The man who suggested that the Augusta Commission cut 34 jobs to help balance next year’s budget said Wednesday that he was surprised the group approved it so quickly.
City Administrator Fred Russell, returning from an interview for a similar position in Sarasota County, Fla., said he expected the commission to receive the 2012 budget plan as information Tuesday, recess the meeting and vote on it later.
Instead, after three commissioners walked out of Tuesday’s commission meeting, those remaining quickly voted 6-1 to approve the plan, which calls for sweeping percentage reductions across all departments, $300,000 savings from further reorganization and the elimination of 34 filled positions.
Commissioner Matt Aitken said he didn’t recall the job cuts being discussed at a Nov. 10 budget workshop he and six other commissioners attended. At the workshop, those present appeared to reach a consensus on making the cuts and a few additions from a menu of items presented by Russell. Commissioners Alvin Mason, Corey Johnson and J.R. Hatney were not present.
Thirty-four is a number Russell says he arrived at by dividing $1 million, a round amount he sought to trim from the general fund budget shortfall, by $30,000, a typical city employee salary.
The administrator, who missed the Tuesday meeting because of the job interview, said those who will lose their jobs have not been determined. Russell told commissioners at the Nov. 10 workshop that all departments, including those headed by elected officials, should be considered, except the sheriff’s office.
Positions subject to the reduction in force need to be decided within 30 days so the entire 2012 budget savings can be realized, Russell said Wednesday.
Some could come from the fire department, where a reorganization likely will target several battalion chiefs as a fourth city battalion is eliminated. The rest are unknown, but Russell has a meeting scheduled with department heads this morning to discuss ways to cut.
“He’s the administrator; that’s his job to task that,” Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle said.
One city department head said the cuts would be tough.
“We’re streamlined to where there’s no fat; we’re cutting muscle now,” said Recreation, Parks and Facilities Director Tom Beck, whose reconfigured department recently took on dozens of personnel and lost others in Russell’s reorganization plan.
If they hadn't wasted so much, given away so much, allowed so much to be stolen. and never got back so much from employees who walked off with or all the money they gave away in settlements, none of these layoffs would have been necessary. Unfortunately instead of rolling the heads that are responsible for this they are probably going to find skape goats that had nothing to do with losing all this money, fire them and keep their $10,000. a MONTH cronies.
Is Matt Aitken saying that if he knew it meant 34 job cuts he would not have voted for it? Someone should ask him if he felt misled or left out of the loop by Fred on this.
Interesting.
Did they leave the mayor's NEW $100,000.00 economic "development" slush fund he wanted in budget this year?
Seems to me that is a waste when we are laying people off. The article said, "$30,000, a typical city employee salary..." and if correct that means 3.5 employess were shifted from living breathing employees to the mayor's slush fund I guess?
Interesting.
I wonder if anyone will ask Deke this; should folks get this as a Christmas present (they said choices MUST be made before the end of the year) while he plans on how he will spend the $100K he just got on their backs next year?
You know how much Deke hates looking back in the past, I guess now that this has passed we should just look forward to the brighter future and not ask questions about old stuff.
I am going to dig into the budget and see myself...it seems that is more than certain commissioners do.
Brad
Detroit Mayor Dave Bing realizes his city is undergoing a financial crisis and is proposing salary cuts of 10% for police and firemen. He also proposes a 10% increase in the health premiums all employees pay.
Their city faces a $45 million shortfall next year if they can't get spending reduced. Considering Detroit is so much bigger than Augusta, our debt is not so much out of line with theirs.
Detroit spends $125 million a year on debt from general obligation bonds alone. Bankruptcy is a real possibility with the appointment of a state emergency team to run the city.
If our dysfunctional Commission that spends tens of millions on boondoggles to please the city Copenhaver-Boardman cabal such as the TEE Center can't act responsibly, that could be the future of Augusta. But maybe a state appointed emergency manager is exactly the form of government Augusta needs.
It is the dawning of the ‘Age of Austerity’ in Augusta too.
I wonder why the DDA and other useless boards were not cut first?
How much bonded indebtedness does A-RC and the various agencies/authorities bearing its name have?
There is no way , if I were a commission member, that I would vote to lay any productive employee off. These people have families to support and bills to pay. In all my years in business I was never responsible for laying an employee off as long as they were doing their job. My old daddy use to say "any fool can fire a person. It takes a manager to salvage an employee" Or something to that effect.
I would like to see the headline..."Boondoggles will cost jobs"
But don't think we gonna ..
These commissioners that walk out of the commission meetings are
not representing their constituents. It is like a little kid getting mad at
other kids because he couldn't get his way and takes his bat and ball
and goes home to his mama crying.
Scoobydo posted:
There is no way , if I were a commission member, that I would vote to lay any productive employee off.
They don't have to, Scooby. There are more than 34 unproductive ones from which to choose.
From the article above:
Commissioner Matt Aitken said he didn’t recall the job cuts being discussed at a Nov. 10 budget workshop he and six other commissioners attended.
Matt Aitken was one of the seven commissioners who attended the workshop. Perhaps he dozed off and missed the discussion of the 34 positions to be eliminated, but Chronicle reporter Susan McCord did not doze off. Read her report of the meeting at this link .
You can see about mid-way into the article is a bulleted list of items that Russell proposed. The 34 positions are clearly identified.
Although I hate to see anyone lose a job, sometimes it has to be done and if the city government is anything like the federal government I am sure there are plenty of employees that are just taking up space and getting a check. I have been working for DA for 19 years and I am amazed at the sorry employees we have, no work ethics what so ever, just a waste of space. I bet the city has a lot of them also.
There probably more than 34 unproductive workers that could easily be let go , plus the utilities dept could sell off half there 5000 trucks and balance the budget!
Scoobydo posted:
There is no way , if I were a commission member, that I would vote to lay any productive employee off.
They don't have to, Scooby. There are more than 34 unproductive ones from which to choose.
Touche' LL
Well, among current commissioners, Iwannakno would make sure Grady Smith, Corey Johnson, and Matt Aitken would have to go.
I like the way Johnny Hatney handles the situation. If he does not understand what is up for vote, he abstains. At least that's an honest approach.
But Little Lamb, isn't your job as a commissioner to have an understanding of what is going on? I mean if every one abstains then nothing gets accomplished. I understand not voting if you don't understand but how can something even be put up for a vote with out making sure that everyone understands what is going on?
Well, yes, it would be best if all commissioners understood what the motions are all about; but if they don't, then abstaining is better than just picking yes or no willy nilly.
The way the motions fly around here, doing nothing is often better than passing the motions.
Iwannakno said "Any commissioner that admits he voted on something he wasn't sure about should never be elected for any office again...ever!!"
I agree.
And it's worth pointing out that by that standard every democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives and every democrat in the U.S. Senate should be eliminated because NONE of them knew or understood the provisions of the Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare).
Riverman.. I usually don't respond back to the cabal comments on here.. I had to this time, simply because the TEE center wasn't built to pleased either Clay or Deke.. The taxpayers of RC overwhelmingly voted for the TEE Center..
If Detroit has a $45 million budget shortfall, that's much worse compared to Augusta.. Detroit proper is around three times bigger than Augusta, which means a similar comparison would be around $18-$20 million.. I know sure if Detroit has millions in the reserves either...
Hello, Mr. Countyman. I, too, understand just skipping over some posts. I do that with much of the unthinking spam posts...know what I mean?
But, the fact is the voters approved $18 million for the TEE Center. It's now over $50 million counting the parking deck and there's over another $50 million that has to go to Laney Walker for the "payoff" (that's how a Commissioner reminded Deke of what it was).
Know what another fact is? It's an abject failure bringing in outside events. There are none scheduled. Those with an occupancy rate of 25% and below are considered abysmal failures. We have a 0% occupancy rate. I'm not even sure how you do the math when it's zero. Anything mulitiplied by zero is zero.
$100 million....flushed into the strom drains of Richmond County that have the sewage in them messing up the river.
I guess I am wondering how many posting on here actually go to the Commission meetings. A lot can be learned there and observed that the AC does not tell you. If those posting are getting all of their information from the AC stories, I would suggest a trip to the Municipal Building to attend a Commission meeting and draw your own conclusions about what is going on. You might be surprised what you see.
Can someone tell me why Inmates get three meal a day when the law state and require only 2 meals. How much does that cost??? Might save 34, jobs.. What about cable TV, How much is that, what wrong with 6,12,26,54,20. Buy a 19.95 box for each TV, They don't need Digital cable. How much would that save$$$$. Cut back on the room service and maybe 34 can keep the jobs that they have and RCSD could give a raise.
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