Cincinnati City Budget: Round 1
Titled "Strategic Investing to Strengthen Cincinnati," the city manager's proposed budget is out today. It's 434 pages long, with dozens more pages of exhibits and attachments.
If you care to read the whole thing, go here.
15 Comments:
at 7:43 AM, November 17, 2007 
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at 9:13 AM, November 17, 2007 
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at 11:12 AM, November 17, 2007 
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at 12:05 PM, November 17, 2007 
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at 9:56 PM, November 17, 2007 
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at 12:52 AM, November 18, 2007 
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at 12:37 PM, November 18, 2007 
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at 2:17 PM, November 18, 2007 
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at 5:21 PM, November 18, 2007 
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at 8:59 PM, November 18, 2007 
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at 6:23 PM, November 19, 2007 
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at 7:09 PM, November 19, 2007 
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at 4:54 PM, November 20, 2007 
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at 8:09 PM, November 20, 2007 
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at 6:28 AM, November 24, 2007 
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Post a Comment*Somebody please dig into the Cincinnati Retirement System.
Fact:
1. It is underfunded by $100s of millions of dollars.
2. The employees only pay 7% of salary...six percentage points less than the state retirement system (they do not pay into social security either).
3. Retirees get free health care for life and so do their dependents.
4. The City municipal code requires that the retirement plan be funded based on an annual actuary report.
5. Last year the City did not fund the required amount.
6. The 2008 budget drops, yes drops, the employee contribution rate from 24% to 17%.
7. The retirement benefit of 2.5% of salary for each year of service is more generous than the state retirement system at 2.2% of salary for each year of service. It is more generous than most public retirement systems.
8. The retirement board is represented with City employees and retirees (foxes guarding the hen house).
9. Previous administrations have put the issue in front of the city council and the council caved when all the retirees came out of the woodwork.
10. Closing the plan, implementing a private sector 401 plan with 5% employer maching for all future hires and contributiong to social security at 7% would save 5 cents for each payroll dollar in the budget. If the payroll is $300 million of the $1 billion, that is $15 million in savings.
Serious reform of city's retirement system is needed now!
Is that you, Smitherman?
The Retirement Benefit is an irrevocable contract. The City has saved millions for close to a decade when they didn't contribute one penny to the system. They're on the hook now!
The Mayor's international follies need to be axed to zero. Those prior junkets have yet to produce economic bolstering contracts.
The City Solicitor's prior spending & her budget needs to be looked at under a microscope. Drastic cuts are being made in the Law Department, which affects everyone living in the City, but it appears the City Solicitor has gone unscathed once again. I guess she's still going to get the dollars for decorating her office & lush vacations that really aren't actual vacations because I can always be contacted for those mandated, dictatorial final approvals.
In addition, the "Who Moved My Cheese" seminars & pep rallies dictated by the City Solicitor are to be stopped immediately. What a waste of money & the time of the lawyers!
If you are clever you can hide a pretty BIG tax increase.
If Dohoney's budget is passed the water works will be collecting for garbage pick-up. It has never been done before in Cincinnati.
Worse, he tries to hide it in our water bill.
The city bragged about saving us all 12 dollars on our property taxes last year. Now they are proposing taking 5x that in this NEW TAX!
Not even the Enquirer seems to realize what is going on here.
And what does my garbage have to do with my water?
Retirement benefits are not a right, contract, or promise. Just talk to the millions of American workers who moved to 401 plans the past 20 years. Time for public employees to get off the dole.
Why are Bortz and Berding helping the Manager "behind-the-scenes" to cut retirees?
Check the web site of the retired City employees.
www.cmera.org
City Manager Milton Dohoney and Water Works Director David Rager are definitely snuggle buddies.
Can you say, the garbage tax?
I am just glad this fool isn't going to be a part of it:
Courtesy of Nate Livingston from September 2007:
"Scott has been laughing about how he thinks Ghizzy won't be re-elected and Bates will. He says he will have the last laugh because he will be in City Hall after November and Ghizzy will be back to practicing law with ZERO clients...."
how about eliminating sounds-good but does-nothing programs that are funded from the general pool.
example: dwight tillery's foundation that supposedly aids in youth health and education to a tune of $250-300K per year.
and, of course, tillery pulls an $80,000 or 100K salary from it.
any council member(s) in opposition risks tillery bad mouthing that person to the black community.
who says ex-mayors do not receive pensions!!!
Retirement benefits are not a right, contract, or promise
Au contraire, Anon 9:56 PM. I suggest you call the City's Retirement Office. I just recently reviewed the binding, irrevocable contract that one of my family members has from the city retirement. It's crystal clear, easy to understand. No duh factor. Public employees are NOT on the dole. I have no idea where you dreamed up such utter nonsense. The city workers pay into their retirement benefits, with a supposedly comparable percentage kicked in by the city. This isn't "dole" or welfare. City workers are paid way less on the hour than those in other sectors, including the private sector of business & commerce. Way far less.
Check your facts before you accuse city retirees being slackabouts on the dole.
The "dole" is the human services flim-flam agencies who don't pay in, who don't contribute, who don't produce measurable results. That "dole" has been bleeding the budget for years & years.
Retired City Employees are placing our city into a financial demise.
Check their web site out---
www.cmera.org
How is the City of Cincinnati different from any other defined benefit pension system, public or private? The State of Ohio had the courage to reduce medical benefits to current and future retirees and raise the employee contribution rates to keep the system solvent. Where is the City's courage?
Name one other public pension system with free health care for life for the retiree and dependents....just one.
The prior administrations are responsible for the retirement mess.
They (note: the folks who benefit most) hoodwinked the City Council to raise the benefit rate to 2.5% of salary for each year of service without asking the employees to contribute more. Find one public employee retirement system in the mid-west with a 2.5% benefit level.
The administration has known for 10years that medical costs for retirees and retiree dependents would bankrupt the plan, but they continue to provide free health care for life for the retiree and all dependents.
The administration knew for 10 years that there are more retirees than active workers, so the plan will collapse eventually.
Of course nothing was done becuase the leadership just wants to get to retirement before the changes are made so they are grandfathered into the cush land to free health care and 75% of salary.
Prediction: pension deficit bonds within three years. Interest on these bonds costs the city millions to the general fund and taxes must be raised. Nice cover for the city council to end the successful property tax rollback.
But, this will not just effect city taxpayers because the sewer district and water works are operated by the city and their share of the pension obligation bonds will be in the millions. These utilities service the entire region, so everybody in the tri-state pays for the city's excess.
Fix the pension problem now:
Make the benefit level and contribution rates the same as the state public employee retirement system and get out of the retirement business.
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