City salaries
The City Council is likely to approve an $11,000 increase to staffers' salaries during Tuesday's 3 p.m. meeting.
The proposal is listed as a consent calendar item. Those are generally approved as a package without debate.
The estimated cost to increasing the maximum monthly salary for the city's top staffers (including Police Chief Jim Bueermann, Fire Chief Jim Drabinski and Finance Director Tina Kundig) is estimated to cost the city $6,000.
The remaining $5,000 would come from raising pay for four lower level postions that are benchmarked off the minimum wage. The state minimum wage increased to $8 per hour at the start of the year.
The salary increases would be approved as part of a resolution that also reassigns various city positions to different departments to be consistent with recent reorganizations of Redlands bureaucracy. For example, parks and trees positions would be switched from Public Works to the new Quality of Life Department.
One notable change is the near-elimination of the City Treasurer's Office. Seven positions, including Assistant City Treasurer, would be transferred from the Treasurer's Office to a new Revenue Division within the Finance Department.
The Finance Department would absorb Treasurer's Office duties in the wake of criminal charges being filed against Treasurer Mike Reynolds last year. In December, Reynolds pleaded not guilty to the District Attorney's allegation that he misappropriated public funds by transferring about $38,000 from an account under his control to the city's general account.
Reynolds' attorney, Patrick Milligan, said he had no comment on the potential transfer of city employees out of his client's office.
He did offer a comment on Reynolds' case.
"We're just in the process of putting together the case together for trial," Milligan said.
Reynolds next court appearance is a disposition and reset hearing set for April 16, according to the District Attorney's Web site.
Comments
Lets see if I have this right:
Total increase in staff salaries - $11,000
Cost to increase salaries of Police Chief, Fire Chief, and Finance Chief - $6,000
Reality:
Top salary for Poice Chief goes from $158,724 to $175,020
- $16,296
(Explaination: "Deborah Scott-Leistra, human resources director, said Bueermann and other department heads won't automatically have their pay increased to the new maximum." Comment: If you're not going to need it, then why do you need it? Explaination: "She said it was necessary for the city to increase salaries to attract qualified job candidates when vacancies arise." Comment: That's gobbledygook.
(Meanwhile, in November 2006 the Facts/Sun reported that the City had increased the salaries of the Police and Fire Chiefs to $300,000 per year plus a termination package.)
Reality: something different from what is being reported by the City.
Posted by: Charlie Trie | March 5, 2008 3:22 AM
Your article today reports: "City officials now expect to collect about $13.7million in sales taxes for the fiscal year ending June 30 - $2 million less than originally expected." What does that mean? ie, is the City revenue $2 million less than expected?
Or is it some fraction of that?
Because if the City is short the full amount, it would appear that 'shaving' $622,000 doesn't take care of the problem.
Posted by: Charlie Trie | March 5, 2008 3:37 AM
Additional details on the city's math were published in a previous article headlined "Hard times have come."
"Sales taxes are only one factor in the city's financial condition. City Hall has reported that when all of the city's income and expenses for the current budget year are examined, the city stands to be $1.2 million short.
"That shortage is partially covered by an expected $450,000 increase in property tax revenues and another $250,000 in money generated by Measure F, a new tax on distribution centers that voters approved in November."
Posted by: Andrew Edwards
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March 5, 2008 1:33 PM
My question wasn't clear. The majority of sales tax goes to the State. (My understanding is that Redlands only receives one penny of the 8 cent tax.)
I take it that the City expects to come up 15% short in the tax department. And that estimate comes with 30% of the fiscal year yet to come (four months). With the economy slipping daily, how firm is that estimate? And how trustworthy are the estimates on warehouse and real estate taxes?
If the State is cutting schools to balance a $17 billion deficit, should the City count on a full rebate property taxes?
My point is that Redlands' revenue sources are suspect, yet they are increasing salaries at the top. Is that reasonable? With the fiscal mess that the City is in, should you reward the very people who have created this mess? (When you add pension and benefits, these favored few are being paid 10-20 times the average taxpayer's salary in Redlands. They've given a whole new meaning to "I feel your pain".)
I'll bet you a nickel that on June 30 you'll find that although the budget is balanced, Redlands is in a deeper financial hole.
Posted by: Charlie Trie | March 6, 2008 1:01 AM