And, to be sure, the rest of us.
Editorial: Budget's first
blush leaves
a pale shade. (Appleton Post-Crescent, 3/6/2011)
Excerpt: Officials figure that even with
higher public employee contribution
rates outlines by the governor, the
city will have to cut about $50,000
above and beyond the difference between that savings and the cut in
state aid. In addition, the budget bill
reduces the amount municipalities
can increase spending each year
from 3 percent to 0 percent.
However,
about 50 percent of the city’s spending goes to public safety expenses,
mainly salaries and benefits for police officers and firefighters, two
public employee groups the governor
puts off limits when eliminating
most collective bargaining rights.
In order to hold spending flat or
risk losing $1.2 million in state revenue as a penalty, where can the city
cut costs? Remember, public safety is
off limits. Parks, the public library,
public museum, seniors center, on-
going street maintenance and street
plowing. Municipal spending is one
small example where the state budget makes Scott Walker the defacto mayor and city manager of Oshkosh.
Indeed, pondering the impact on
communities and loss of local control should leave us all pale.
The Final Thought: Early reviews of state
budget are not encouraging. As we dig deeper,
we’ll share other thoughts on how the budget
falls short and how it can be improved.
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