By: Diane Benjamin
Tonight’s Bloomington Council packet contains this statement on PDF page 4: http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=12802
Now jump to the Bills and Payroll for tonight:
http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=12794
PDF page 107
The City if THROWING away money by allowing employees to spike their pensions!
This payment of $64,859.95 brings the total to $1,877,252.40 since the law was changed in 2012 requiring accelerated payments to make up for pensions cost caused by spiking.
This expense is completely avoidable but City employees would be upset, so screw you taxpayers!
That’s not all:
Employee Health Insurance:
How much does the private sector provide to their employees? https://www.zanebenefits.com/blog/study-the-average-cost-of-small-business-health-insurance
Next look at the TOTAL COMPENSATION Report for 2016 – the report is mislabeled as 2017: http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=12646
Notes at the bottom say employees pay an average of 25% of the cost, the amount listed for insurance is what taxpayers are forced to pay. Contributions by employees are NOT included.
Summary:
Pensions spiking and lavish benefits for employees – at your expense – prove the City of Bloomington is doing nothing to control the biggest costs they have: EMPLOYEES.
The City’s cute statement about controlling cost is meaningless. You have more tax increases coming your way!
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Just look at the price of food at the grocery store lately! As if it hadn’t jumped enough over the last two years. With these accelerated food costs, higher taxes, wasted consultants and studies many retirees will have to move to areas that are not so expensive.
I would be curious to know how many dollars are being handed to the union employees for overtime pay.
I was out Sat. and happened to be on Morrissey turning onto Oakland Ave. going east and I saw a crew of what I believed to be Bloomington public works employees pouring concrete for a street gutter drain.
Really, can’t do that during the 40 hour week? Must be a payback means for the union vote.
File a FOIA for all overtime pay since January 1st 2017. Also file one for January 1st, 2016 to May 8th 2016. See if there is a HUGE difference.
Someone commented at the Public Hearing on the Budget about addressing the pension spiking and gold-plated health care coverage as a way to keep costs under control. Comments by ordinary citizens are fruitless. Heck, the Council doesn’t even listen to staff. There is already a structural deficit in the FY2018 budget because the administration “borrowed” $1M from one fund to pay for another in order to “balance” the budget. Soon the Council will be voting on raising the water and sewer fees–maybe as high as Normal recently did. Tax increases will follow shortly after. Remember, Renner not only increased taxes but added new ones in 2013. Even the substantial increase in Liquor license fees has not helped with cash flow. The current budget has ballooned from FY2017. About $2M dollars was spent on real estate in downtown. Supposedly, the various departments reduced their budgets by $2M. I have no idea what the increase in the budget is to be used for. (there are 2 new administrative positions) The unfettered spending is not sustainable with revenue being flat. The Budget Task Force failed because they never considered limiting new spending or all options for reductions.