VOTE REJECT FOR TRANSPARENCY

Please give some thought to the items below before you place your vote on Tuesday, August 6, 2013. We, as taxpayers, MUST have accountability and transparency. There has been a great deal of wasteful spending in both budgets. We, as taxpayers, SHOULD NOT BE RESPONSIBLE for their waste. After your review of the above, I ask that you vote REJECT for all three items.

1. The State of Connecticut has restored funding to the City, yet the city is still increasing our taxes? If the City didn’t anticipate having those funds
when they created the budget and created the tax rate accordingly, then shouldn’t they decrease the tax increase when those funds are restored?
2. Even though your taxes were raised 5.51% last year and are budgeted to increase another 3.38% this year, services have still been cut!
3. Last year, 11.63% of your property taxes went to General Government and this year it increased to 21.56%? That’s a pretty big increase!
4. The Mayor of New London receives a 15% retirement contribution? This means each year the citizens of New London put approximately $12,750.00 into his retirement fund. That’s approximately $51,000.00 in the course of his 4 year term. The Mayor was eligible to receive those funds immediately. Take a look at your retirement package (if you have one), how does it compare?
5. Non-Union employees in New London receive a 9.5% retirement contribution? In comparison, State of Connecticut employees receive between 2% and 5% contribution to their retirement!
6. In the City of New London the Mayor’s staff is eligible to receive their retirement benefits after only 12 months of employment?
7. The City’s Liability premium has gone from approximately $500,000.00 to approximately ONE MILLION dollars since last year? Hmmmm, why do you think that is?
8. We have not seen any of the anticipated savings from the switch to the State’s MER’s programs, the one the Firefighter’s fought for, because we still haven’t switched over?
9. The Operational Audit which was supposed to be completed by 03/31/13 is still not complete because the Finance Department has not supplied all the accounting information required to generate the report?
10. The former tenants of the Masonic Street building, a building owned by the city, left because the city would not spend the money to install air conditioning? This was a loss of approximately $50,000.00 a year to the city. Now that they have moved out, and the Finance Department is the sole occupant, the Finance Director wants to spend $100,000.00 to upgrade and repair the building. This includes adding air conditioning.
11. The City of New London has bonded 6 MILLION dollars for a Deep Water Pump to supply water to other cities which will result in yet another water rate increase? Though other towns will see an increase as well, New London will shoulder most of the burden.
12. The School Administration spent almost $2000.00 on bottled water for the central office while our children went to school without working water f fountains.
13. The Superintendent of Schools in New London is supplied a $500.00 per MONTH car allowance!
14. The School Administration hired 3 new Administrators this year at over $100K each, yet continue to lay off classroom aides and support staff?
15. There is a plan in place to combine the Finance and Information Technology departments of the City and the Public Schools, estimated to save the city hundreds of thousands of dollars, and it hasn’t been completed?
16. The School Administration has used your tax dollars to buy lunch for its employees, varsity jackets for Board of Education members, flower arrangements and tickets for the Martin Luther King dinner? Just to name a few items.
17. The School Administration has failed year after year to provide the City Council with a complete budget? How can the Mayor support, and City Council effectively evaluate, a municipal budget if they do not have detailed budgetary information required? That’s right, THEY CAN’T!