[Summit] Mayor Elorza’s Budget Address + Boston Globe breakdown + GOP response

Wed Apr 28 18:35:41 UTC 2021

   ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Mayor Jorge O. Elorza <citynews at providenceri.gov>To:Sent: Tuesday, April 27, 2021, 06:15:56 PM EDTSubject: FY22 Budget Positioning Providence as a Leading American City

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April 27, 2021
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| haga clic aquí para español |

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Dear neighbor – 

Today I proposed a municipal budget for the Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22) for the City of Providence. This proposal builds on past investments to position Providence as a leading American city and prepares our residents and business owners for a post-COVID world. Residents can read the speech and explore the budget online here. You can also watch my speech below and on my Facebook page. 
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This budget also lays out my vision for how the American Rescue Plan Act can complement and build on the work we have done together in the last six years. 

These funds will help us to enact an energetic, forward-thinking agenda while delivering and sustaining it in a way that positions Providence as a leading American city.

Sincerely,

Jorge O. Elorza
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Providence : The Creative Capital.

Connect with us on social media!
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 This message was sent to davidjkolsky at yahoo.com from citynews at providenceri.gov

 Mayor Jorge O. Elorza
 City of Providence
 25 Dorrance St.
 Providence, RI 02903

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| April 28, 2021   |   Follow @DanMcGowan on Twitter |

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| If you have friends or relatives who would like their own free copy of this daily briefing about Rhode Island, tell them they can sign up here. |

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| Happy Wednesday and welcome to Rhode Map, your daily guide to everything happening in the Ocean State. I'm Dan McGowan and since my mask has become the most fashionable part of my daily wardrobe, I think I’m going to keep wearing it. Follow me on Twitter @DanMcGowan or send tips to Dan.McGowan at globe.com.
ICYMI: Rhode Island was up to 147,220 confirmed coronavirus cases on Tuesday, after adding 224 new cases. The most-recent overall daily test-positive rate was 2 percent, and the first-time positive rate was 15.7 percent. The state announced one new death, bringing the total to 2,664. There were 135 people in the hospital, and 361,619 residents were fully vaccinated.
Sign up now: We're hosting a free virtual event at 10 a.m. on May 4 looking at how small businesses can save Rhode Island's post-pandemic economy, featuring Governor Dan McKee. You can register here.
Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza unveiled a $540 million budget proposal on Tuesday that holds the line on taxes, sets a $15 minimum wage for city workers, and pays for a 50-member police academy.
The tax-and-spending plan would cover the fiscal year that spans from July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022. The term-limited Democrat is widely expected to run for governor next year.
The budget will now head to the City Council Finance Committee for further vetting, but it is unlikely to see significant changes. Here’s a quick breakdown of the key things to know.
Holds the line on taxesEveryone likes to complain about Providence’s taxes, but Mayor Elorza has mostly avoided significant increases during his tenure (except when property values have spiked). He is seeking to hold the line again this year, with a residential rate of $24.56 per $1,000 of assessed value (and a 40 percent homestead exemption) and a commercial rate of $36.70 per $1,000. The car tax will be $30 per $1,000 (with a $5,000 exemption) and the tangible tax rate will be $55.80 per $1,000.
Pay increasesMost city employees will see raises under Elorza’s proposed budget, including 4.5 percent for police, 3.25 percent for firefighters, 3 percent for members of Local 1033, and 3 percent for non-union workers, including the mayor’s staff. The teachers are currently working without a contract, and they are now negotiating with the state, not the mayor’s office.
More money for schoolsYou can take the schools away from Providence and give them to the state to run, but you can’t stop the state from asking Providence for money. The mayor’s budget would increase the city’s contribution to the school system by $4.8 million, to $134.9 million.
A $15 minimum wageWhile the state is moving toward a $15 minimum wage for all workers, Mayor Elorza is calling for all city employees to earn at least that much in his proposed budget. That includes youth recreation workers this summer.
Another large pension paymentThe city’s pension system was just 22.17 percent funded as of June 30, 2020. Mayor Elorza is seeking to dump another $93.5 million into the fund during the 2021-2022 fiscal year. That number is projected to increase by 3.5 percent a year through 2040, although it’s like the city will reamortize the fund at some point.
Police academyMayor Elorza’s budget calls for a 50-member police academy that is expected to begin next month. That’s after hiring 48 new officers in 2019. The budget also includes $600,000 for a pilot program to divert certain mental health calls away from cops.
The return of PVDFestWell, kind of. Mayor Elorza is setting aside $550,000 in his proposed budget for a PVDFest experience that he says will last several months, rather than the usual weekend summer party that so many of us look forward to. The festival is usually held in June, and even though the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be winding down, it might be too soon have tens of thousands of people gathering  downtown.  |

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PROVIDENCE REPUBLICAN CITY COMMITTEE

NEWS RELEASE

Subject: Providence GOP Response To Elorza Budget Address

For Release:  Tuesday April 27  6:15 P.M.

Contacts:         DAVID TALAN   401-862-7519   DaveTalan at aol.com

                        WILLIAM RICCI   ProvidenceRepublicans at gmail.com

The Co-Chairs of the Providence Republican Party, David Talan and William Ricci, have responded to Mayor Elorza’s annual budget address on Tuesday at 6:15 P.M.  They called for balancing the city budget by reducing unnecessary spending, and not by raising taxes and fees; for reforming the bankrupt pension system; for fully funding the police department; for supporting the R.I. Commissioner of Education’s efforts to fix the failing public school system; and for emphasizing basic city services.

On balancing the city budget, the first thing the Mayor should look at is the huge amount of money needed in each year’s budget, to temporarily keep the bankrupt pension system afloat.  Most attention has been directed at the $2,000,000,000 unfunded liability for retiree pensions and health benefits, which will cause the City to go bankrupt a few years down the road (right after the current Mayor, who is term-limited, has left office).  Less attention has been paid to the huge amount included in each year’s budget, just to keep this system from collapsing right now.  Approximately 11 percent of the City budget (more than $80,000,000) goes for this, and the amount is projected to double in coming years.  This is money that is not available to fix potholes, hire enough police, repair schools, maintain parks, and to just hold down property taxes.

The city should get out of the pension business entirely.  New employees should receive an Individual Retirement Account (IRA), which they own themselves.  The city of Cranston did something similar a few years ago.  Under Mayor Allan Fung, 401(k) retirement plans began in 2010 for the Teamsters Union, and in 2015 for the Laborers Union.  We should follow Cranston’s example.

The GOP leaders repeated proposals they have previously made, to reduce the cost of the pension system.

Reduce the pensions of retirees who get so much money, that they would have to take a pay cut, if they came out of retirement, and went back to their old jobs.

Raise the minimum age to start collecting retirement benefits, up to age 60.  When Governor Raimondo reformed the state employees retirement system, she raised the minimum age for all current and future employees to collect a retirement pension.  Providence needs to do the same.

Ricci and Talan urged the Mayor to make it a priority to fully fund the police department (which is now almost 100 officers below its former authorized size).  Providence citizens want the police to be able to respond to quality of life issues, that neighborhood residents really care about.  In particular, they called for a complete ban on ATV’s anywhere in the city.  In addition to the traffic problems that they cause, their excessive noise makes them unacceptable anywhere at all in a crowded city.  (The Mayor had previously suggested off-road parks for them to use).

On education, the GOP leaders urged the Mayor to fully support State Education Commissioner Angelica Infante-Green, and the state takeover of the Providence schools, to fix all the things that the Mayor has been unable or unwilling to do, during his 6 years in office.

Talan and Ricci noted that, even with the state takeover, the city still pays one-third of the total $400,000,000 cost of running the School Department.  There are ways to trim spending, without harming the quality of our children’s education.

Transportation costs $16,000,000 a year, in the school budget.  Currently, 9,000 school children are forced to take a school bus, even though almost every single child in the City lives walking distance to a nearby Elementary or Middle School.  We need to return to a system of neighborhood schools, for those parents who would like to be able to choose this option (instead of having their children used as pawns in a game of musical-chairs forced busing).  Talan and Ricci believe that at least half of the 9,000 students, who are now bused, would be walking to school, if their parents were given this option.  Cost savings in transportation costs would be at least $6,000,000 per year.

Talan and Ricci also called for the Commissioner to allow an unlimited number of high-performing public Charter Schools for parents who would choose this option. The Mayor had been an opponent of this expansion, although he recently has relented (now that he is running for Governor).

The GOP leaders also supported the Commissioner’s efforts to “allow the community to be a part of the solution” for our public schools.  Talan, who is also President of the Reservoir Triangle Neighborhood Association, and on the Education Committee of the citywide Coalition Of Providence Neighborhood Associations, served on the Commissioner’s Design Team for Community Engagement. |

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