Our Money

The Council meeting as expected was short but was followed immoderately with a reconvened budget meeting. Unfortunately I was unable to stay for more than a few minutes.

There were 17 resolutions on the consent agenda, one to the reappointment of the Tax Collector, and one to confirm an inter-local agreement with Piscataway regarding Plainfield's share of the Rock Ave improvements. Councilman Candidate Mapp questioned where the financing would come from?

City Administrator Marc Dashield "clarified" the impact of the $1.6 typo revenue item in the proposed 2009 budget. On paper it will be made up by a $832,000.00 decrease in the " Expenditure Reserve Uncollected Taxes" plus a$831.000.00 increase(!) in Surplus Anticipated. Oh well numbers are numbers, but since the projected budget expenses were developed after arriving at a figure for income, there is going to have to be some real budgetary revisions.

I have previously suggest renegotiation's with the Unions, and trimming of some of the fat. A responder to Councilman Storch's blog added a suggestion that the employees contribute to part of their share cost for their comprehensive health insurance packages.

Some one will have to bite the bullet so that we will, have a workable , livable budget for 2009. There will be penny pinching.Bottles of water seems to be a luxury, rather than a necessity. A strict examining the line items marked consultants should produce positive results. If we have employees in job slots that they can not fill, either demote them or replace therm.

Perhaps our congressional leaders should be on the look out for a rebirth of the successful depression era program such as a WPA and for buildings the PWA. If they appear make a good lobby to rebuilt our streets. and Firehouse modifications to come up to code.