The New Smyrna Beach City Commission is expected to hear from two distinct groups tonight regarding a proposed 2 percent wage increase for the city's police officers: The cops themselves and taxpayers who don't want to see spending increased.
The cops deserve the raise. It would be unfair to deny them the same increase given the firefighters and other employees in municipal government.
Times are tough. Yes, we are entrenched in a recession. But we still need vital services. And our police officers have bills and families to take care of just like the rest of the employees.
If you look at the list NSBNEWS.net has compiled of the top 100 employees, you will see that no one is starving. In fact, all 100 employees make at least $50,000.
The figures are not calendar year (January to December), but rather fiscal year (October to September) because they reflect what wa budgeted and what was actually earned. It's the "earned" part that is alarming. With over $6 million spent on perks (money paid above and beyond the hourly rate for a position) that has put the city into a tough financial corner, with mid-year deficits.
The raises by themselves are harmless to the taxpayers.
To her credit, Mayor Sally Mackay has asked her fellow city commissioners to help her review and study expenses tied into personnel salaries such as longevity pay, vacation and sick time, education credits, retirement, etc. When she asked for such a "motion" before the firefighters got their increase, commissioners Jack Grasty, Randy Richenberg, Jim Hathaway and Lynne Plaskett were silent.
The issue of finances has drawn huge crowds since Bil Kolesczar, a retired Orlando police chief and Bouchelle Island resident, showed up in September with a couple hundred neighbors, demanding the city cut $1 million spending increase from the proposed 2008-'09 budget or face the wrath of voters at the voting booth, either through election or voter recall. The commission caved. City Manager John Hagood used $800,000 in surplus to achieve the majority of cuts. Weeks later, Commissioner Richenberg said he felt "ashamed" and "bullied" into voting for the cuts.
Several firefighters told the commission they understood the city's finances were tight and they offered to negotiate retirements, but so far there has been no movement on that front. In the interim, the commission has stopped short of firing Hagood, who has an ironclad contract that would force the city to pay him $200,000-plus in severance, demanding instead that he come up with a list of goals and provide a report on recommended cuts in every department. That list of cuts is supposed to be ready for tonight. A move to fire City Attorney Frank Gummey, also failed, 3-2, after he got into a tif with a Utilities Commission attorney. He's the highest paid employee at $199,000-plus.
And so, tonight, the police officers are expected to make a show of force through the "Stand Up" campaign led by Sgt. Eugene Griffith.
It will be interesting to see if the fire marshal has to close down the meeting on the third floor of the Utilities Commission building, if the crowd is as big as some are predicting.