County Manager George Devanney proposed his 2008 Exec. Budget to the Board of Chosen Freeholders last week. His $436.8 Mil spending plan called for raising county taxes 6.5% or $22 mil over last year. It is a sure bet that had he been around the late President Ronald Reagan would have greeted this announcement by shaking his head gently while saying “There they go again.”
2008 marks the eighth consecutive year that the county operating budget has been increased and while daily spending was just a tad under $1 Mil in 2004 with this proposed budget we are now talking about $1.357Mil a day in just 4 years time. Ask yourself what do you see for this kind of money, what services do you receive that justifies this kind of spending?
A Star Ledger article appearing on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 reported that an increase of 5.7% was to be laid on the backs of the tax payers in ‘07or the county would have to cut programs that were popular with the county residents. Devanney specifically cited: Meals on Wheels, a prescription drug program and concerts in the parks, this was very odd as seniors contribute to the cost of their meals, the prescription drug program is paid for by the participants and the concerts, according to county officials are funded by sponsors. How did these items impact the budget?
The article also went on to report that the Freeholders hoped to trim about 50 positions from the county’s work force of almost 3,000 employees, but not thru layoffs. Instead the positions would be left vacant after resignations and retirements. But according to county employee records, obtained thru OPRA and presented on Excel Spreadsheets, in 2007 there were a total of 3112 employees http://unioncountywatchdog.org/docs/2007UCEmployeeList.xls (note this list list does not include 269 Seasonal employees) with 2008 showing 3,289 employees http://unioncountywatchdog.org/docs/2008UCEmployeeList.XLS. (list includes seasonal employees) Now after the recent UC jail debacle they are hiring 51 new corrections officers which it appears will put the number of employees well over 3,300.
2008 marks the eighth consecutive year that the county operating budget has been increased and while daily spending was just a tad under $1 Mil in 2004 with this proposed budget we are now talking about $1.357Mil a day in just 4 years time. Ask yourself what do you see for this kind of money, what services do you receive that justifies this kind of spending?
A Star Ledger article appearing on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 reported that an increase of 5.7% was to be laid on the backs of the tax payers in ‘07or the county would have to cut programs that were popular with the county residents. Devanney specifically cited: Meals on Wheels, a prescription drug program and concerts in the parks, this was very odd as seniors contribute to the cost of their meals, the prescription drug program is paid for by the participants and the concerts, according to county officials are funded by sponsors. How did these items impact the budget?
The article also went on to report that the Freeholders hoped to trim about 50 positions from the county’s work force of almost 3,000 employees, but not thru layoffs. Instead the positions would be left vacant after resignations and retirements. But according to county employee records, obtained thru OPRA and presented on Excel Spreadsheets, in 2007 there were a total of 3112 employees http://unioncountywatchdog.org/docs/2007UCEmployeeList.xls (note this list list does not include 269 Seasonal employees) with 2008 showing 3,289 employees http://unioncountywatchdog.org/docs/2008UCEmployeeList.XLS. (list includes seasonal employees) Now after the recent UC jail debacle they are hiring 51 new corrections officers which it appears will put the number of employees well over 3,300.
Is it any wonder that the costs of medical insurance and pension contributions have soared but what of the early retirement packages offered in 2006 and 2007 that were intended to cut the payroll budget? (It appears that there are 177 more employees in 2008 than 2007 not to include the 51 potential new hires.)
Is it any wonder that the costs of medical insurance and pension contributions have soared but what of the early retirement packages offered in 2006 and 2007 that were intended to cut the payroll budget? It almost appears that 2 workers were hired to replace each that left the ranks so where are the savings?
Also impacting the county budget is the county run Runnells Hospital that has only operated in the black one year out of the last 17 years. This facility is nothing more than a money pit which has been given more than ample time to prove its worth. The time has come for the county to rid itself of this albatross from the resident’s necks and either privatize its operation perhaps on a trial basis or just sell it outright and stop the bleeding.
The story changes little from year to year with the Freeholders and the County Manager blaming everyone and every thing but themselves for what will be a cumulative tax increase of over 60% since the year 2000. County government keeps growing every year, as shown by the numbers that they continue to employ.
Then of course there is their unwillingness to admit that perhaps Runnells should be cut from the county portfolio rather than to continue to throw good money after bad. We will have to wait and see what the upcoming budget hearings will bring but it is a pretty safe bet based on their past performance that when the residents receive their tax bills for 2008 they will be saying “There they go again.”
