Eliminating the budget deficit

By Patrick Kevin "Pat" McCullough

In order to control our budget and our future, we must reduce waste and expenditures on salaries.

In order to avoid layoffs, cutting important city services, and further fiscal crises, we must immediately do three things: audit city operations and inventories to reduce waste, reduce compensation of top administrators by 10 to 20%, and temporarily freeze wages of other workers.

Public service connotes a certain level of sacrifice for the public good. Historically, that has meant accepting a slightly lower pay scale. City workers also have the advantages of secure long-term employment and benefits. While our public employees deserve all this and more, the truth is we can't afford to pay all of them more.

As a long-time employee of a nearby municipality, I know it is more important to remain employed than to receive pay increases every year. Therefore, during this period, when revenues are down and bankruptcy threatens, for mid- to low- salary scale workers I will push for a two-year wage freeze, but no layoff. For those whose base pay far exceeds $90,000, I propose a two-year wage freeze coupled with a graduated wage reduction.

We also need to thoroughly audit city operations and inventories to bring to light past funding and salary decisions, in the future to ensure that decisions which bind us are made with the public's knowledge and input. It is imperative for us to have a balanced budget that does not burden our future, and still provides the services our residents need.