Budget Committee Member Seal Addresses Mayoral Statements On Veto

Inflammatory Language
It is one thing to veto legislation.  It is another thing entirely to add personal accusations and inflammatory language to the media release associated with the veto. As American citizens, we all expect the executive branch to veto legislative action from time to time.  The veto process was designed by the founding fathers to create a “separation of powers”. This decentralization of authority is to protect citizens from overreaching power from any one branch of government. We all understand this process.  The problem with the above identified veto is that it was accompanied by a media release from Mayor Palmieri on June 28th that seemed to attack the competency and principles of the Budget Committee, and accused county commission of “passing out money based on personalities and favoritism”.  As a member of the Budget Committee, I am left in question about the basis of such a strange comment. It also leaves me concerned that some citizens may actually believe it. The Budget Committee struggled for months to formulate a county budget that it believes will properly serve the citizens of Jefferson County.  In my observation, none of the decisions made by that committee were taken lightly, nor did any money get distributed based on any favoritism or personality.  There was simply no extra money to distribute for such purposes.  Everyone that attended those long contentious budget meetings (February 16 – May 23) could see this simple fact and watch the process as it unfolded in public.  As I have said before, the inflammatory comments made by the Mayor are counterproductive to the business of operating Jefferson County Government.  For the second year in a row, the county budget was balanced by the Budget Committee and passed by full commission with no property tax increase.

No Property Tax Increase
I am proud that County Commission passed a balanced budget for 2016-2017, requiring no tax increase.  Numerous citizens in my district have offered praise for this accomplishment.  As of yet, I have received no complaints about the stabilization of the property tax rate.  Several citizens have commented to me that Jefferson County should fund its services based on the revenue in a given fiscal year, and that funding for services should only increase at the rate of normal tax revenue growth, a model that County Commission has been able to follow for the past two years.  If I were the Mayor, I would be proud of this accomplishment.  Apparently, he is not.  In fact, Mayor Palmieri stated that our “Budget Committee” could not “read a financial spreadsheet”, another very unusual statement that seems to question the competency of a thoughtful and capable committee, a committee that just produced another balanced budget for 2016-2017 under very trying circumstances.

Budget Process
The Jefferson County Budget Committee consists of 10 County Commissioners, about half of the seated members of County Commission.  That committee is charged with recommending a budget to the full commission each year, ideally in time to enact a budget before the fiscal year starts July 1 of any given year. This committee works with the County Finance Director, Budget Committee Chair, and department heads to propose budget changes, debate issues, set priorities, and formulate the overall county budget. Once the Budget Committee votes to approve the proposed budget, it is sent to the commission floor for consideration. For the past two years, I have been proud to serve with this diverse and talented group of committee members, all with a wide range of expertise. This range of talent is what it takes to vet county issues and formulate good financial policy.

Open Public Budget Meetings
I would encourage anyone to attend our open budget meetings in the Spring and see first-hand how your tax money is allocated, especially if you doubt a single word of this media release.