Ectoplasm? Leave it to the indomitable budget busters from BOB (Budget Oversight Bridgeport) to conduct a séance over the city budget. In their latest commentary about the magic that is the city budget, John Marshall Lee and Andy Fardy try to shake out the meaning of ghost positions. As for the meaning of “ectoplasm” you’re advised to call up your friendly local ghost or ask Mayor Bill Finch and budget director Tom Sherwood. Commentary below.
How Do Ghosts “Retire?” Or Is Your Tax Money the Only Thing to Disappear?
One week ago … “and the elimination of 26.5 positions, mostly by attrition” were some of the words spoken by Mayor “P.T.” Finch on the morning after the City Council voted on the 2013 budget.
OIB readers know Andy Fardy and I have focused on City budget data during the past two years identifying numerous positions each year that are vacant at the time the budget is put together by OPM and Finance Department and blessed by the Mayor.
“You’re right. No human being would stack (budget) books like this.”
Most of those positions remain vacant in a following year budget presentation and that is where we use the notion of “ghost positions;” about 66 in 2012 budget and over 80 in the proposed 2013 budget. When you add up the salaries that need not be spent because the position is occupied by “ectoplasm” and not “flesh and bones” and include the healthcare, pension and allied expenses, you see $4 Million to $5 Million of planned and approved inefficiency, waste, and carelessness with taxpayer money.
This year we expanded our look and found “other expenses” that do not get regularly spent for priority announced purposes in departmental budgets, and actually remain unspent for most if not all of the budget year. (Of course, because Bill and Tom will not show us the June report we never get to see how the various departmental line items finish each year. That seems to be a secret to be maintained at all costs from public scrutiny.)
The Legislative Department has one of these accounts. Almost $90,000 remained unexpended by May 2011 but the report predicted all would be spent in June. For what purpose, on what item, to do what helpful action for the Legislative Department, which is how the City Council is named in the City budget? More Millions are lost in these “ghost expenses” for which no public presentation has been made.
It’s not Halloween and we are not talking about Casper, the Friendly Ghost. These “ghosts” represent some millions that could have delivered a no-tax-increase budget. But we got a tax increase and the Mayor is planning to eliminate “vacant” positions by attrition? Do we need to ask what this means? Do ghosts retire, Andy? Which plan do they draw pensions from if they have been hanging around for years in proposed and adopted budgets? And are their healthcare premiums reduced because they are never “seen” by a health professional? I believe in spiritual beings, but none I would classify as such ever contemplated working for this municipality, so maybe the Mayor meant “contrition” for what he has done to the taxpayer? Maybe he meant “tuition” for the municipal training and education necessary for our ‘public servants’ to reach a better standard of City practices? Why did City Council representatives abstain so frequently on the HUD-CDBG voting last Monday evening, but not one CC abstained or recused themselves from voting on the City financial package, even though more than a handful know failure to follow the administration position on any vote merits sanctions? That was certainly obvious on a night the City Council “whited out” their “ghost” and their own Legislative Director. Andy, what does “attrition” mean in your neighborhood? Time will tell.
Budget Oversight Bridgeport-2012
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5 comments
Just trying to be helpful:
In keeping with the ghostbusters/ectoplasm scheme, there used to be movie posters and buttons with that ghost and the logo: “I’ve been slimed!”
I don’t believe the ghosts working for the city retire ever. These ghosts are written into the budget every year but they are not given jobs. They’re ghosts because they cannot be seen, much like the 12th-month report can be moved anywhere Finch & Sherwood want. When the ghosts are moved they change form and become slush. It’s a neat trick but done well by this administration. BTW the benefits are not paid to any of the ghost positions, it also is transferred and becomes slush.
The council abstained so much because in my opinion they were covering their collective asses. It’s funny only three council members signed conflict of Interest documents when there are eight members who either work for the city or have a close relative working for the city.
I can’t comment on attrition in my neighborhood because we are a GHOST neighborhood. Our two council people have no clue as to what is happening in our neighborhood and have done nothing to get anything done up here. No library, no NRZ zone, NO supermarkets, one bank and very few police patrols. Our state reps are no better, they get lost coming here for campaign visits as does our state senator.
We continue to be “slushed” because there are “ghosts” (positions and expenses in line items providing unaccountable funds to be spent by the administration) in the approved budget. If any Finch June 30 report (be it 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 or the current year 2012) is finally made public per the Charter (or courage of the City Council to demand it) and the public gets to see the line items budgeted for vacant positions or ‘other expenses’ for instance, were not funded but other line items were (but for what?), that is when “slush” can turn into “slime,” perhaps serious slime. That is when it may be more than a matter of mismanagement of public funds and may be more in the direction of misuse of public funds and gets on the radar of public agencies.
So if anybody wonders why I have been pushing for the 12th-month reports for several years (and as Mayor Finch says in Black Rock, he has been rebutting my request for four years). Well it remains to be seen just what the record indicates. If it is good news, why the secrecy? If it is good news, why not share this unique “budget transparency” (?) technique with those other cities who came to town within the past few months to learn how Bridgeport operates? To date I have not found one other City whose legislature allows the administration to defy Charter language and whose public is unconcerned about this “unique” lapse in fiscal procedure. Time will tell.
Just trying to be helpful:
In keeping with the ghostbusters/ectoplasm scheme, there used to be movie posters and buttons with that ghost and the logo: “I’ve been slimed!”
Does that fit?
Ectoplasm is cool but here’s a Fairfield County DOG brushing its own teeth
–> apps.facebook.com/promosapp/254818/entry/266049?=f2whf3
If you like it, don’t be afraid to vote for this entry.
I don’t believe the ghosts working for the city retire ever. These ghosts are written into the budget every year but they are not given jobs. They’re ghosts because they cannot be seen, much like the 12th-month report can be moved anywhere Finch & Sherwood want. When the ghosts are moved they change form and become slush. It’s a neat trick but done well by this administration. BTW the benefits are not paid to any of the ghost positions, it also is transferred and becomes slush.
The council abstained so much because in my opinion they were covering their collective asses. It’s funny only three council members signed conflict of Interest documents when there are eight members who either work for the city or have a close relative working for the city.
I can’t comment on attrition in my neighborhood because we are a GHOST neighborhood. Our two council people have no clue as to what is happening in our neighborhood and have done nothing to get anything done up here. No library, no NRZ zone, NO supermarkets, one bank and very few police patrols. Our state reps are no better, they get lost coming here for campaign visits as does our state senator.
We continue to be “slushed” because there are “ghosts” (positions and expenses in line items providing unaccountable funds to be spent by the administration) in the approved budget. If any Finch June 30 report (be it 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 or the current year 2012) is finally made public per the Charter (or courage of the City Council to demand it) and the public gets to see the line items budgeted for vacant positions or ‘other expenses’ for instance, were not funded but other line items were (but for what?), that is when “slush” can turn into “slime,” perhaps serious slime. That is when it may be more than a matter of mismanagement of public funds and may be more in the direction of misuse of public funds and gets on the radar of public agencies.
So if anybody wonders why I have been pushing for the 12th-month reports for several years (and as Mayor Finch says in Black Rock, he has been rebutting my request for four years). Well it remains to be seen just what the record indicates. If it is good news, why the secrecy? If it is good news, why not share this unique “budget transparency” (?) technique with those other cities who came to town within the past few months to learn how Bridgeport operates? To date I have not found one other City whose legislature allows the administration to defy Charter language and whose public is unconcerned about this “unique” lapse in fiscal procedure. Time will tell.
*** BPT, HOME OF THE SLUSH CONE! ***