Geneva mayor, alderman butt heads over budget
It was no pay-per-view, 12-round boxing match, but plenty of jabs were thrown during the Geneva City Council's main event: the proposed 2016-17 Geneva budget.
In one corner, Alderman Tom Simonian was saying the city government needs to change because, financially, times are going to get worse.
In the other corner, Mayor Kevin Burns was disagreeing with many of Simonian's points and worried about the effect the Monday night discussion might have on workers' morale. At one point he accused Simonian of "bludgeoning" city workers with a proposed pay freeze.
At the end of the night, though, Simonian had achieved two concessions.
1. The draft budget won't contain any money to pay for an assistant city administrator after June 13, the day the current one replaces the retiring city administrator. The city has already advertised the job.
2. It will cap the city's contributions to health and dental insurance at the same amount it spent this year.
The proposed budget, for the fiscal year beginning May 1, called for $91.13 million in spending.
Burns and Simonian disagree on how to view the budget. Simonian has compared the amount to what the city projects it will have actually spent by April 30, instead of just comparing it to this year's budget.
The proposed spending is $900,000 less than the 2015-16 budget, but $4.75 million more than projected actual spending. Nearly half the difference - $2.33 million - is for water, sewer, electricity and garbage service. Those operations are paid for mostly through user charges, not property taxes.
So Simonian proposed a hiring freeze that would require city council approval to fill any vacancy, and insurance contribution limits.
He criticized a decline in the number of days' worth of operating money the city would have in reserve. And he said the city should ask its unionized workers to freeze their pay.
Since being appointed to the council in May 2013, he has voted against every contract, saying the wage increases are unsustainable and should not be more than the rate of inflation.
"I prefer to make the adjustments today versus when the disaster hits. I'd rather be prepared. I'd rather be proactive than reactive," Simonian said.
Burns disputed Simonian's points, questioning his mathematics on some. Burns said the city has had a hiring freeze for eight years and that it would be ridiculous to make managers seek council approval for every hire in their departments.
He said the council had voted unanimously several months ago to use reserve money to buy land for another parking lot near the Metra rail station.
He criticized Simonian for publicly proposing the pay freeze, instead of suggesting it to management privately and having them approach the unions.
"For us to say in public that they must give up pay raises is grounds for (unions declaring) a hostile work environment," Burns said. " ... That's not budgeting, that's bludgeoning."
He also said Simonian had "just weakened our position" in the current negotiations for a new contract for firefighters. And he showed letters from employees - signed and anonymous - expressing disappointment.
Burns said the city's insurance broker is shopping around for deals, but that it is unrealistic to think that can be accomplished between now and May 1. The insurance contracts expire in the fall.
Aldermen voted 7-3 in favor of Simonian's recommendations to cap the city's contributions to health and dental insurance, and to cut out pay for an assistant administrator. The proposed overall pay and hiring freezes didn't come to a vote.
The revised draft budget will be put on public display Wednesday. A public hearing will be conducted April 4.
Alderman Jim Radecki also got the council to investigate asking voters in November to raise the city's sales tax.