Group wants city to trim budget

Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star Published: January 13, 2011 6:00 PM
A group of businesspeople and residents is urging the City of Vernon to roll back taxes.  Six individuals, who describe themselves as the budget review ad hoc committee, have gone over the city’s 2011 financial plan, and they are not satisfied with council’s goal of a zero per cent tax increase.  “A zero increase budget is not sufficient to address the disproportionate operating expenditure growth of the past several years,” states the group in a written submission.  “Council must enact a five to 10 per cent reduction in budget in 2011.”  The group members include Corky McMechan, Lew Rossner, former councillor Barry Beardsell, Bruce Davies, Sid Hutchinson and Ian Tribes.  McMechan attended the city’s budget meeting Wednesday, and he told council to “sharpen your pencils. Ask the right questions and we’ll be watching.”  In its submission, the group calls on council to eliminate some “questionable” line items and to cut salaries for council and non-unionized staff.  “The total unionized staff must be reduced: department managers should be directed to re-assess all staffing levels,” it states.  “A city-wide directive should be issued to all staff, contractors, consultants and vendors to reduce costs and expenses, with targeted goals and penalties for not complying.”  Among the potential expenditures the group takes issue with is $12,000 for development of administration staff. “At the wage rates in administration, qualified personnel shouldn’t need to be developed.”  The budget also earmarks $79,600 for employee recruitment, but the group states, “the city has an excess of staff.”  It also recommends that the $60,000 contract with the Social Planing Council be eliminated because social issues are a provincial responsibility. There is also a call to end grants to O’Keefe Ranch.

“It is time that council recognize that the continual increases to the budget that council has approved over the past several years and the subsequent demands on taxation revenue are excessive and unsustainable, and have not been fiscally responsible decisions,” states the group’s submission.  Coun. Bob Spiers believes all council members should look at the group’s research.  “Some of the line items they question never occurred to me to question,” he said.  Coun. Jack Gilroy says council is seeking a balance between finances and meeting public needs.  “They are really good questions but we have to keep the city running too,” he said of the group.  Mayor Wayne Lippert suggests 2011 may be the time to hold firm on expenses given substantial increases in recent years.  “There were good reasons for it at the time but we don’t need to continue with it,” he said of expanding services.  Council will hold another budget meeting today at 8:30 a.m. Public input will be received at 11:30 a.m.