Politics & Government

Budget Passes: Seeks $2.5 Million in Personnel Savings

Are the dramatic savings necessary, or could they be "disastrous," as one councilmember said?

The City Council narrowly approved a budget last night that goes beyond just the cuts necessary to make it balanced. The budget aims to address the city’s long-term financial shortfalls, which includes road maintenance and unfunded benefits for employees and retirees.

The approved budget calls for staff to come back by Sept. 30 with $2.5 million in personnel savings, which will likely mean some amount of layoffs. That was the main controversial element in the budget, not because of the savings it sought, but because of the timing and preemptive nature of it’s approval.  

Councilmembers Sue Greenwald and Stephen Souza said they were uncomfortable with the process and would prefer to seek personnel and other savings immediately after the current budget was passed. But Mayor Joe Krovoza, Mayor Pro Tem Rochelle Swanson and Councilmember Dan Wolk all voted in favor, making it a 3-2 vote. Souza elaborated several times about his concern:

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“The process we are now going through just doesn’t feel right,” Souza said. “I just want us to do it in a way so that we can feel good about at the end of the day.”

Souza was the only councilmember to vocalize this point for the past few weeks, but last night Greenwald joined him in questioning the process.

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“If we pass this budget tonight, it’s going to mean layoffs,” Greenwald said. “It will have disastrous effects on the organization and the employees.”

In hopes of clarifying the purpose and necessity of the motion, Mayor Pro Tem Swanson said, “it’s not about balancing the budget; it’s about righting the ship.”

“During the 2010 campaign, all we talked about was fiscal sustainability," Swanson said. “This isn’t new. It’s painful, but it should have been done before.”

Greenwald argued that the budget would most certainly mean up to 33 layoffs, but Mayor Krovoza emphasized that there will be plenty of room for discussion and creativity before Sept. 30. Flexibility to avoid layoffs could come in the form of salary renegotiation, community support, and more.

“We have to start by passing a realistic budget that addresses the problems,” he said. “People have already stepped up. It’s a real tribute to the community.”

That reference was to a public comment made earlier in the meeting by a Rotary Club representative, expressing the desire to take over Movies in the Park, which was one of the budget cuts. Similar support will be sought for Community Pool, which will be closed as well. 

Souza said that all councilmembers were singing the same song, but with a different tone.

“You have one tone, I have another tone,” he said. “I think there’s a better way to get there that is more collaborative and less of an imposition.”

In the end, Souza’s tone was drowned out, but his sentiment was consistently acknowledged in the discussion, and in reference to the need to collaborate with the community and city workers moving forward.  

The least outspoken councilmember, Dan Wolk, also appeared to be the decisive vote. Wolk, who is a city worker himself in Solano County, said that although it’s extremely difficult, these kinds of cuts are necessary to for the sake of longevity.

“We’re in this new era,” he said. “I firmly believe that the old way of doing this just isn’t viable in the long-term anymore.”

He then referenced the Governor, who has made his own budget-related headlines of late.

“Governor Jerry Brown calls it shared sacrifice,” Wolk said. “We have to come together and devise a way to look out for the long-term sustainability of the community.”


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