Mayor Peyton threatens "wholesale layoffs"

[Bostech]

Uhh, capitalism=private ownership.
Military,government,public schools,highways are not private property but public.They serve ALL.
Therefore it is socialism.

[Ocklawaha]

"Merda taurorum animas conturbit" (Bullshit baffles brains)

Actually a good union contract can set the agreed upon wage and benefit package for years at a time, taking the guess work out of budget planning. Agree or disagree with unions, or the given deal, when you know what you will be spending 5 years from now it puts one in a very good position. Should the city decide not to get involved in a war with organized labor, they should be able to set reasonable cost covering fee's with nobody taking a dive, and really folks, $5.00 or $20 dollars a month? A $15 dollar monthly difference isn't going to break many of us is it? This amounts to about one pack of cigarettes per family - per week to keep the city moving forward and how many of the "poor" are already spending far more and watching it go "up in smoke?"

Hell's bells toss in another $15 bucks per person - per month and we could provide fare free mass transit to every man, woman, and child, in the community. Wonder how much THAT would benefit the poor? the commuters? the peasantry?

BOS? If you don't think Lincoln was a politician then what the hell was the Emancipation Proclamation? I'm not saying it was a bad thing, in fact I would have supported carte blanche emancipation, but at that time it was a pure political move in an attempt to save an unpopular president engaged in an illegal war on the people. DEO VINDICE!

OCKLAWAHA

[NotNow]

Bos,

Read the definition again.  Governments exercise powers NOT involved in the ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods.  In the case of the Federal government, the raising of an Army and Navy, and negotiating treaties.  In the case of States, setting a legal and judicial system, including the establishment of law enforcement.  This ain't rocket science son.

And of course StephenDare!, interesting analogies, but just dead wrong.  

And guys, please focus on the thread.

[fsu813]

If unions continue to resist across-the-board salary cuts, Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton said “wholesale layoffs” might be the only answer to balance next year’s city budget.

Preliminary projections show a $58 million gap between revenue and expenses, mainly because of rising employee-related costs like health care.

Peyton wants to cut costs by reducing employee pay by 3 percent, increasing the amount workers pay toward health care and raising fees for various city services â€" including more than doubling the garbage fee to $151.80 a year.

But Peyton said that would only trim the projected shortfall to about $18 million.

Peyton said the ongoing budget issues are caused by a “structural problem” the city must resolve.

“Our employee-related expenses are growing at an unprecedented rate in an environment when revenue is dropping,” he said as he laid out his concerns during a meeting Tuesday with City Council leaders.

The council is required by state law to pass a balanced budget before the fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Usually, the mayor’s office begins budget discussions in July, but the ongoing economic crisis and tough decisions that lie ahead accelerated the timetable.

Because the overwhelming majority of city employees are represented by unions, any reductions in salaries or benefits must be negotiated. If collective bargaining continues to stall, Peyton said the city’s only alternative is layoffs.

A memo to the council that he shared Tuesday floated the idea of “layoffs in all areas of government.” He didn’t exempt the police and fire departments.

“We can’t keep cutting budgets on the backs of non-public safety,” the mayor said after the meeting. “It has to be shared pain across the board. It is not what I prefer to do. I prefer to be successful at the collective bargaining table.”

Peyton said the city can’t afford to try to wait out the current economic crisis and hope that more robust times will lead to better revenue streams.

“We have an immediate shortfall problem that can only be resolved with expense reductions,” he said.

And, apparently, with revenue hikes. The mayor’s office has completed a study of service fees that was requested by the council’s Finance Committee during last year’s budget discussions. Everything from the cost for zoning applications to the rental rates at the Ritz Theater were evaluated.

Peyton’s staff has proposed new rates for nearly all.

The mayor will submit a bill to the City Council for full vetting within the month. Council Vice President Jack Webb, who’ll take the lead, said part of getting the city’s finances in order is ensuring the fees are set fairly and cover the city’s expenses.

“You’ve got some fees that we have not looked at in 25 years, where we are not capturing the cost of the service,” Webb said.

For example, homeowners currently pay $6 a month for solid waste collection, but the city’s expense is $14.90 a month. The mayor’s office is proposing the fee be raised to $12.65 next fiscal year.

Council President Richard Clark said negotiating reductions in employee-related costs and altering the fee rates are the first step. Discussions about raising the property tax rate or cutting services like library hours, parks or special events are further off in the distance, he said.

“Before we get into true service-level cuts,” Clark said, “you are going to see us trying to cut from within the business of government.”


http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-03-04/story/peyton_sounds_warning_city_layoffs_possible

[fsu813]

yet another version of the same story, with a few new nuggets. this story must be popular...

[whitey]

Is there a way to see how the budget breaks down ie, salaries, healthcare expenses, pension funding, etc?

[mtraininjax]

People do deserve a fair wage and an equitable retirement system!

According to who? Is life fair? No, far too many people live off government, whether employed or unemployed. Far too many tax dollars go to government for payment of BS plans and employees too lazy to try their wares in the private sector.

[tufsu1]

Far too many tax dollars go to government for payment of BS plans and employees too lazy to try their wares in the private sector.

That is ridiculous...many people (including my parents) went to work for the government as a sense of doing something good and being part of something bigger than themselves...public service in Europe gets the best and brightest...imagine if we could do that again here.

[mtraininjax]

That is ridiculous...many people (including my parents) went to work for the government as a sense of doing something good and being part of something bigger than themselves...public service in Europe gets the best and brightest...imagine if we could do that again here.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, mine is here in black and white, far too long has the city grown with the so called hiring freeze. Just look at all the AMIO positions. Its rediculous. Far too many people are hiding in the city that are really dead wood and should be shown the door. Kudos to your parents, but I still believe there is far too many people hiding in the city.

If you don't believe the dead wood conspiracy, go see city hall or any city building for yourself, most of the tasks are redundant and handled by many people when some simple efficiencies could eliminate overhead. This is not rocket science, go check out the bloated aspects of the city, not JEA, the city agencies. It is pathetic.

[tufsu1]

oh I agree there is dead wood at the City...just like ther is at any large organization...public and private

[NotNow]

And silence from Mr. Hollingsworth.