The City Council Monday night approved a $517 million budget referred by the council’s Budget and Appropriations Committee, a spending plan $3 million less in total from the budget recommended by Mayor Bill Finch, with a series of revisions made to revenues and expenditures. All those approved changes can be viewed in the final council budget resolution here. The council vote represents roughly a $125 tax increase on the average homeowner, two thirds less than the tax increase in the budget presented by the mayor who had based his spending plan on the budget proposed by Governor Dan Malloy that included millions in cuts to the city, but partially restored by the state legislature’s budget-making body at the urging of Finch and city’s legislative delegation. The budget year starts July 1.
The council vote was 18-2 with Andre Baker and Michelle Lyons voting against. They perhaps did not realize a no vote meant they preferred Finch’s higher-tax proposal, such is the parliamentarian procedure once the budget committee issues its recommendation. The mayor’s budget becomes the default spending plan for the opposition. After the vote the mayor issued the following statement:
I want to thank the City Council for their due diligence in scrutinizing my proposed budget. The resulting modest increase, which is in line with our neighboring and peer communities, will allow us to enhance our commitment to public safety and improve the quality of life for our residents, while continuing our support of education programs and moving forward with economic development projects.
The B&A budget added roughly $5 million in slot revenue from the state’s two tribal nation gaming facilities. When Finch submitted his budget to the council in April it was based on the state budget from Governor Dan Malloy who had eliminated the payments the city has received for 20 years. The state receives 25 percent of the slot take and shares it with municipalities. The council vote anticipates that those revenues will be restored by the state legislature. If not Finch will have the burden of implementing deeper cuts. This budget also assumes $2 million in city employee concessions.
The budget amendment resolution also highlights a series of cuts to the Police Department and legal services fees as well as unfunding a number of vacant city positions.
Full statement from Finch:
“This has been an extraordinarily tough budget year. The proposed state budget cuts to Pequot funds, college and hospital PILOTS and school transportation, totaling over $11 million dollars have made our work doubly difficult. I want to commend the Legislature for its responsiveness to the plight of our City.
Council leaders and I traveled to Hartford many times to meet with legislative leaders to ensure that many funds were restored by the state legislature, lessening the impact of the originally proposed cuts. However, harmful cuts in state funding remain including cuts to private and public school transportation, Pequot funds and the college and hospital PILOT. These cuts still amount to over $4 million in lost revenue.
I want to thank the City Council for their due diligence in scrutinizing my proposed budget. The resulting modest increase, which is in line with our neighboring and peer communities, will allow us to enhance our commitment to public safety and improve the quality of life for our residents, while continuing our support of education programs and moving forward with economic development projects.
Moving forward, I will continue to seek savings and efficiencies in our local government and continue to work towards statewide property tax reform, because our current system disproportionately taxes the residents of our city, including the poor and disadvantaged. The state is paying less and less each year in PILOT payments that offset lost tax revenue to our city for hosting the region’s hospitals, colleges, prisons and many other state facilities. In doing so, the state is clearly shifting even more of the burden to our local tax payers.
I am hopeful that by working together with state leaders, we can ultimately accomplish progressive tax reform–just as we have worked successfully with state leaders to improve our schools, promote economic development and enact sustainability measures which have and will continue to save Bridgeport residents millions of dollars.”
Statement from City Council President Tom McCarthy:
“I am very proud of the City Council for their hard work over the past several weeks to cutting this budget as deeply as possible to find additional savings for the taxpayers of Bridgeport without having to cut city services.”
Statement from City Council Budget Co-Chair Susan Brannelly:
“Our city is at a turning point. There are so many important development projects about to come online from downtown Main Street to America’s largest fuel cell to Steel Point. We made cuts in the budget but stopped short of ones that would stop the progress, as we are on the brink of so much positive change. Our small increase this year, is a down-payment on future development that will ultimately lower the city’s tax burden.”
As expected the council voted in favor of the budget submitted by the B & A committee. I have a disagreement with the entire B & A committee who I feel did an awful job on this budget.
They predicated their budget on gaining $12.8 million dollars in monies not received. It breaks down this way: $7.5 Million from the state that was previously cut from the state budget. Forgiveness from the state for $3.3 Million the state is requiring the city to pay the BOE and my all-time favorite (BS) $2 Million on givebacks from city employees up from the $1.6 Million requested by the mayor.
What really pisses me off is the B & A committee voted 4 to 3 to keep McCarthy’s raise in the budget and go after the lower-tiered employees for givebacks. These bastards are disgusting political whores led by DePara & Brannelly. Shame on the whole committee.
BTW all of the city employees voted on every phase of the budget including that glutton Tom McCarthy. What freaking arrogance.
Loved your one-finger salute on your way out, Andy. It punctuated the meeting nicely, and made the trip down to bizarro land worth the gas money.
Whores, you’re too kind, ACF. What they did was shit out the Finch Budget with a cut of only $3 Million, we still owe the $3.3 million to the BOE. This wasn’t a cut, it was a slide. Black Rock voted for Ms. Rubber Stamp & Attorney Recusal from Pullman & Comley LLC.
“Downtown Main Street projects about to come on line”? No thanks, I will not drink that Kool-Aid.
Andrew C Fardy, thanks for the breakdown and thanks for you and JML trying to explain the budget process. Most of those who read OIB know and understand change is needed but there is no way Mayor Bill Finch and 19 City Council members (exclude Mr. Baker) will on their own make those changes. These changes can only happen when the City is force to make those changes.
Andy, you and others have made suggestions but they fall on deaf ears, the only way for the state to come here and stay for a period of time (longer than the last time) and to make the hard and tough choices with the budget, yes, a financial review board with power.
While the members of the B & A committee are blowing smoke up each others’ asses and the council found what they think is a good reason to vote for the budget, the taxpayers got screwed again.
The council members stated if they did not vote for the budget as presented by the B &A, they and us would have been stuck with the mayor’s budget. This may be true but the fact of the matter is only Baker took the B & A to task.
These MORONS talked about how hard the B & A worked. That’s BS, the only thing they worked hard on was getting a quorum for their meetings. They also failed at getting their meetings started on time, not one meeting started on time.
Not one council person asked or knows what happens if the B &A wish list of $12.8 million does not materialize.
BTW not one city employee recused themselves from the vote including McCarthy who voted for his own $15,000 raise.
In case Black Rock isn’t aware of it you have two of the biggest administration kiss-asses on the council. I also know we in the 138th have the next two administration ass kissers.
Hey Black Rock, it’s time to put a Fox in that Chicken Coop!
*** BIG UPS to Ms. Lyons and Mr. Baker for “not supporting” this “assumed” more State help and more Union worker concessions make believe B&A committee budget! Also I’m sure they did not support the Mayor’s proposed budget either, which was worse. Just where does the B&A think they’re going to find the extra BOE money after the taxpayers “small increase” down payment towards all this so-called “future development” that will lower the city’s tax burden? *** THAT’S SOME STRONG CITY GOVERNMENT KOOL-AID ***
Another dog and pony show. The real tax increase will come after the city council election in November 2013. By that time we’ll know there will be no union concessions (layoffs instead?) and the $3.3 million is owed for the BOE. But that’s after the city council elections.
Thank you Tom McCarthy for your leadership and your $15k well-deserved raise. Thank you Sue Brannelly for your due diligence and making sure your brother-in-law can live a nice comfortable life with his $20k+ raise.
Such glaring conflicts of interest. These people truly believe they can do anything they want and no one can stop them. They have gotten way too greedy and have hurt way too many people. Raises in exchange for an approved budget? Does this constitute quid pro quo?
Now that the budget is passed, you think McCarthy will settle down and do his job? You know, the real one, the one with the $15k raise? Or will he continue to follow Mayor Finch around and take advantage of every photo op?
Hey Tom, what outside attorneys will you bring in to strong-arm the unions?
Let’s look at Big Mac’s salary on the day Finch took office. Then compare it to his new salary after this $15,000 increase. Now show a list of each and every professional objective he accomplished during this time.
If according to Sue things are so great, then why a tax increase?
I reluctantly approve the decision of the council with passing the budget as submitted by the B&A committee.
My criticism would be the B&A committee could have done more to reduce the mayor’s original budget submitted for approval.
There are too many areas that needed attention and unfortunately the committee did not allow a dialog with the citizens’ concerns.
If a dialog were allowed many of the areas of concerns and cuts could have been explained in detail about those areas that are wasteful and unlawful. Questions and answers were needed at that time.
There needs to be a change with these committee forums, sitting at the table and just making notes doesn’t cut it.
The approval is now history and if it were disapproved it would go to the Mayor who would not make any changes and the Original Budget would be the Budget we would all have to endure.
Taxes are an austerity topic. Here’s a growth story with statewide implications:
Maersk, the world’s largest shipping company, has built the world’s largest container ship. Unfortunately, it doesn’t fit into any American ports. Here’s a solution:
DREDGE harbors in New London, New Haven and Bridgeport. Result: Connecticut becomes the shipping destination for the largest market in the world and tax collections skyrocket because harbors are fantastic sources of revenue!
www .worldslargestship.com
Classic example of how truly bad our municipal management under Calamarian rule is. The current issue of CEO magazine has ranked Connecticut as the 45th worst state in which to do business. CEO cites union dominance (I agree. Unions really stink.) and decades of inept Democrat strong-arm local politics. The entire scenario has caused an untenable taxing situation that is placed squarely on the backs of homeowners. It’s our own fault and we all know why. We need a candidate now.
At each step of a journey you have an opportunity to learn something new. Last night by studying the City Council Budget Resolution I had another such learning experience. It is reasonable to understand an employee will generate “fringe expenses” for the City like FICA, healthcare and retirement plan expenses. So when one Print Shop (vacant) position was eliminated for $58,000, the City also removed $11,977 in fringe benefits, an additional 20.5% in addition to basic compensation.
1) The several non-public-safety employee positions vacant that have been eliminated have also shown a 20.5-20.6% fringe expense eliminated. In recent years these were the $4-5 Million of ghost expenses that WERE NOT ELIMINATED by the Council. Last September the Finance Office eliminated a large number of those vacant positions, about $4 Million worth. BUT THERE WERE NO REDUCTIONS IN FRINGE BENEFITS of 20.6%. One can assume this fringe benefit budget is being spent somewhere else this year.
If you go to the actual budget proposed and divide the Personal compensation budgets by the fringe benefits, you actually find the ratio is closer to 30% or greater. So are the Fringe Benefit reductions calculations real or a phony construct that favors the administration but satisfies the Council?
2) Is there some absurd consistency to the Council in maintaining administration salary increases of 20% during the past two years (while pushing for givebacks, furloughs or terminations on the lower paid union employees) with the Council members failing to reduce the Stipend account that never gets fully spent anyway? And no comments from any Council member last night about the lack of open, accountable and transparency about $9,000 per Council person. For those who take the money, and not all do so, it may be a form of insulation against property tax increases. For instance, is there any City Council member who takes the stipend and pays taxes greater than $9,000 to the City?
3) When Sue Brannelly finished her comments (I stayed for her litany of positive comments), a small group of administrators who have received the benefit of Finch financial largesse in the past two budgets applauded heartily. Interesting. Not all of them live in the City. And more than one caused “information constipation” to the Council members.
4) Congratulations to Andre Baker for his votes and comments. Specifically I recommend Andre’s statement that there are items he requested that were not provided relative to City finances. We should get a list of those items and keep the pressure up to secure such info for Council members who are woefully in awe of their self-importance rather than humble about the tools and info they bring to budget monitoring.
5) Went over to the BOE meeting afterwards. Looks like they may yet vote on their budget in two weeks. What will the State do with the MBR this year? Tom Sherwood said that $5 Million went to the BOE this year in answer to John Olson’s question. That is not true. Only $3.9 Million will be paid this year. Another saving for the City by the “education Mayor.”
All of this will show up in the wash if the 12th month report that came out last year as a draft is provided in FINAL FORM as well. The taxpayers can wait for the real numbers. Time will tell.
John Marshall Lee, question for you, how many of the City Council members do you think understand the budget process and the comments you just posted?
Ron, I am telling you none of the council members except for Baker understand the budget process, if they did they would have cut out more than they did and would not have submitted a budget with $12.8 million in unsecured monies.
Last year one of the B & A members voted for $110 million in TANS. She did not know TANS stand for TAX ANTICIPATION NOTES. She is still on the B & A.
Andrew C Fardy, thanks, that’s why I keep saying this mayor and city council will NOT do what is right for the taxpayers of Bridgeport therefore the changes MUST come from being forced to do the right thing and that is having a state financial review board.
Andy, you, JML and others have made some good suggestions on the budget but the mayor and city council don’t care.
Ron,
Are you asking me who can read? I think most of them can read. I am aware eyesight issues may impair vision in one or more members of the Council.
I think the majority of Council members’ understanding of the budget process is less important this year than that we inform a larger number in the voting population. The system is broken and they need to know why they have to dig deeper into their pockets with no corresponding improvement in services. They need to look around at their neighbors who are selling homes and getting less than they expected and ask “What happened?”
They need to know who their Council person is and vote for them if they say anything intelligent about City finances. Only two of ten Districts held meetings with voters. What does that say?
The electorate is very frustrated. How does that go to make a story of change and reform that will cause them to support a reform Democratic slate or something akin to it? Something to counter the “City glass is half full” that comes from the Mayor’s office and is being consumed by too many on the Council.
We do not have two governmental bodies in Bridgeport. There is no ongoing check, no balance, and no sense the public should get disclosure of what their dollars support. Where is Marshall Dillon when you need him? Look for the barking watchdogs, wherever you hear them! Time will tell.
Fardy and Mackey are being polite. The Bow Tie Bozo has got to learn to articulate his excellent points of view into a communication that can be understood by those who really need to take his sage counsel to heart. It’s a pity he is so self-impressed. His talent could sure make an impact.
yahooy,
I have been to each Council meeting over the past several months and addressed them within their five-minute time limit, reading a prepared paper, and then submitting it to the Clerk for inclusion at full length in the minutes.
What is a pity is you are so self-impressed (you project that onto others regularly), you fail to do the homework in concert with anyone. Where is your barking about something relative to the Operating Budget or the Capital Budget or to a City process that is illegal or needs improvement? I know you can “parrot” what others say, occasionally, so I know you can read. But where is your excellence showing? And by the way, I think the Council knows when I am barking. I am just that articulate they have referenced certain changes based on what Fardy and Lee and a handful of others have dug up. Where is your digging, watchdog? Time will tell.
No. You’re not.
An example of “negative articulation?” Time will tell.
Is NOT!!!
Bridgeport’s budget process is a classic example of leadership gridlock at its worst.
Those with the power don’t have the knowledge … and those with the knowledge don’t have the power to change the city’s direction. The results speak for themselves.
All the analysis, all the bombast won’t change a thing. Until we change the caliber of the leaders and decision makers … we’re doomed to perpetuate more of the same.
Leadership gridlock is an oxymoron when only one leader exists and the dissenters comprise a small minority. Gridlock occurs when too many people try to move in the same direction.
Despite what some observers believe, we’re not doomed. Free will is an asset–especially in politics!
OMG, Hubler’s in the house!!!
McCarthy says “I am very proud of the City Council for their hard work over the past several weeks …” Several weeks of work (how many actual days of those 3 weeks I would ask) for a budget process as important as this. Well bless their little hearts. I sincerely appreciate the information JML & ACF share with us in trying to better understand the budget. It’s six months until election for Common Council. If folks are serious about drafting candidates you’re already late out of the gate.
This dog and pony show is the biggest bunch of horseshit I’ve ever witnessed. Bait and switch, simple and plain. What, so we’re supposed to be happy our taxes are going up just a little bit now? Hey City Council–how about DEMANDING to see the reports you are supposed to get throughout the year and studying them timely to be sure things are going according to plan instead of cramming like teenagers just before finals? If you’re not getting the information you need throughout the year–MAKE A STINK–let your constituents know about it. Your constituents have your back especially when it is for the greater good–transparency and all of that. Out the offender(s) for not providing you what you need to be on top of the books ALL YEAR LONG.
Yes–this is my debut post.Been lurking on this site for a while now and I’ve had enough. Had to get off my Bs and make a stink.