Image: Liberty of London piggy bank. Happy New Fiscal Year!The City Council will hold a special emergency meeting Thursday (July 1, 2010) at 7 p.m. in City Hall Library.
The meeting is being held to adopt a resolution "authorizing approval for transfers between the State Fiscal Year 2010 appropriations of the general Fund of the City of Plainfield."
As presented at the June 21 council meeting, the resolution calls for transfer of a total of $690,200. The biggest item to be reduced is $340,000 in employee benefits. Another $130,000 in salary and wages is to be taken from the Division of Public Works. Items to be increased are workers' compensation for $275,000 and police salary and wages for $200,000.
The council deferred the item to Monday's (June 28) special meeting in order to seek ways to shift some funding to the Plainfield Public Library, but it was not on Monday's agenda. The special emergency meeting was announced today.
At the June 21 meeting, Library Director Joe Da Rold gave a presentation detailing the harm that proposed cuts could do to library operations. The library already had its budget cut by $300,000 in the 2009-2010 fiscal year to $1.556 million, resulting in cutbacks in hours and staffing. If continued in the FY 2011 year, the ongoing reductions would force layoff of six fulltime employees and eight part-time employees, eliminate on of two custodians and demote two fulltime employees.
(Note: The cuts only kicked in after the FY 2010 budget was passed on Feb. 16. If maintained, the cuts will affect the full fiscal year beginning July 1.)
Based on talks with the city administrator, Da Rold said, a likely scenario for FY 2011 is reduction of library funds to their legal minimum, about $1.2 million. That amount would eliminate 12 of 19 fulltime employees,6 of 12 part-time employees, cause closing at 5 p.m. every day, close Literacy and Local History programs and make the library unavailable for community meetings or programs, among other effects.
Da Rold called for a restored $1.9 million budget in FY 2011, which would still have some repercussions.
Da Rold said on June 21 there was "a movement afoot to disenfranchise the library from city government" by the administration. After his presentation, numerous people testified on the need for the library and its value to the community. But Councilman Adrian Mapp insisted the governing body had the right to restore funding.
The split over the library as a priority is one of several bones of contention between the council and administration recently. A four-hour retreat including both sides was held Monday afternoon in an effort to air the differences.
--Bernice Paglia
"But Councilman Adrian Mapp insisted the governing body had the right to restore funding"
ReplyDeleteInsisted? Insisted? Insisted on what?
Mapp was the one who voted to cut the library's budget in the first place.
Come on Bernice. Speak plainly.
Bernice:
ReplyDeleteTo anonymous I say:
The PPL knows the truth, and the members of the public who followed the budget process know the truth about who did what to the PPL's budget. It is a fact that the Administration cut the PPL's budget by $300K by requiring it to reimburse the City for the cost of health benefits for its employees. It is also a fact that I fought hard to have half of those funds restored. I voted to restore funding to the PPL, I did not vote to cut its funding. This is a fact that cannot be disputed; my vote for funding restoration is proof of my action.
I will continue to fight for the PPL.
Regards,
Adrian
Thank you Councilmen Mapp for attempting to tell us your side of the truth.
ReplyDeleteBut the truth is:
Rashid Burney is the only Councilperson who tried to restore the entire budget to the library. You and Corey Storch voted to cut the budget in half. The library now has no weekend or night hours. Thank you very much!
Councilman Burney attempted to eliminate the wasteful C of C process and have those funds go to the library. You and Storch didnot go for it. Now all the NGO's have no place to hold meetings.Thank you very much!
I applaud your attempts to make Plainfield better Mr. Mapp, (unlike your colleague over in the 2nd ward that does nothing). But please be truthful about your recent record as far as it relates to the Plainfield Public Library. Thank you very much!
Why did they lay people off if there was a surplus from last year ?????
ReplyDeleteThe Council led by New Dems Mapp, Storch and McWilliams voted to cut the library's budget by $150,000. It was the Ccouncil who adopts the budget. A vote for the budget is a vote to cut the budget.
ReplyDeleteIt was the Council which adopted the cuts. The Mayor only introduced them.
But you won't find these facts on Dan Damon's blog.
Speaking Plainly of course.
Once a budget is submitted to the Council by the administration it becomes "the Council's budget." At least this is what Mr. Mapp has said publicly many times. Now he wants to distance himself from the cuts to the Library? Thanks, Adrian, but we're not buying it!
ReplyDeleteTo 10:48 a.m.: The Certificate of Compliance process involves a fee paid by those requesting the inspection. I believe it was recently increased to cover the cost. So it is not "wasteful" of city funds.
ReplyDelete