Just another reminder. That 5% franchise fees for gas & electric utilities is on the city council's agenda for Monday, 8/10/09 at 7:30PM. Funny, thought it was supposed to be 8/24 but apparently it got moved up two weeks. Don't really remember seeing that in the local press.
Anyway, this is another one of those council sessions that folks need to get involved in, regardless of their opinions.
Looking back on the last council session, there were a few other items that were interesting to say the least. Council members Straub, Pflumm and Goode had a proposal that would have reduced the budget by $1.4 million. There were some problems with that. One example was that Straub said it did not involve reductions in force, yet the mayor said the proposed reduction in pet licensing expenditures would have eliminated a position. What appears to have happened is that some of the proposed reductions may have just been arbitrary, and some may not have been. This is where it gets interesting. Straub claims that the city manager did not provide him with all of his requested info to be able to review various line items. The city manager claims that he was provided with everything that was available that he asked for.
Now we have a classic "he said, she said". Actually, "what we have here is a failure to communicate"...........and maybe, just maybe, a little antagonism from both sides.
Monday night should prove interesting. Will there be a rehash of the budget itself? What sort of debate will arise over the proposed 5% franchise fees? Will we be treated to another self aggrandizing speech by council rep Kuhn?
The best info source for what happens at these meetings is what people see and hear for themselves. That is why more folks need to show up, at least to listen, and if the need arises, to voice their opinions. Oh, if anybody is interested, I have a few comments about the 5% franchise fee.............they will be mentioned Monday night.
