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Boardman trustees eyeing Nov. levy
TweetBy DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN — Trustee Larry Moliterno recommended the township seek a levy on the November general election ballot.
The amount and type of levy remain to be ironed out. At a trustees meeting Wednesday, Moliterno said he wanted to gather input from department heads, employees and members of the public before presenting a definite plan likely at the July 23 meeting.
“That’s a good starting point,” said Robyn Gallitto, trustees chairwoman.
To be placed on the November ballot, the issue requires two readings before the Aug. 21 filing deadline for the fall election.
Last November, a 4.1-mill general operating levy that would have generated $4 million annually for five years failed at the voting booth. Last February, trustees laid off 30 full-time and 12 part-time employees to bridge the budget gap. A handful of those laid-off employees have been called back as retirements and other resignations occurred.
Harry Wolfe, president of the firefighters union, urged the board to place a safety forces levy on the ballot. He referred to two large fires in the township within the last few weeks that he says placed firefighters in danger because of lower staffing.
Nine full-time and all nine of the department’s part-time firefighters were among those laid off.
Jason Loree, township administrator, gave a presentation to trustees outlining the township’s finances so far this year compared to previous years. At midyear, the township has spent about 54 percent of its 2008 appropriations, he said.
That’s on target with previous years: 49 percent at mid-year 2007 and 54 percent at mid-year for both 2006 and 2005, Loree said.
Projections for 2009 appropriations call for $15.7 million. The township employs 128 employees compared to about 165 last year. Besides the layoffs, the township has left some positions vacant when workers have resigned or retired.
Staff reductions since 2006 include 12 police officers, 11 firefighters, 10 road department workers and 12 other employees.
To increase revenue, the township has three short-term options: propose a new property tax levy, seek state support, or research a Joint Economic Development District on undeveloped land within the township, Loree said.
Seeking state support refers to pursuing changes in state law to enable townships to seek sales or income tax, Loree said. Youngstown earlier this year proposed a JEDD with the township to impose an income tax on those working in some areas of the township. The revenue would be shared between the city and township.
Loree acknowledged that proposal is unpopular but said it’s something that could be researched further.
Comments
From the Cleveland Metro News:
http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2008/...
State revenue-sharing cutbacks worsen
Cities and villages also struggle with headaches that aren't in the family budget.
One particularly painful one: state revenue-sharing cutbacks that seem to get worse yearly.
Laws that created the state sales and income taxes decades ago made counties, municipalities and townships the state's partner and promised a big chunk of those revenue streams. The theory: State taxes would hamstring the ability to raise taxes locally, so the state turnback would only be fair.
The partnership proved one-sided. The legislature continually tweaked distribution formulas, chipping away at the turnbacks to solve state funding problems. The tweaks have become outright raids: Since 2001, the General Assembly has siphoned off more than $850 million that was to go to counties, municipalities and townships, according to figures from the Ohio Municipal League.
Not to mention that local governments used the prior state turnbacks to inflate wages at the local levels. So now the piper needs paid. But you're asking people who are seeing wage and benefit reductions to pay more so that public employees don't have to live with the same economy the taxpayers do. Until the township employees start to accept the fact that they'll have to take similar wage and benefit concessions that the private sector is taking, no levy will pass. Not just wage freezes are the mandate, but wage and benefit concessions. Delphi was forced to. So was Lordstown. Forum took concessions. Sorry township employees, you aren't immune.
Apollo in Boredman fire and road both took concession packages, pay a portion of their health coverage and have agreed to pay freezes for at least two years. These are people who when hired were required to live in the township and pay the same property taxes everyone else pays.
The only empolyee group who has not had or agreed to take concessions are the cops and their 111k chief.
I think the trustees should place a levy for each of the three depts indivdually and allow the tax payers decide who they want working or not.
The portion that they pay is too low in comparison to the private sector. Pay freezes are not enough, there needs to be concessions so that they can call back laid off workers and be fully staffed. Blame the trustees who voted FOR the chiefs contract and that would INCLUDE ELAINE MANCINI. Since we all know she rarely (or never) voted against spending taxpayer dollars.
My understanding is that the township pays both its portion of the retirement plan contribution and the portion that is supposed to be withheld from the employees pay. (Comparable to private sector Social Security withholding) Does anyone know FOR CERTAIN if this is true.
Rex i believe all of the union employees pay into their pensions and the twp pays whatis required by law.