.
Manteca Ca.