At the last City Council Meeting both Councilman Dixon and I expressed our frustration regarding the pace of discussion on the budget. It is my hope that before we take our second vote on the school budget the second week of May we will have come to some agreement on the budget and tax rate. While most of the candidates have not provided specifics they have commented on their support for paying teachers competitive salaries, providing the services residents expect, and support for a raise for city employees. To achieve those goals will require additional revenue.
Unlike the other candidates however, a major theme of Mrs. Girvan’s campaign is her perceived problems with how the City handles the budget and controls taxes. Yet through out this campaign, and in meetings on the current budget, she has made few comments on these perceived problems, nor proposed any solutions. Lets take a look at Mrs. Girvan’s views on the budget as outlined on her website:
I support responsible spending & tax control
Let's take a closer look at how Mrs. Girvan has addressed these points--
We don't have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem.We DO have a revenue problem and if we had adopted Mrs. Girvan’s approach to the budget last year the situation would be much WORSE. I would refer you the Emily Battle’s recent story in the Free Lance Star.
Budget Is Part of Politics in the City
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2008/042008/04202008/372163
As for a spending problem Mrs. Girvan supported the construction of the two new schools, police station, and swimming pool that accounts for the largest investment in Capital projects in Fredericksburg’s history totaling $66 million dollars. Yet her example of a spending problem is a $100,000.00 investment in Auto Chalk. And as pointed out in another Free Lance Star article her grasp of this expenditure was wrong:
Checking the Facts
http://fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2008/042008/04252008/374410
Short of cutting employees, services and programs the Council has limited leeway with the budget. The school budget, salaries and benefits for city employees, and debt service account for almost 75% of the budget. The remainder includes funding mandates from Richmond/Washington and regional agreements that dictate funding levels. The message from most city residents is don’t cut services. Options to reduce the budget are there but they are limited unless cuts in services are considered.
Last year Mrs. Girvan proposed no significant cuts in the budget, recommend against a real estate tax increase, and use fund balance to cover operating expenses. A great political move—try to make everybody happy. Very bad fiscal policy.
If she has a new plan we are still waiting to hear it.
We must create operational cost efficiencies to do more with less.
Great sound bite but where are the suggested “operational efficiencies” today. It’s been over three months since Mrs. Girvan announced her candidacy for Mayor, and over a month since the City Council began its budget review, and she has made only one mention of suggested “operational efficiencies.”
The review of the current budget was the perfect opportunity for Mrs. Girvan to enlighten the Council, staff and the community on how to better handle the budget. What we got was another suggestion to require more information from Outside Agencies on how many people they serve in the city.
Prior to Mrs. Girvan’s arrival on the City Council staff began to revamp the application for funding to Outside Agencies. They are already required to identify either the number of people or groups they serve. In addition they have to provide us with a breakdown of their request and how their service meets the goals of the City. What Mrs. Girvan is requesting is already there if she would looked for it!
We must seek sources of sustainable revenue and funding partnerships to minimize the impact on taxpayers.
We have not only been seeking new sources of sustainable revenue we have already brought them to Fredericksburg—Wegmans, Kalahari, Capital Ale, and the expansion of Kybecca. Even with the incentives provided the revenue to be generated will be more than what has been generated by new economic development projects in at least the past five years. And with a projected $80 million price tag for Capital projects that will be required in the next five years the revenue from these projects came just in time.
Mrs. Girvan’s approach is to oppose these projects except for Wegmans. Two and a half months into the campaign and after numerous questions about what she would do instead Mrs. Girvan finally suggested bringing smaller high-end businesses to the city—education, healthcare, new media, and data collection.
It should be noted that WE ARE looking for these types of businesses already. If fact, Mrs. Girvan’s allusion to healthcare is based on some discussions staff has had with the Council and she seems prepared to take credit for the effort. Higher end job development has been a City goal before my election to Council and we are about to make some decisions that will bring this type of development to Fredericksburg. But while revenue from higher end employment helps support the service and retail revenue sources, with more disposable income available, it doesn’t generate a lot of direct revenue. Mrs. O’Neil, a member of the City’s Economic Development Authority put it best in a recent Letter to the Editor—
“Plan B?” Rename It “Plan F” for “Fantasy”
http://www.fredericksburg.com/News/FLS/2008/042008/04262008/374245
The Council understands that we need to diversify our tax base. We need to get away from a reliance on retail sales and real estate taxes. We want to go more into the areas of tourism and higher end employment. If Mrs. Girvan disagrees with this approach lets hear a different one.
As for forming partnerships WE ARE moving on that front also. The developer has paid for the infrastructure, roads, water and sewer, for Celebrate VA. The right of way for Fall Hill Ave. has already been obtained as well as commitments for some funding by development interests. The fire station site was donated and station will be build from funds provided by either a CDA or a Special Tax District on business in Celebrate VA and Central Park. Money has been committed towards the construction of an interchange at Celebrate VA. These are just some of the partnerships the City is working on to put the needed infrastructure in place while minimizing the use of City tax dollars.
We must establish better spending priorities & fiscal planning.
Again the city does set spending priorities and tries to plan for future. These are outlined in the Comprehensive Plan, and the Council’s Goals and Initiatives that are reviewed every two years at a Council Retreat. We also have a five year Capital Plan. Again, if Mrs. Girvan has another approach she has had (3) months to articulate it and she hasn’t said a word.
Conclusions:
My reason for focusing on Mrs. Girvan in regard to the budget is because she is the one candidate who feels we have significant problems in how we handle the City’s finances. Yet she has not articulated any problems beyond the expenditure on Auto Chalk. It is now been show that she either did not fully understand how that process worked or was misleading the public. The few other suggested changes she has put forward have already been done. Again we are looking at either a case of ignorance or misleading the public. In either case, her misrepresentations have unfairly demeaned the hard work of staff and the Council.
Mrs. Girvan is presenting herself as the fiscal hardliner on Council. Yet she went along with the first two budgets, proposed a budget in year three which would have placed us in a more difficult fiscal position this year, and now won’t comment on the current budget. She has not shown any leadership on the budget. What is worse is she seems prepared to play politics with the fiscal well being of the City.
I know there are those who oppose the direction the City is going in under the current Council. While I disagree with you on this point I respect it and will do what I can to address your concerns. However, you either need to step up yourself or find candidates who believe as you do and let’s have a true debate on the City’s future. Mrs. Girvan is not that candidate.
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