Tredyffrin Supervisors Raise Taxes Again! 12/15/08
The Good News First
Thanks again to Supervisor Olsen, the lone voice of reason and fiscal responsibility.
A Pen thanks the citizens who spoke against the tax increase at the meeting. About 15 citizens spoke in total. Four spoke in favor of increasing taxes, mainly because someone misinformed them about the police officer’s salaries being on the line – they weren’t. Eleven taxpayers asked the Supervisors not to raise taxes, and a few had excellent suggestions to help the Supervisors reign in the spending.
The Bad News
In spite of so many citizens speaking against raising taxes on 11/17/08 and 12/15/08 the Supervisors (except for Paul Olsen and Bob Lamina) turned a deaf ear. Looking back, it’s not surprising. Supervisors in the last three meetings have indicated that they do not want to reduce your tax burden, because they do not think it is high enough yet. Most Supervisors suggested budget increases when the conversation was about decreasing it. The only one speaking against the majority was Supervisor Olsen. Unfortunately, Supervisor Lamina attended by spotty phone connection from the Middle East.
This tax increase is the second in two years, and it’s only the beginning. Supervisor Kampf reported that if they waited to raise taxes, they would be “forced” to raise them 50% in one year. His projection assumes no improvements in the economy. So, think of this 2.4% as a warm-up for tax increase season, or maybe last year’s 3.3% was the warm-up, and we’re in the midst of an uncontrolled spending spree.
At the beginning of the discussion the Supervisors agreed easily to remove plans for Westover Park from 2009′s budget. Then they overrode concessions made at the 11/17/08 meeting in a stunning blind-side to voters who thought the Supervisors would try to be fiscally responsible. Voting in favor of restoring Cost of Living Increases (COLA) and Longevity Bonuses: Supervisors DeHaven, DiFilippo, DiBuonoventuro, and DeFeliciantano. Voting against: Supervisors Olsen, Kampf, and Lamina. So:
- TT Employees will receive COLA for 2009. Yes, they were reminded by a citizen that even Gov. Rendell has denied state employees a COLA for 2009, but that did not matter. Yes, they will receive a 3.5% inflation adjustment when there is negative inflation.
- TT Employees will receive Longevity Pay, too. (That’s the non-merit based bonus, that we’re not supposed to call a bonus (Shhh!). It’s given to TT employees who don’t get fired that year.) Hard to believe Supervisors who tell us our employees are underpaid.
Moments of Interest…
When Supervisor DeHaven lifted up his 3-ring binder (appearing to be 2-inches full of budget information), and explained that he didn’t know how to cut anything from the budget; it was too complicated for him. Supervisor DeHaven, please consider not running for re-election. Your primary job as a Supervisor of a $37 million budget is to find the fat and trim it.
The set-up: At the 11/17/08 meeting, Supervisor DiBuonaventuro told us that he would forgo his $3,000 stipend from the township for 2009. He wanted to set an example for all the other Supervisors, encourage them to do the same, and encourage TT Manager Gleason to voluntarily give up her salary increase, and ask her employees to do the same. Flash forward to 12/15/08, when a knowledgeable citizen reminded the Supervisors that if they all gave up their $3,000 stipend, the township would save $27,000. Supervisor DiFeliciantano fumed at the citizen asking him “Would you like to donate $3,000 of your money?” and finished with “I am offended!” Perhaps Supervisor DiFeliciantonio would like to make a donation to TT to cover all of the deficit spending?
Please contact your Tredyffrin Township Board of Supervisors and make them aware of your concerns. (If you click on the link, then click on the Supervisor’s highlighted name, their email address will show in your email application.
UPDATE:
Here’s another community going through the same thing.
-A Pen
Structural Deficit Defined
“Structural Deficit” is a misnomer currently used by the Tredyffrin Township Board of Supervisors. It is meant to convey that there is a deficit, it is years old, and it is not their fault. Instead, they should call it a “Chronic Deficit.” Since, they have confirmed that this deficit has been around for years, and though they knew this, they continued spending. That is the definition of fiscal irresponsibility – knowingly spending more than you’ll receive.
Budgets do not not get out of control when Supervisors are careful with money. They go haywire when Supervisors foolishly mistake their “wants” for actual “needs.” We could benefit from this recession if Supervisors would reflect on how they waste our money.
The fiscally responsible thing to do is trim the budget without delay. It is the Supervisors’ most important responsibility, and we elected them to do it. We did not elect a citizen’s panel of their choosing. We elected them.
-A Pen
Tredyffrin Twp. Government Bureaucrats
“Your dad and I are exactly the opposite. He’s a government bureaucrat, and I am a capitalist. We get paid, and our success is measured in opposite behaviors.
He gets paid to spend money and hire people. The more he spends and the more people he hires, the larger his organization becomes. In the government, the larger his organization, the more he is respected.
On the other hand, within my organization, the fewer people I hire and the less money I spend, the more I am respected by my investors. That’s why I don’t like government people. They have different objectives from most business people. As the government grows, more and more tax dollars will be needed to support it.”
From Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki. Warner Books, 1997, p. 96. ISBN: 0-446-67745-0
–
Government Bureaucrats…
One stated at 11/17/08 meeting that they would feel “uncomfortable” facing non-union TT employees if there were no pay raise for 2009.
One agreed on 11/17/08 to 9 recommendations to reduce the budget for 2009, only if a reverse -911 system and 2 extra police officers were worked into the budget. This occurred after the Superintendent of Police, had stated he could do without them. (This Supervisor later found funding for the reverse-911 system within the County – a program we in Tredyffrin would have paid twice for.)
One said the recommendations were “draconian” at the 11/17/08 meeting, and for referred to items like music in the park as “quality of life issues.” The quality of life issues that TT manages are: police, fire, and roads.
The last Supervisor lamented at the 12/1/08 meeting a non-union employee salary freeze for 2009. With the way he carried on, one would think the BoS’s had decided to terminate all 50 of them. (That would be draconian!) It is only a one-year salary freeze , and in a recession a salary freeze equals a raise, because costs of goods will decrease while the salary is maintained. One of my friends was told recently she will get no salary increase for three years.
Frustrated? Help Us! Stand with us at the next meeting.
We are doing everything we can to affect a change with this BoS’s, and we need your help. The Board of Supervisors (BoS)’s heard many people object to a tax hike at the 11/17/08 meeting, but many of them were unswayed. Come to the meeting: speak at the mike, bring a small or large poster, or just sit quietly. Let’s not let them stop us from using the mike until each citizen has had an opportunity to voice their opinion. It’s our last chance.
TT BoS meeting is on December 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Township Building on DuPortail Rd. Our goal: standing-room only. Get your friends and neighbors at the meeting. Call them on the phone. If you will be at the meeting, please place a comment.
-A Pen
P.S. If you are good with numbers, look over the TT 2009 Budget Presentation available as a PDF. I hope at least one of these links works for you.
You Are Cordially Invited
Your presence is requested at the
Tredyffrin Township Board of Supervisors Meeting
Finalizing the 2009 Proposed Budget
on
December 15, 2008
beginning at 7:30 p.m., ending ?
at
Keene Hall, 1100 DuPortail Road, Tredyffrin
If you don’t want a TT Tax increase, with a scoop of TESD Tax increase, topped with a Cherry – Chester County Tax Increase, please come! We’d love to see you there, though some of the BoS’s won’t! Many of your neighbors spoke against any tax increase at the 11/17/08 TT BoS meeting, but they’re still planning to raise taxes.
Attire: Dress is casual, but show your spirit – wear Structural Deficit Red!
Activities: Listen to the BoS’s. Find out who is naughty or nice. Step up to the karaoke microphone – raise your voice. Bring a small (or large) sign with a “no-tax increase” message, in case public comments are cut short as on 11/17/08. Or sit quietly, and witness the TT government spending your hard-earned wages.
R.S.V.P. To be certain your elected officials get your message, please contact all of the following: tredyffrin@tredyffrin.org, bos@tredyffrin.org, and 610) 644-1400. You may also leave a comment on this blog. :)
- A Pen
Tredyffrin Board of Supervisors Meeting 12/1/08
A Pen thanks…
Mr. Paul Olsen for stating that BoS’s have “an obligation to keep financial sanity in our township. It’s our responsibility.”
Mr. Bob Lamina for continuing to champion lower taxes.
Regarding 12/1/08 BoS Meeting
In the comments that have been made in the last two Tredyffrin Twp. BoS meetings regarding the TT Budget, I have not heard anyone degrade the quality of the TT employees, nor disrespect them. So, when Mr. Bill DeHaven said that the budget cuts are “disrespectful” of employees or that the budget “beats the crap out of them,” he is being dishonest, dramatic, and diverting the topic. (Same goes for Mr. Mark DiFeliciantonio’s comment last week that the budget cuts were “draconian.”) In the real world, an employee’s salary has little to do with respect, and much to do the value of the job. An employer could be respectful or not, and still pay a fair wage. And employers have an obligation to keep their spending within budget, or eventually face bankruptcy. What solutions did Mr. DeHaven promote? None, except to try to make responsible BoS’s feel guilty about doing the right thing – reigning in spending.
Trimming waste from a budget cut is a business move, nothing else. We’ve heard repeatedly that there is a structural problem with the TT budget. It consistently spends more than it receives. Responsible? Not at all. Every gardener knows that proper pruning increases the health of a plant. Same with proper budgeting. Same with sports teams, household budgets, clothing in closets, etc.
In tonight’s meeting and the last meeting (11/17/08), it was implied by some that TT public employees are rare and precious, and cannot be replaced. I suspect it would be fairly easy to find people to fill TT openings.
In the last meeting’s public discussion with the BoS, it was revealed that there is no salary range and no salary cap. So, with longevity bonuses plus yearly 3.5% cost-of-living increases, an employee who sticks around long enough could make much more than the market rate. I appreciate that the BoS’s work with these employees, and have come to adore them, but let’s not forget that the BoS’s are in the position of supervising. They are in charge, and, like it or not, they must make the proper decisions regardless their feelings.
Holding the salaries of these employees at the current rate for 2009 is a sound business decision. We are in a recession – negative inflation. When employees are given cost-of-living increases, it’s because inflation is present. Looking on the bright side, when an employee’s salary stays the same during a recession, he or she is fortunate! Many people are losing jobs and pay. Also, since TT employees never worry about their government going out of business, they’ve got true job security. Good fortune, again! Consider this: if a cost-of-living increase is always in order with inflation, why isn’t a cost-of-living decrease in order with deflation?
Hey BoS’s and government officials. Stop picking on taxpayers! We work very hard, are likeable, and are feeling unappreciated. We won’t be able to guilt you at the office with our long faces, but some of us are feeling oppressed by all the layers of taxes upon us: Township, School Board, County, State, Federal, purchases and savings, real estate, etc.
- A Pen
