By: Diane Benjamin
Tax receipts are flat. The City of Bloomington is facing more “structural deficits” they created. What to do, what to do?
Let’s hold a retreat Saturday at the Den where it can’t be video taped! The citizens have no right to know we are going to raise property taxes:
Packet PDF page 5: http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=14932
A binding referendum to abolish Home Rule would severely limit their abilities too!
Meanwhile, the City not being able to the bills is considering building a new library! Even adding on to the one they have is ludicrous.
You can’t pay your bills, so let’s build a new house! Is there a mental health professional that will volunteer their services to the Council?
Below is a graph from page 5. It supposedly recaps programs and if they fund themselves or need General Fund money. Funny though, ENTERTAINMENT isn’t listed, so it’s buried somewhere. Of course the specifics won’t be discussed.
Here’s a cut the Council should discuss but never will:
End Economic Development funding!
Paying salaries for people to compile meaningless data (economic impact for example), hold lunches and dinners, and travel at taxpayer expense is a waste of the money stolen from the people WHO EARNED IT!
Giving people the right to make their own decisions, and not stealing more money for your folly, is the only way Bloomington’s economy will ever flourish again.
This gem is on page 7:
No, BlnNews is not on their media list.
Instead of writing the story you want told and then sending it to the media, how about posting facts on the website and letting the media write their own stories?
In 2014 Renner talked the Council into passing the below. This is Tari’s award-winning plan to fund pensions by making these payments:
Does money grow on trees Tari?
Did you expect it to magically appear?
What cuts did the City make to get ready for these payments?
I seem to remember cuts to this schedule have already occurred because the money doesn’t exist. I don’t remember Tari giving back the award however.
Page 9 shows why moving now is the right thing to do, massive deficits coming:
Page 11 outlines the duties of the Council.
See if you can identify the problem:
The duties of the mayor are on the same page. Falling in his responsibility as outlined must not come with penalties.
Page 19 states:
Pest control and custodial services in facilities is a low priority.
Page 28 states:
drop-off facility, street lights, brick streets, and curb repair are a low priority.
The following pages have lots of info.
Tourism is a high priority! Why?
Where does government get the biggest bang for a buck?
Hotel/Motel taxes (6%) and Food/Beverage taxes (2%)
It’s perfect! The citizens get LOW WAGE jobs, but the City gets a tax windfall!
Page 45 again calls brick streets a low priority.
The Council JUST decided they aren’t.
The City spent a fortune ranking spending.
Grossinger Motors Arena isn’t mentioned.
The BCPA, the Zoo, and others are included.
The biggest problem is Hales created too much information. Almost everything is ranked as High or Medium priority. The LOW priority items, if cut, mean mice will be running around City Hall and the streets will be dark.
Don’t expect anything serious to be accomplished. It was planned to not produce results.
It’s almost like Hales is still here! Actually, he might be. His last day is the 7th.
Citizens can attend the retreat.
Public Comment is early, the meeting starts at 7:30.
Priority budgeting for government is very simple. Only spend revenue for the purpose of government function. Ask the question, is this “program” a function of government and it is simple as to what is a high (or only) priory.
You need to be the next City manager.
Just like Renner’s repeated statements, this mantra should be stated during public comment at every meeting from now until February.
Their unspoken mantra: The ends justify the means. Their “ends:” Collapse the system. Their “means.” Drive the debt into the stratosphere.
Their voting on the ordinance for elected officials’ reimbursement indicates tax revenue is for their purposes. They believe giving gifts from elected officials and bringing family members on trips paid with taxpayer dollars is appropriate. That action speaks volumes.
Funny how “the council” wants to keep up with ALL the surrounding areas, but I find that the tax on eating out is the HIGHEST here in B/N.
And WHAT do they NEED a “retreat” for anyway. Can’t the DO THEIR JOB in the confines of city hall and be happy with their light $200 lunches or pizza binges?
I don’t EVEN want to know the tab on this cluster……
Breakfast and lunch for Council members and staff. Lodging and travel for the facilitator. It’s not cheap.
The last facilitator was paid thousands of dollars. I think it was $175 per hour and she spent a lot of time talking to the Council members and planning before the actual retreat.
Renner and entire board needs to be removed. Get people in there who will work for us and stop spending OUR MONEY. Enough on taxes too. Stop steeling from Bloomington for your benefit and not what you think we need.
The errors on Page 11 are too numerous to mention. WOWZER!