Here’s your chance to speak for or against Mayor Bill Finch’s $520 million spending proposal to the City Council. On Monday, 6 p.m. the council’s Budget and Appropriations Committee will conduct a public hearing on the budget in City Council Chambers, 45 Lyon Terrace.
Members of the financial watchdog organization Citizens Working For A Better Bridgeport say they will be on hand to speak against the mayor’s proposal that includes a 2.5 mil tax increase representing a roughly $400 hike to the average homeowner. The tax increase proposed by the mayor is expected to be reduced by the council, but by how much? Members of Citizens Working For A Better Bridgeport including David Walker, the former U.S. Comptroller General, say city taxpayers are stretched to the limit and cannot accept another tax increase.
Citizens Working For A Better Bridgeport is examining budget areas that serve as flashpoints for spending increases such as pay raises for management positions appointed by the mayor that were approved by the City Council last year. City Council President Tom McCarthy, deputy director of Labor Relations, serves at the pleasure of the mayor. McCarthy recused himself in the council vote authorizing salary adjustments the mayor says were necessary to attract stronger employment candidates to city government. CW4BB Facebook page here.
Year after year the citizens of Bridgeport are asked to pay a tax increase because of budget shortfalls. Year after year we see the council pass the administration’s budget proposals intact with no cuts.
Monday night will be another dog and pony show that I will attend. The public will speak and the council will sit there like wooden statues and say nothing.
I was encouraged this year by councilman John Olson’s questions to Sherwood and Lenz. He brought up a good point when he asked why 24 city departments overspent their budgets. He got the run-around from Sherwood, he got tired of sparring with Sherwood.
Then next he asked more questions and was not going to stop until Sherwood gave him a proper response. I hope John Olson keeps coming to these meetings and keeps asking the tough questions.
To the other members of the B&A, get off your collective asses and ask the tough questions after all you allowed us to get into this fix by keeping quiet over the past years.
BTW where does the money come for all these political hires?
One more question for the council, why does the police budget keep going up and up and the service to the citizens of Bridgeport keep getting less and less? The are approximately 48 patrol positions that are totally funded by the Feds but the budget keeps going up and does not reflect the federal monies. We know we have 105 cops in patrol, we have 105 supervisors including the chief let’s assume we have 45 detectives that’s 255, where are the other 170 cops? Does anyone know?
PEOPLE OF BRIDGEPORT REMEMBER THE COUNCIL ALONG WITH FINCH ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TROUBLE WE ARE IN!!!
*** Bringing up questions that either get answered with “lies” or “no” answers at all, usually leads to a “lack” of follow-up by Council members asking the hard questions! So in the end, out of the 7 B&A committee members trying to find other means to achieve some sort of reasonable financial success, you’re left with the same old smoke & mirrors budget. The City Admin. blames and points fingers at the State Legislature and Gov. for its drastic cuts that will make it harder for Bpt to pay for all its overall mismanagement of taxes and enough incoming revenue, political jobs, expensive future union contracts, city lawsuits, O/T, admin. rai$e$ and leased properties, city utilities, debts, city payroll, educational cost, etc.! It’s lots of money responsibility and overall burden for those who really have no professional budget understanding or accounting experience in today’s type of city government financing. So honestly if this is the Mayor’s “worst” proposed budget scenario during a City Council election year, then reviewing it, making suggestions and giving it right back to the Mayor with a vote of “no contest” would be a “trump card” political move! After the legal time has passed and either changes are made or not by the Mayor, etc., the final vote of “NO” would be in order by the entire Council on the budget and mil rate hike. Why, because there is very little the B&A committee or entire City Council will be able to do in coming up with a smart “considered” plan or changes in the proposed budget that will come up with the money needed to run the city of Bpt without raising taxes! It’s FINCH budget “kool-aid” that has been slowly brewing for some time now since he took office, and now it’s time to drink the FINCH “kool-aid” whether you voted for him or not. *** WHAT’S IN YOUR WALLETS? ***
What does this year’s City of Bridgeport budget has to do with the delay in filling two empty City Council seats? As most of us are aware, Bob Curwen Sr. resigned as City Councilmen of district 138. In district 130, Councilmen McCarthy is poised to vacate his seat and is expected to be replace by Steve Stafstrom.
Why the delay or should I say stalling? The only logical reason for the stalling is the expected fallout from the pending tax increase. By stalling the appointment of Stafstrom and Marella–the assumed heir to the seat in the 138–the two are shielded from blame of a vote to increase taxes. McCarthy in Black Rock is more likely to vote for the tax increase (again) and there won’t be an opportunity for his constituents in Black Rock to vote him out as he’ll step down after the stick-up. Marella and Stafstrom will simply say, “hey, I wasn’t on the council when the increases took place. Expect the two seats to be filled after the 2013-2014 fiscal year budget is approved. As for Marella’s and Stafstrom’s explanation, I would respond by asking them why they didn’t speak up against the budget increase as any concerned citizen should. The Bridgeport machine is transparent in a way.
Joel, Marty McCarthy has resigned from the council replaced by Steve Stafstrom.
When did that happen? I read about Bob Curwen being in town last week or so. Why would anyone take a seat in the middle or the start of a heated issue? Unless Steve Stafstrom is going to vote against a tax increase, I think he should have waited for the storm to pass. Lennie, I’ve been trying to send you a fax since Friday night and for some reason I get a transmission failed message.
fax is 203-938-2234
Geeze, Joel. Marty McCarthy’s resignation is sooo last month.
Lennie,
Did Tom McCarthy really recuse himself from all activities relating to manager pay raises last year? Recusal means not being in any related meetings and not discussing the issue with anyone on the Council. Not voting on the issue is only one aspect of recusal. Did he recuse himself and not vote on the budget that funded the Mayor’s and his pay increase? The Council meetings are recorded for all to see.
Good point. McCarthy recused himself on the specific council vote addressing the management pay raises. He, like other City Council members on the public payroll, has cast a vote on the budget that funds their salaries. I’m not aware of any council member on the public payroll who has recused on a budget vote.
Bill Finch is going to get an earful from a horde of Black Rock residents.
Bill Finch is going to hear from more than just Black Rock on this one. You can count on it.
Let’s git ‘er dun, Beponians! The only way to change things is to not let up.
Anybody help?
On page 7 of the Budget proposal is a chart showing more than $11 Million is required to meet the extra expenses in the coming year than in the present year. Only the Library and the BOE show level funding.
Question: Does the State look for increased local funding each year to get to MBR, minimum budget requirement? If that understanding is correct, does the City have a statutory responsibility from the State to increase the next year over the current year by about $3.3 Million? How is that done with what looks like flat funding? Anybody got an answer? If it is true more money is needed then is the proposed really accurate? And if not accurate, why is anyone looking at it as real? Time will tell.
Should be an interesting meet watching everyone from Black Rock pile out of DW’s jeep with their snow shovels like clowns in the center ring of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Okay, you are so special you can just sit and do nothing and criticize those who do. Aren’t you just terrific? Real special. Pat yourself on the back, buddy.
James, m’boy, it’s truly wonderful to find out what it takes to tickle the funny bone of a Fairfield resident. Clowns stretch the reality. They expand the borders of the credible. They entertain. And they are paid by the people who come for the entertainment.
In this case, because you reside in Fairfield and have such a paucity of public entertainment from your 50 representatives, you visit Bridgeport and confuse the agitated audience with the sleepy representatives on the City Council.
Ah, the SNOW SHOVEL thing is bothering you? It sticks in my mind because of the SNOW RESPONSE FAILURE, so recent, the CEO has also FAILED to report what he learned in the public hearing. Could it be he learned nothing, and therefore is willing to report nothing? And now he has folks from out of town (with connections to whom are never revealed as they post their opinions).
Paying taxes in Bridgeport is the issue, Jimmy. Can you comprehend that? And if the budget process were as abbreviated, hidden and controlled in Fairfield, you would be directing your attention there rather than at folks who live next door. A gracious neighbor would help shovel the snow (and also shovel the crap) perhaps in solidarity with the little person. Solidarity is a union message. It is becoming a taxpayer message this year. Consider your laughter, lest you be thought foolish. And once again, what part of your skin is in this game? Time will tell.
JAMES: You really are a perfect assh-le.
Dave,
McCarthy did not recuse himself from activities related to the ordinance change that increased the upper range of unaffiliated positions. He abstained from voting on the council floor after he had lined up enough votes so his vote was not needed.
The ordinance committee, co-chaired by two city employees, fast-tracked the action so the mayor could proceed with hiring people with six-figure salaries and rewarding others with pay increases. McCarthy’s increase is about $15,000 in the FY2014 budget. Since he became council president, his salary has increased from $65,000 to $115,000 in FY2014. Have any council members requested a copy of the salary analysis justifying the increase, or are these increases rewards for getting votes lined up?
Tom,
If such is the case then Tom McCarthy and other city employees have engaged in clear conflicts of interest that can not be allowed to continue, all the more reason why HB 5724 needs to be enacted into law this session.
Okay, before I go puke … let’s rescind all, let me repeat, all, of those raises. I sure didn’t get one, the people who work for and with me didn’t; and yet we all paid our taxes–our totally obscene taxes. Then we dug out from hurricanes and snowstorms all by ourselves. Raises for the mayor, his staff and McCarthy and other City Council members who are city employees are unacceptable. Like almost everything else this administration does. It just isn’t that hard to do the right thing. Too bad Finch, Wood and Nunn not only won’t do the right thing but they wouldn’t know it if they saw it. Show up! Shout it out!
While I certainly do not want a tax increase, given the discussed state cutbacks, there may be no choice.
That said, why is there not much more attention on the 24 out of 26 departments that overspent their budgets? That’s essentially business management. Granted I only know a few of the managers and department heads so I am extrapolating from a deficient sample, but they do not approach their departments in a business-like fashion. After all, it’s not their money being spent foolishly and where’s the downside if they manage poorly? Also I would hazard a guess the majority of managers and maybe even all city employees do not live in town and do not have to live with the consequences of poor management.
From a leadership standpoint, I also believe all department heads and city administrators should take a 5-10% pay cut.
Everybody’s got to have skin in the game.
*** SAME TUNE JUST DIFFERENT WORDS, NO? ***
Well about 75 people attended this dog and pony show with 3/4 of them from Black Rock. I guess the East Side, East End and my neighborhood just don’t care or give a damn. I realize this is a waste of time as the B & A sits there like stumps and answer no questions.
The one thing that really pissed me off was Lydia Martinez who smiled often when various speakers talked about having trouble paying their taxes. I wonder what she found funny. Lydia and the rest of the council minus Baker got us into this mess. They spent too much time kissing the ring and no time cutting the budget.